Photography depends upon light -- nay IS light. Without light, photography cannot exist. But it is not simple light; it is light reflected. Bounced. And in the process, shaded and, in the case of color photography, differentially reflected. So it isn't light, per se, but gradations of light and it is the gradations that are truly of interest. The forms, patterns, shades and lines turn to shapes that may be interpreted by the eye of the beholder.

The light gradations are a product of two things -- the properties of the reflecting surface and the placement of the light source relative to the reflecting surface and the observer. Some surfaces absorb more light while others reflect more light. The former appear "dark" to the observer while the latter appear "light." Surfaces take on color when they absorb certain frequencies of light while reflecting other frequencies.

When light falls on a surface, it is either absorbed or reflected; it does not reach the space behind the surface. The space behind the surface receives no light and is therefore dark. The light is obstructed. This is a shadow. The shadow takes on the contours of the obstructing surface. But it is only the contours; there is no internal detail. And it may be distorted, depending on the placement of the light source relative to the obstructing surface.

Although a dependent, the shadow evolves and takes on a life of its own. Separate. Somehow unattached. Detached. And yet, not. And without substance. So the sense of mystery develops. The fantastic. The object of dreams and imagination. A cousin of ghosts. Spirits without body. But stalking spirits, as they follow and lurk; waiting. Threatening. Or ... your best friend, one who will never leave your side. Reliable and true. Open to the interpretation of the beholder ...

The best photographers have learned to use shadows in their images. The work in the earlymorning orlate afternoon, when the sun is lw and the shadows long. Henri Cartier-Bresson was a master of using shadows to trendous dramatic effect. Walker Evans' images also benefit greatly from the use of shadows. And what would Edward Wesson's bell pepper be without shadows?

These images are of the shadows, per se! Confronting the mysterious and fantastic. Playing with the dream. Conjuring the imagination.