Night Light of the North Coast: Cooks Valley Bridge

Humboldt-Mendocino County Line on Highway 271 over the South Fork Eel River. October 14, 2018.

In 1993 I spent a year in Chicago. Even then I loved photographing at night; I have always been drawn to it. I would use either available light or introduce light of my own, painting it into a scene much as I do now. I wasn’t comfortable photographing with models then, confining myself mostly to scenes without people and making them interesting with unusual angles and lighting. I had a couple of photography shows while I was there, both in small galleries. After those two shows, I was charged up, and submitted my portfolio to a larger gallery. But I found a curious thing.

“They’re interesting,” the curator said, “but you need figures in them. Figures lend a human element and a story to an image.”

I was abashed, and somewhat offended, I have to admit. But as time passed, I realized she was right. Photography is a visual language that can convey feelings, messages, and stories. But there is only so much story you can get out of a sunset, or a flower, or interesting lighting when there are no people present. A pretty picture can be very attractive, no doubt, and I was proud of my photographs, but when you put a person in there, tales will pop out.

Each person viewing an image will have a different experience, which will sometimes make it difficult for the photographer to convey specific ideas or messages. Someone might chuckle where another gasps. Individual experiences people have in their lives shape how they view the world, and one person’s reaction to an image may be very different from the reaction of another person. At one show I had, a woman simply could not look at a photograph of my young son’s face that I had blended with leaves. To me it was a soothing image. But she had to turn away from it, and told me it was painful to see. I don’t know what experience she had had that could give her that reaction to the peaceful image of my little “Forest Spirit,” but it was very real to her.

On Saturday, October 13, 2018, model Lula May Williams and I met to make images at the county line that we knew would resonate with people in one way or another. The setting was Cooks Valley Bridge on Highway 271, which crosses the South Fork Eel River at the southern border of Humboldt County, parallel to Highway 101 just a couple miles south of Richardson Grove.

A photograph is worth a thousand words, they say. Some photos show, some describe, and some tell stories. Consider the stories forming in your mind as you study these images. What thoughts do you find surfacing? Whatever I may have been thinking when I photographed these moments, whatever Lula thought as she planned her outfits and props and poses, the stories forming in your mind are your own. I made these photographs knowing that the figures would tell powerful stories for some people. Though there are times when I want to send a message, this isn’t one of them, and these photographs aren’t messages from me. They are catalysts for your own thoughts. The thoughts you are experiencing are from you. My own role is to provide food for your thoughts.

What I am trying to say is that I’m not trying to express a message here. Yet I know these images will generate some powerful thoughts in some of you. We shot from several angles, with various lighting, and she wore different clothes and struck different poses, creating opportunities for narratives to develop in the viewer. One of the poses was whimsical, a dancer in the twirling glow of a whirling scarf.

As Lula and I photographed the dancing scene, a car’s headlights down the road approached and pulled in alongside my truck. The lights went out, and a car door slammed shut. Uh, oh, I thought. Miscreants?

“Is one of you David Wilson?” Called a woman’s friendly voice.

What?!

I laughed. “Yes! Who is it?”

“It’s Talia!” She cried. Far out! It was Talia Rose, famous around here for her wonderful wildlife photography down near the county line. She had just passed by us a few minutes before, and returned to see if it were me. And it was.

The headlights of Talia Rose’s car became part of this photograph as she approached to see what we were doing.

We laughed some more. She pointed out where she’d seen some of the critters she photographs. A couple days later, within spitting distance of where we were on the bridge, she saw and photographed a mountain lion stalking an otter. The cat may have been nearby while we were out there.

The light on the hillside in the distance is from passing cars on Highway 101, and the light in the foreground is my own. The model, Lula May Williams, is also known as “LulaMay The Model” on Facebook, and @lula_may_no_lula_will on Instagram.

To see previous entries of “Night Light of the North Coast,” click on my name above the article. If you’d like to keep abreast of my most current photography or peer into its past, you can follow me on Instagram at @david_wilson_mfx . I update my website mindscapefx.com less frequently, but you can contact me there.

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15 Comments
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ESFOAD
Guest
ESFOAD
5 years ago

Again David, your photography is amazing. The Milky Way is a one-of-a-kind backdrop. That bridge is less than a mile from my home, it has quite a history.

Just me
Guest
Just me
5 years ago

Very nice! And yes, the pictures did, indeed, bring some stories to mind!

Ann D.
Guest
Ann D.
5 years ago

Excellent work as always David, i really like that you included the one photo sans model as well to better compare,contrast and demonstrate your point..
Thank you again for sharing your expertise, experience and unique perspective. Looking forward to more as the cooler months and they’re changing scapes approach. Youre snowy frames from atop kneeland last year are still some of my favorite screensavers..😃

Ann D.
Guest
Ann D.
5 years ago

Excellent work as always David, i really like that you included the one photo sans model as well to better compare and contrast your point..
Thank you again for sharing your expertise, experience and unique perspective. Looking forward to more as the cooler months and they’re changing scapes approach. Youre snowy frames from atop kneeland last year are still some of my favorite screensavers..😃

Canyon oak
Guest
Canyon oak
5 years ago

The real scene has a adult kid in a dirty hoodie flicking a butt into the river.
Namaste

The Hermit of Grizzly Mountain
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The Hermit of Grizzly Mountain
5 years ago

I enjoy when high-res photos are posted so I can see the details. These thumbnail-sized images are nice, though.

David Wilson
Guest
David Wilson
5 years ago

Thanks, and dang, I meant to send higher resolution files, but I think my email app was set to send small versions by mistake.

Mogtx
Guest
5 years ago

The model has really nice legs lol

John
Guest
John
5 years ago

The one with the chick hitchhiking is vaguely creepy. Reminds me of some old episode of “One Step Beyond,” or woo-oo stuff I’ve listened to on Coast-to-Coast AM. The girl who tries to get home that night, every year. You know?

Trevor
Guest
Trevor
5 years ago

Is she holding an assault rifle in the second image? That would be awesome. Either way, nice photos dude!

David Wilson
Guest
David Wilson
5 years ago

I sure appreciate your comments and stories. I’d love to hear more about the bridge.

Hopefully the images will get some stories swirling in your imaginations as you look at them. I sure wish I’d sent larger versions of these. Maybe I can stick them into the comments…

Here’s the Dancer. It should get larger if you tap or click on it.

David Wilson
Guest
David Wilson
5 years ago

The first image, the bridge alone. It should get larger if you tap or click on it.

David Wilson
Guest
David Wilson
5 years ago

The second image…

David Wilson
Guest
David Wilson
5 years ago

the Hitchhiker of Cooks Valley Bridge… It should get larger if you tap or click on it.

Yellow
Guest
Yellow
5 years ago

She’s got legs (ZZ Top).
She’s waiting for a sharp dressed man.