Paducah photographer Todd Birdsong stands beside his favorite piece, #25, in his collection entitled “Memories of the Dixon Farm.” The collection offers photomontages of a Trigg County Farm, taken under a full evening moon in the autumn.
Birdsong, who lives in Paducah, said that his art came from a series of photographs he took in the first week of November in 2003.
“We were visiting some friends at a house on the property for a hayride and a get-together and was shown around the yard. I saw the land and learned of some of the history of the area. We gathered around the fire and I had my tripod and camera and took about 60-70 images,” said Birdsong of the exhibit’s beginnings.
Birdsong added that after reviewing the individual digital images taken around midnight, he began to create montages of the images using Adobe PhotoShop, resulting in a 12-image display.
“The gallery director needed at least 25 images for the show, so I put together several more before I was finished,” said Birdsong, who said he enjoyed creating the subtle transition between warm and cool hues in his pictures.
Despite the brightness of many of the images, Birdsong shot every image he used at night, with a full moon and some overcast.
“I created layers in the pictures using the program. I could put some images on top, or behind each other where it looked solid and looked like one image,” said Birdsong discussing his technique.
Birdsong said that interest in the “Memories at the Dixon Farm” exhibit has waned due to the age of the work. His current projects include a study of children at play and another of his family before and up to the time of his birth. Birdsong and Museum Director Paula Lisowsky stated that the Dixon Farm is part of property that was owned by the Thomas family.
For the rest of this story, read this week's Cadiz Record.
