JPG Magazine: Stories: Photo Essay: Play Time

Play Time

By Wes Toole

17 July 2008

I often feel guilty about going out to shoot a site when I have some off-time because I feel like I should be spending that time with the family. I know it is healthy to have a hobbie that gets you away for a little while (i.e. golf, gym, fishing) and I have tried each of these but have often felt guilty if I am not sharing it with the kids or wife. I think this is why photography has become such a passion for me. It is something I can do while spending time with family, and something I can share with them and involve them in the process.

These shots were taken at a park near our home. The boys call it "red park - blue park" because of the predominant colors on the play equipment. Depending on the time of day you can have a field day with shadows and the color casting. In these shots I tried to capture what it must look like from a child's eye looking at the different equipment items. Whether it is a child looking up at the old worn basketball rim that seems too high to ever be able to make a basket on their own, or the curve of a slide as they go down it for the tenth time that day; these are also what I remember from the playgrounds I would frequent as a child.