They came from over the hills

Do you remember that scene from Jurassic Park where the Tyrannosaurus Rex first appears?

I never remember the dinosaurs or the car or the screaming kids from that scene, I mean I do eventually, but it's not the first thing I think of.

I remember the water, and how it vibrated like a door ringer to announce the giant bird/lizard/whatever-scientist-think-it-is-this-week that was about to make its grand entrance.

That water was on my mind Monday as I roamed around dense greenery and over mounds of upturned dirt at the San Antonio Botanical Gardens, an arms length away from a small crew spouting out nautical terms as they hoisted a pair of 15 (or so) foot metal and wood beams.

"That's not starboard."

"Of course it is."

"How do you know?"

"Because I know where the holes are supposed to be," artist David Rogers concluded the exchange with a laugh before climbing a ladder to introduce two beams to a steel bolt.

I frame a shot of giant ants over the horizon and I could see them crawling from one flower to another, the soundtrack from "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (the good one, not the Keanu "dude I only have one expression" Reeves train wreck) playing in my head.

I was told of a giant spider in a remote part of the park, and when I stumbled though the woods unable to find it, it found me, and visions from grade school of watching Jeff Daniels fight off the beast followed.

Around a 25 foot tall praying mantis I looked to the lady bugs crawling all over it, and I remembered the water. How the little details, like "the animals always know first," are important.

It was like being in a movie.

It's funny, well not funny ha-ha, but funny hmm how much pop-culture influences how you see things. I'm always reminded of something when I'm out shooting. Weather I'm looking for the perfect wide angle "Lawrence of Arabia" shot or the super compressed "Chungking Express" or the layers of "M*A*S*H" or the compositions of "The Good The Bad and The Ugly" or the details of "Jurassic Park."

I guess inspiration is where you find it.