May 2018, I discovered this beautiful avian skull (a gull, I believe), along with broken egg fragments in a muskeg (wetland) on a remote Southeast Alaska island. I photographed it before disturbing, then picked it up and examined closely. I returned it to its resting place before I departed.
I’m touched by the beauty of the ivory-colored skull and the greenish-ivory colors of the Cladonia lichens nearby. The curves and delicate bones of the eye orbit, and the thin, graceful bone beneath the orbit, touch my sense of how graceful and strong many skeletons are.
This adult skull, and the broken eggshell remnants (not visible here) lead me to believe this was due to predation. Perhaps a gull even sitting on the eggs. However, the polished fleshless bones also tell me it had rested here through at least one summer, fall, winter since dying.
Specific Feedback Requested
I love this color version of the image. Taken and edited initially with iPhone 7plus. Now, I’d like to use my Lightroom Classic to re-edit. I’ve tested as a black and white image as well - potentially a very cool bw.
I feel that the cranium is too bright currently. I would like to bring out the shadows/stains in this area.
Special areas of attention that I need help with: I love images like this that show the inherent textures and shapes and patterns of the skull and the wetland mosses, lichens, and plants. I plan to bring out the colors a bit more.
Black and White: I haven’t tried any editing. Just took a quick look. Can you suggest how I might approach a black and white version? Happy to have specific suggestions as well as conceptual approach. My goals would include: 1) emphasize the curves and lines of the bones and the lines of the Cladonia lichens; 2) emphasize the diverse patterns and textures of the mosses compared to the smooth surfaces of the skull.
Just jumping in to say I quite like this. I’ve photographed animal remains before - well skeletonized remains, anything earlier would be ghoulish, really. Just yesterday it was a deer skull. It’s interesting that this one has lasted so long with it being relatively delicate. Nice find. We’ll see what advice you get to accomplish the things you want to with this shot.
Thanks! Living here in Southeast Alaska, and with my lifelong love of wildlife, I’m always fascinated by the stories told by bones, shells, and landscapes. This skull tells a story of nesting far inland from the shore. I also found the white bony plates of a gumboot here, very likely a food item for the bird.
Thanks Bill for posting this delicate and moving image. I love the back story and it simply represents the fragility of life. I think the image as presented is really great, but there are some things that distil the message that I have tried to rectify in the quick edit below.
Obviously, I flipped it, and this points the bill to the right. The areas of lichen above the bill now take on a more prominent role and the whole ecosystem just feels more involved. I also cloned out some of the brighter areas around the edges and patched in a little vegetation here and there to fill some gaps.
To me, the skull now sits more securely in the frame and in the scene.
Obviously with just the jpeg to work with, I was a bit limited, but I feel strongly that I prefer the edit over the original.
A beautiful image and I’m scratching my head trying to identify it!!
Thanks Alister! I like your edits. Flipping the image is especially effective. Yes, unfortunately, it is just a .jpg. and all that I have. I love the photo, but I’ve never been really satisfied with it. Flipping it leads my eye to new areas like the opening between the eye and the fragment of the external bill. The opening now acts like a magnifying glass (illusion) and frames lichens behind it.
A good jumpstart for a re-edit by me.
The fact that the bill comes to a sharp point suggests a tern more than a gull to me. That is assuming it’s a sea bird. Gull beaks are thicker and compressed laterally a bit.
