Uncharacteristic was the word that essentially described my day. Last night I made a decision to wake up in the morning and begin a self-assigned photography project — not a personal project, because today, all assignments better be personal. So, I packed myself a snack, picked up a coffee for the road, and stopped by Borders to pick up a new journal before embarking. First stop: The entire border separating, or joining Ohio and Pennsylvania. Why? I like maps. I really like Google Maps. In many ways the project began one evening a few months ago while surfing. I was looking for something. Not sure what. Can’t recall. But, I landed on Google Maps, and just started roaming the United States, one mouse drag at a time. Borders began to interest me. I think I remember spotting a structure through which a state line passed through — perhaps it was a house — and distinctly remember wondering if the people living there had set up anything inside to designate the invisible border. That begged the question: How do people deal with borders? This can be answered on so many different levels, and rephrased to attempt to address all sorts of issues such as: Land rights, taxes, deeds to homes and land, taxes, neighborly relationships, taxes, commute, energy, taxes and so on and so forth. So, first thing this morning I printed out a couple GPS coordinates, and off I went. I won’t tell you what I found, or who I talked to, because then I would have to write a spoiler alert. Wait. I just did. Well, you get the idea. This is going to be a long project. The plan is to thoroughly research and plan out every destination from here on out. Today was a test. I traversed the entire OH/PA state line from Conneaut until I hit the end going south. I documented a lot, and missed a lot — on purpose. An audio recorder will be necessary for the project, which will then require a revisit of today’s excursion. After conducting an interview today, I felt the need to have a permanent record of all future interviews. Never know what people are going to say. Their own words and voices in my opinion sound far more genuine than the alternative. What’s more, my chicken scratch is well, just that. We’re talking borderline doctor’s script. Anyhow, one of my last and lasting images from the journey was of the roadkill you’re looking at, or trying not to look at. Believe me, it was hard. I stopped 100 yards in front of it, and photographed with long glass as a turkey vulture feasted upon the carrion. Got back in my car after making a few frames, and approached, then kept driving. All the while I was thinking to myself, ‘just shoot it, what’s the harm? You’ve done it before. Think of the implications of the frame in a finished project’. Really, think about it. If the state line runs down the middle of the road, which according to GPS it does, who’s jurisdiction does the animal fall into? All joking aside, I think it’s a poignant frame given the subject of the project. A successful picture? Well, it’s roadkill. What more can you show about road kill in a photograph? That’s why I chose to shoot it with the Hipstamatic app. (I did snap a few frames with the Nikon.) Not sure when the next trip will happen, but it’s gong to have to be Ohio again.
