Tuesday, 14 May 2013

Please Don’t Stare



A lot of my test shots would satisfy the requirements of a podophiliac.  My feet are often the subject of shots taken to determine the setup of the camera.   Picturing feet can easily answer questions such as, is the flash working and if so at what intensity?  My toes may not hold the answers but usually a picture or three of them will show how everything is working with the camera.  Every now and again a test shot of an unchosen subject brings about strange results.  Here I was testing wireless flash after making adjustments and I did not look through the camera lens to choose the subject area.  To my mind there is a natural shape or two here evoking the art work of H. R. Giger.  If you don’t see it then all the better for you.  Sometimes the eye of the beholder does reveal the mindscape that only they create.  I am not a great fan of the grotesque in art but I do think that some of the best examples in that genre build on direct inspiration even reflection from nature. 

In the natural world around us we can find so much to sumptuously enjoy as well as some delicate intricacies that can tickle our innate responses into subtle disturbing reactions.  To my eye there is at least one peculiar monstrous shape in this image.  It is created by angle, perspective, lights and focus on a thoroughly non monstrous subject.  If seen by the eye there would be nothing to a second glance more than a natural plant form.  It is possible that there would be a lingering strange memory of a shape that triggered an automatic response.  Once you have seen and identified the strange shape it loses any ability to create an intense response at least for a while.  With the use of a single lens to record a still image the prevailing conditions have created a monster and I feel that I have unwittingly become a photographic Victor Frankenstein.  

Photographs and Words ©2013 PHH Sykes


1. Please don't stare


2. Once you've seen it...

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