Quad of Diamonds

Weston Regional Park. Weston Florida.

Back in the days when I was showcasing a Digital-Preview exhibition of some of my artworks, I received a call from a person named Josh Hoffmann. (name has been changed to protect this person's privacy)

"Beautiful baseball field picture George," Josh said, referring to "The Missing Diamond" preview. "I could use something like that in my office. Do you have any aerial sunset pictures of the Weston's Regional Park baseball fields?"

I told him I did not, but I encouraged him to consider purchasing the one he had seen at the preview. However, he asked if I could take a picture of the park for him. He mentioned that he had a modest budget for the request, but there seemed to be something else driving him to insist and bargain in a very peculiar and humble way.

I explained to him that in Fine Art Photography, these types of special requests are called -commissions- and are usually priced differently than a photographer's regular work. But, regardless of my polite refusal and explanation, his petition and willingness to find a way for me to agree to the project led him to share his personal, touching story behind his plea.

He told me about the special place that the Weston Regional Baseball Park holds in his heart, recalling endless bonding times with his son. As he spoke, I was moved by his words as I had similar past experiences with my son.

Ultimately, his heartfelt arguments won out over my initial business-oriented refusal. And I agreed to make the requested shot and give him a special price.

Somehow I felt this experience like a poker game, where we were exposing our cards, and in the end, his hand was higher. So, in the context of Poker and Baseball, and in honor of this story, I named the picture "Quad of Diamonds".