In July 2023 I went out to photograph the countryside in a rural area between Middlebury and Shipshewana, Indiana, a few miles from my home. This area primarily consists of small, self-sufficient Amish farmsteads. Here you will find many scattered roadside fruit and vegetables stands, along with the occasional harness shop or sawmill. These bundles of wheat are called “shocks”, and a single bundle is called “sheaf”. The sheaf is cut wheat stalks tied together, while “wheat shocks” are a small stack of several sheaves placed upright against each other to allow them to dry in the field. The shocks are stacked for the purpose to dry the grain for its eventual thrashing–which will separate the wheat grains from the chaff and the straw. This farming method is rarely used today in the United States since the advent of the modern combine harvester, but the Amish still commonly use it.
Camera Info
Device: Nikon D7200
Lens: 12-24mm f/4G
Focal Length: 12mm
Exposure
Aperture: f/10
Shutter Speed: 1/160s
ISO Sensitivity: ISO 250
Artist: Carl L. Rhodes
Copyright: Photos from the Back Roads, by Carl L. Rhodes
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