View allAll Photos Tagged complexity
Detail of ground level walkway within Keeling House, a modernist apartment block in Bethnal Green, East London. Designed by Denys Lasdun and completed in 1957.
As I walked this old cemetery fence line, my eye was drawn to a disruption in the ironwork. A secondary gateway had been mangled by a vehicle that had left the road, crossed the berm, smashed into the fence, and continued on to destroy some nearby grave markers. Probably unfolded in a matter of a couple of seconds, but left lasting damage. Didn't appear to be the sort of accident that would have involved serious injury. Of course the driver would have been subject to ridicule by friends suggesting that they were just "dying to get into that cemetery." For me the resulting disorder in the otherwise uniform and pristine fence was a visual delight. I wouldn't normally wish for damage to happen solely for the benefit of a photo. But on the other hand I never shy away from documenting such things when I stumble upon them. As I contemplated the scene, I was distracted by the rhythmic clip-clop of horse hooves hitting pavement. It was the unmistakeable audible signal of an approaching Amish buggy. The timing could not have been better. I was already bent (no pun) on photographing the damaged gate. Coordinating this with the passing buggy I thought would really amp up the visual impact. I used to be timid about photographing the Amish, and still avoid shooting them individually. But I now figure the buggies are fair game. I exchanged waves with the driver as the buggy drew near. Then knelt down and just let the shutter go in a continuous burst as the buggy passed the gate (trying to time shots like this and trusting a single shot is doomed to fail). The resulting image was exactly what I had envisioned. The horse and buggy, along with the fence, appear out of another era. I love the funerary feel of both, and the background and sky tie in perfectly. An image of simultaneous simplicity and complexity revealed in 1/500th of second. Love when the universe tees one up for me like this.
Dear friends, for the theme of this week I decided to experiment by using a tilt-shift adapter. I tilted the focal plane to follow the cubes and, with the shift movement, I tried to correct a bit the perspective distortion.
The final effect is a bit weird, but I found it funny, therefore I decided to share it.
I hope that you will like the result. Have a nice Friday! 🙋♂️
On the deck of the Kaiwo Maru at the Tall Ships Festival in Steveston (Richmond, BC).
To see others' superb photos of the Kaiwo Maru during the 3 day
tall ship festival in Steveston--including the sailors up on the masts unfurling the sails--please go to this Gallery I created: www.flickr.com/photos/130881643@N04/galleries/72157681555...
Even though I was in the big city for ten days, I was still drawn to photograph the nature that I found there.
On the railing of one of the bridges over the river near my class I found this colorful caterpillar of the Gulf Fritillary butterfly on its host plant in full bloom, a Passion Vine.
The flowers of the Passifloraceae family are reportedly the most complex in existence.
I have manipulated this photo to look like an illustration for a book, similar to the previous fish photo. (I work in such a stream-of-consciousness mode that I don't record my multiple processes, so it's amazing I could achieve anything similar again!!)
VIEW LARGE for complexity of the tiny flowers:
I was at the Garden yesterday (not today, too hot and humid), and ran into the curator, figuratively, of course. Pointing at this three-inch sphere with nine ribs, he asked if I had seen the first and long-awaited bloom which occurred that morning. And then he gave me some background.
Euphorbia obesa is a subtropical succulent species of flowering plant in the genus Euphorbia. It comes from South Africa, especially the Cape Province. Sometimes referred to as the baseball plant or gingham-golfball.
In the wild it is endangered because of over-collection and poaching, combined with its slow growth, and the fact that the pod contains only 2 to 3 seeds.
The Garden had five of these two weeks ago. Then, someone stole one. "Happens all the time, and it happens in all public gardens!"
The (literally) "Fat Euphorbia" has exploded in popularity as a houseplant since it was discovered in the late 1800s. Its unique appearance (unique in cacti, succulents, even among Euphorbia) and its low maintenance needs has made it the object of thieves to the extent that it is considered endangered in its native habitat. Producing only three seeds, it is simply not sustainable.
I have been watching this plant for the past six weeks. It, and now, its three companions, are nestled in a deeply shaded spot between three large boulders. Anyone who would steal one or all knows where they are, and is purposeful in their intent. Though I have not seen them, from what I understand, it is sold in nurseries around the world. In California, reputable nurseries sell them for between $27 and $45. I guess, if you're a thief, price is no object!
abstract shapes shadows and silhouettes
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The complexity of life, even that of a 'simple' magnolia flower, never ceases to amaze me. And the closer one looks, the more amazing it gets.
