Thanks again Alan, and this is another beautiful scene. The tree is magnificent and of such striking form. It’s pretty incongruous actually, and that in itself makes it worth spending time with. The like the duotone feel, the greens and the greys, it feels kind of austere and classy.
I very much like the feel of the grassland behind the tree, it feels kind of glowing and ethereal. Very dreamlike. I do wonder if there are ways of making this better, or even if it just is as it is. I’m not crazy about the bottom edge, with the warmer vegetation sticking up, especially the bit off to the left. It’s just a bit square and rectangular. It breaks up the feel for me.
Cropping a bit off the top and bottom and making it darker and more ethereal feels like an interesting development for me?
I feel I’ve removed some of the distractions, but obviously the tree falls into the frame edge, which may a challenge for some people.
Now, your final question!
That, is the million dollar question. Sadly, the answer may not be to your liking! The answer relies on the emotional literacy, imagination and creative essence of each and every viewer. It is not a constant, and it is very hard to control from a creative point of view.
Some will say “It’s a tree” others may talk of age, reverence, solidity, resilience or rebirth. The key, and the only real thing of importance is “What emotion does evoke in you?”
That is expressive photography in a nutshell. What does it mean to you. Once you know that answer and expand your emotional literacy to feel and express greater degrees of feeling; then you can inspire with your images and perhaps a few words. Then, people get it, then they feel and can expand their own literacy. This is what art does.
Thanks again, I appreciate your images and your own thoughtful reflections.
