Readers who have been following this blog since the inception may recall that I very much like dogwood, of which I have already published a close-up of a blossom in a previous post.
This photograph of a small dogwood tree, stubbornly clinging to a rock in the middle of an impetuous river is another image that I hold dear because I think it clearly conveys a message of resilience and will to survive against all odds. Two very positive messages, if you ask me.
The black & white rendition simplifies the image to its graphic elements and amplifies the yin-yang contrast between the dark and the light portions of the image, that balance each other out nicely, as if divided by an imaginary diagonal line.
Oh yeah, the title for this post pays homage to my favorite Springsteen song 🙂
If you would like to see more images of mine, feel free to browse my Galleries.
As per my copyright notice, please respect my work and do not download, reproduce or use the image above without first seeking my consent. Thank you 
Clicks & Corks 
Oh I so love this image. It is one of my favourites of yours for sure. Very nice.
Thank you so much, Kimberly! So glad you liked it.
Have a wonderful weekend! 🙂
It’s a beautie, Stefano,
b&w seems the be the perfect mood to emphasize the balance between strong moving powers, fragile strength and light. I’d really like to take up your suggestion to do a tutorial on RAW. RAW for dummies, the elementary. 🙂 Now I have RAW photos, which way is the easiest, best to make the most of it? Something like that?
Sunny greetings to the 3 of you from the 4 of us in Norfolk! 🙂
Dina
Dear Dina,
Thank you so much for your kind comment: I am glad you liked it, and I also think that B&W is what works best with this image. Glad we are on the same page 🙂
Okay, you have convinced me: I will do the “basics of how to shoot RAW” tutorial, I promise!
Have a wonderful weekend,
Stefano
I think black and white can carry so much more of a message in that it shows contrasts better. This is yet another beautiful and charismatic shot.
Thank you very much, Oliver!
And I totally agree: B&W is still king for enhancing contrast.
Dear Stefano,
what a great symbolic image! And the black and white makes it even more symbolic.
Love from the sunny coast of North Norfolk
Klausbernd
Thank you very much, Dear Klausbernd!
I am so glad you liked it. In a way, it could be an example of the oneiric symbolism that you so aptly talked about on your wonderful blog recently. You know, it is an image that kind of reminds me of the symbolism in Hitchcock’s movie “Spellbound”. There it was snow, here it is water: close enough! 😉
You know how to capture more than just an image in a photograph! I love the motion of the water and how the tree is seemingly resting peacefully in the middle.
Thank you very much, Heather: I am not only happy that you like it, but also that my image managed to convey to you what I was trying to express!
This photo looks like a Japanese “Sumi-e”! It’s absolutely beautiful, Stefano!
Thank you very much, Yuko: your comment really flatters me as I love Japanese sumi-e, which I find so incredibly elegant, like most of the Japanese art.
This is a beautiful photo, Stefano, and it’s easy to see why you favor it. Your choice of B&W here was a good one, giving the image far more power than it would have had. And once again, you point us to a gallery filled with beautiful images. Very nicely done.
Thank you very much, John: I am glad that you concur with my choice to make this image a B&W. I really think it brings out all of its potential. Thank you for your always thoughtful comments.
Beautiful; tranquility in the midst of turmoil. Brilliant concept.
Thank you, Maureen: glad you liked it!
Amazing. Dogwood … I am from the South … and there was an area of wilderness called “Dogwood Drive”. This was a good reminder, a flashback. You do great work.
Thank you, Daniel: glad my photograph brought back nice memories! Dogwood are wonderful when they are in bloom!