Michael Duncan

This is a photograph taken several years ago near where I grew up.  The bridge was built in the Depression era over Fourche Maline Creek on old U.S. 270 east of Wilburton, Oklahoma.  I chose to shoot this with infra red film to get a certain mood from the infra red halation effect on the sky and background foliage.  It also depicts a certain kind of light on the bridge that you can find today as a Photoshop filter.  But, hey, no “cheating” here. This is all film and all darkroom work.

Funny thing is I have only one frame of this shot on film.  Usually I’ll take three or four at least, to make sure that the exposure is correct or some weird scratch or difficult dust spot doesn’t ruin my only shot.  But not here.  Frankly, while the composition is what I had in my mind’s eye when I took the picture, I didn’t really think much of the picture until I was in the darkroom printing and this is what came up.

I have made several 16 x 20 prints of this image, including the one hanging in my office. One of the prints was captured the best of the show award at the Oklahoma Bar Association Art Show in 2003 in Oklahoma City.

It is one of my favorites.  One reason is this bridge has historical significance to me.  My parents, grandparents and great grandparents (comprising of all my Oklahoma ancestry since pre-statehood) all traveled over this structure at one time or another before the highway was re-routed.

(Sadly, the county has since painted the bridge and taken down the bullet-hole riddled sign.  It’s just not the same.)