Texas Icons

Photo Information

Taken:	12 August 2012 12:21 near Nordheim, Texas
Camera:	Canon EOS Rebel T2i / Cannon EF 75-300mm
Exposure:	ISO 100
	95mm, 0 EV
	f/10
	1/400

Backstory

Here are two symbols of money in Texas: cotton and oil. I came upon this shot as Dad and I drove back to the farm from lunch in Nordheim. The scene was so archetypal, I had to come back the next day with a camera. It’s so deceptively peaceful at a distance, much noisier and more energetic up close.

When I was a boy and people found out I was from Texas, they’d always ask if I had an oil well. This one isn’t mine, but it’s only a few miles away. And it’s so much prettier towering over the cotton waiting to be picked than over corn, which has been allowed to dry for cattle feed.

For more about my visit with Dad, see “One More Year” on The Hermitage.

–25 August 2012