Indeed, if we looked even closer than a macro photographer's lens can see, we would observe a level of complexity far beyond our imagination. As in every other living thing, each cell in this magnolia flower contains the DNA for the entire organism. In his book (the Selfish Gene), Richard Dawkins says of human DNA:
This DNA can be regarded as a set of instructions for how to make a body, written in the A, T, C, G, alphabet of the nucleotides. It is as though, in every room of a gigantic building, there was a book-case containing the architect's plans for the entire building.
Dawkins denies that there is a God, yet admits that all living cells contain information (instructions) and even likens it to architect's plans. No matter the medium in which it is stored (paper and ink, compact disk, DNA, etc) information has to have an author or, in Dawkin's analogy, an architect.
Sadly, Dawkins appears to recognise the unavoidable truth, yet still says there is no God. But the Bible says:
For the invisible things of Him [God] from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.
(Romans 1:20-22)
Willow trees across Horsemill Stream in the River Lee Country Park, one of several channels of the River Lea in this area.
A closeup look at the complex linking forming the forming the wheel and drive of an old steam locomotive.
"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance."
Aristotle
The man who betrays Him day after day, drunk with vanity, resentment, or reckless ambition, lives in a ghostly mist of mis-givings. Having ruined love with greed, he is still wondering about the lack of tenderness in his own life. His soul contains a hiding-place for an escaping conscience. He has torn his ties to God into shreds of shrieking dread, and his mind remains dull and callous. Spoiler of his own lot, he walks the earth a skeleton of a soul, raving about missed delight.
--Abraham Joshua Heschel, Man’s Quest for God: Studies in Prayer and Symbolism
I’m WFH this afternoon. I went to the kitchen to get another cuppa cawfee and came back to this. Apparently I’d been petting the mouse when I should have petted Someone Else. (In the background you can see my work-related trophies from the FDFFL and the Bugbear, whose job it is to eat software bugs.) Added to Happy Caturday for 10 July 2021 theme “Cats and Electronics.”
This Christmas bauble was hand beaded with sequins and pins by me. I have a Christmas tradition. I bead Christmas baubles for a select group of friends every year. In this case they are for a friend, who like me, elects red as her favourite colour, but also likes gold, white, black and silver accents for her tree.
Each bauble is 15 centimetres in diameter and contain hundreds of sequins, varying in number depending upon the complexity of the pattern and the type of sequins I use. Most sequins in this bauble are 5mm in diameter, Most sequins in this bauble are 5mm in diameter, except the butterflies which are 12mm in diameter at their widest point. Depending upon the colour of the sequin, I will use either a gold or a silver pin to attach it to the bauble. I always leave the flowers and stars until last, allowing a gap in the sequin chain to pin them in.
These baubles are smaller than some others I do, however because it is a complex pattern which starts from the inside and is worked outwards in ever larger circles, each bauble takes approximately 2 to 2 1/2 hours per side.
It is however, a labour of love which I do to pass the time throughout the year.
“Her complexity is a glorious fire that consumes, while her simplicity goes unapproachable. But if one takes time to understand her, there is something beautiful to find, something simple to be loved. But she goes unloved, for being misunderstood.”
― Anthony Liccione
A macro view of a collection of glass beads. The frame represents a span of two-inches from top to bottom.
Strobist info:
The scene was illuminated by two Nikon SB900 speedlights positioned at 9- and 3-o'clock, 20-inches above and two-feet away from the beads. They were fired in Manual mode @ ¼ -power through Neewer 24" x 24" soft boxes.
The speedlights were triggered by three PocketWizard Plus X flash triggers.
Lens: Meyer Optik Görlitz Oreston (zebra) f1.8/50mm with a 36mm extension tube attached.
Persino un piccolo ruscello che rimbalza sulle rocce è un sistema incredibilmente difficile da descrivere da un punto di vista fisico e deterministico... eppure, sembra la cosa più semplice e banale da guardare ed ammirare.
Meraviglia del nostro universo.
#acqua #h2o #flow #flusso #gocce #droplets #rimbalzi #bouncing #streaks #lungaesposizione #ruscello #montagna #water