Transcript
- 1.Photo EssayTanner Mclean
My goal for this assignment was to capture the culture and cultural influences of the Midwest with a focus on Minnesota. To me, the biggest yet most basic cultural influence in Minnesota is the distinct changing of the seasons. I tried to capture these and the distinct cultural influences in the following photographs. Each photo is fairly current. Most have been taken within the past few months, and others within the past few weeks. Enjoy
2. A picture perfect sunset with a lone boat in the distance,
captured from the shores of Leech lake near Walker, Minnesota.
Leech lake is the third largest lake in Minnesota covering over
112,000 acres. Although a popular tourist and vacation destination
in the summer , Leech Lake brings in around 10,00 people every
February for the International Eelpout Festival. I attended my
first Eelpout festival last February and the festivals events and
activities truly mirror the unpredictability and craziness of a
Minnesota winter.
3. Wakeboarding on Leech Lake
4. This picture was taken from the warning trackof the Minnesota
Twins new home, Target Field. I had purchased my tickets from the
Minnesota MS society for the June, 7th game vs. Kansas City.The
game was sponsored by the MS society and all tickets purchased
through them gave the holderthe unique opportunity to be the
firstgroup to walk the warning track before the game began. I
snapped this photo from center field. The new ballpark seats 40,000
fans and with the game sold out it was an experience I will never
forget. The Twins won 7-3.
5. Larry Vogel from Chaska MN takes a cat nap on a four wheeler
after a long ride in Walker MN. Larry farms 250 acres of land just
west of Chaska, and is the father of 3 girls one of which attends
Minnesota State University Mankato. This picture was taken in July
while I was on vacation with the Vogelsat their small cabin right
off of Leech Lake. The cabin was originally an old pole barn that
was converted to a lake cabin, and is quietly placed off the beaten
path, not a cabin in sight, with National Park Lands right in their
back yard. The cabin has been a family gathering spot for Vogelsfor
the past 23 years.
6. An abandoned farmhouse sits alone and rotting just outside
Cormorant Village township in central Minnesota. An all to common
sight in rural Minnesota, known to the locals as the Half-house, it
was once a home to a local farming family. Half the house was moved
about 35 years ago but due to financial difficulties the move was
not completed. It has become somewhat of a family tradition of ours
to visit the house every year and explore the forgotten treasures
inside. The house has sat empty for the past 35 years yet we seem
to find something new every visit. I snapped this photo on a trip
to the house that my family took mid July. This years treasure was
an unopened letter from 1973 found inside a rusted drawer in the
house.
7. An older gentlemen stands quietly in front of a
gravestone.
I saw this man while visiting my girlfriends grandfathers burial
place.The man stood unwavering for over 20 minutes staring at the
same headstone with his family waiting quietly behind him. The
image was so powerful I couldnt help but snap a photo. After
inquiring I learned that the gravesite was that of his brother
whose funeral he was unable to attend. This was his first visit to
his brothers final resting place.
8. Here we have a picture of the Minneapolis/St. Paul skyline. I
snapped this picture on my way back from Fargo to Mankato a few
weeks ago. I chose this picture for this photo essay to act more as
a symbol than anything. Although much of my culture is influenced
by the ruralness that shapes the Midwest, the cities area and other
large cities in the Midwest have a big influence too. This picture
represents the creativity, entertainment, and overall options that
can sometimes feel nonexistent in rural communities
9. This is all that remains of an abandoned playground in Moorhead,
Minnesota. This picture was taken on a recent trip I took to my
hometown of Fargo, North Dakota. Moorhead is just on the other side
of the Red River which makes the border between North Dakota and
Minnesota. I used to play on this playground as a kid, but improper
funding and lack of maintenance caused the park to be
abandoned.
10. Kelly Vogel shooting a .22 caliber pistol in a plowed field
just south of Mankato, Minnesota. Hunting is a big part of
Midwestern culture and is something I personally grew up doing.
Growing up in a hunting family it became a time for all of us to
get together and bond. Like clockwork every deer season we would go
out to the farm and sight our guns for the upcoming hunt. Hunting
influences Midwest culture in many ways, especially in rural areas.
Hunters coming from out of the area flood the Midwest every year
bringing much needed customers to local businesses.
11. This picture was taken of me last winter by one of my friends
using my camera. It was taken just down Val Imm Drive on a walkway
that leads down the hill from campus. I was struggling to get up
the hill and apparently it was a sight to behold. Winter is by far
the most prominent season in Minnesota, and last what seems like
all year. I chose this picture to show that even though Minnesota
can seem like a baron wasteland with a never ending white blanket
of snow, we still find ways to have fun outdoors.
12. Snow blankets a trail surrounded by empty trees behind the
Julia Sears dorms in Mankato, Minnesota. I chose this picture to
close out my essay because to me the trail represents the keep
moving forward attitude that I feel is instilled in the Midwest.
The snow and naked trees represent not just the prominent seasons
in Minnesota, but the struggles and hardships that everyone goes
through on their path that we call life.
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