Monochrome Monday; Bull Island Fisherman Clearing His Net

It's not easy being a fisherman on the lower Chesapeake Bay. (click to enlarge)
I originally posted this image in color in 2017 but the black & white version looks so
much better to me.  The waders are bright orange and I felt the bright color drew attention
away from the essence of this image, which is the fisherman himself.

On one of my frequent visits to Bull Island (Poquoson, VA), which occupies the western shore of the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay, I happened upon this fisherman along with two others unloading the morning's catch.  I exited my vehicle with my camera and walked toward him, silently motioning in body language non-verbally asking if it was okay if I made some photographs.  He acknowledged yes.  

I made a number of images with my Fujifilm X-T2 as he and the other two fishermen unloaded their catch.  They didn’t pay any attention to me as I photographed, which is exactly what I wanted.  Part of what this man was doing, which you see in this image, was removing the fish that were still caught in the net as well as untangling it.  Again, I zeroed in on him because of his unique looks and made many more exposures.  The three or four images I made with him momentarily looking directly at me are my favorites.

We talked a bit and he told me a little about his background.  One thing I remember is that he started growing his beard right out of high school.  He also said his wife and children have never seen him without it!

If you can't get an image to work as well as you would like in color, maybe black & white will do the trick.  It’s worth a try.

Join me over at my website, https://www.dennismook.com.  

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!  

Dennis A. Mook  

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