Ozymandias

I took this picture largely because of the unusual lighting and the ambiguous combination of reflections on the water’s surface and that which is revealed from below it. The rocks themselves felt almost as though they were the remnants of an abandoned quarry. Still, my gut feeling is that in terms of getting untarnished feedback, the less I say about this image the better. I am very much interested to hear something of your response - emotional, aesthetic or otherwise - and the extent to which composition, colour, or work in post promotes or detracts from your experience.

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Striking, Kerry. The details, angles, shapes and composition are all what caught my attention. I never considered what you did, or didn’t do in post processing, I am just intrigued with simplicity and beauty of your photo.

I find this very aesthetically pleasing. Perhaps it’s the balance between the very bright area with that rock outcropping into it vs. the rest of the frame with the darker, but graphically striking forms. It has a serious, no-nonsense vibe - all those rocks are there on business, no messing around.

I see this as an abstract in the sense of modern art. To me it’s beauty is in the arrangement and balance of forms and colors. I relate it to cubism. I don’t look at it for any meaning or story. Just as the Nude descending a Staircase is about an arrangement of forms and not the nude this, to me, is not about rocks, reflections, and water. Having said that, the dark rock in the water does suggest a head half submerged and looking upwards. My only suggestion would be to desaturate slightly the most colorful wedge in top center to not stand out.

I like this a lot for it’s creativity and vision. It’s also quite beautiful. And yes, even mysterious (with that head).

Excellent, Kerry. Even with all the sharp angles and hardness, I get a sense of calm when viewing this. I wouldn’t change a thing.

There is a lot to like in this scene…however I have to say that after looking at the image for a bit, I find the strong reflection in the lower part of the frame to be distracting from the rich texture and colors of the other portions of the image. I looked at other images in your portfolio and see a consistent theme which I really enjoyed using reflections., many of which you provide the viewer with just a bit more of information on what’s underneath the water…

Kerry,

I’m with the others in that I see a wonderful abstract. Like Igor, it’s not about the rocks per se, but the abstract nature of the angles, blocks, etc. as a whole presentation. I also see a figure head or bust toppled over in the water.

I had the same impression here as well as in your previous “Totem” image. Given the history of the area in your previous descriptions - I guess that’s possible? A quarry? tailiings, or some by product of an era gone by…

Great vision on this one.

Lon

@linda_mellor , @Bonnie_Lampley , @David_Bostock , @pat2 - thanks so much for taking the time to look and comment, so very much appreciated.
@Igor_Doncov - Even though from a theoretical basis this image has nothing to do with Cubism, I agree with you - it does have a Cubist look. The “head half submerged” was a big part of what caught my eye and is the reason I titled the image after Shelley’s sonnet, “Ozymandias”. But, truth be told, if I ever get around to publishing my photographs in some form, they won’t have titles. Thank you for your very kind comments, Igor and, by the way, I did desaturate the rock in question a hair and though it is an improvement the difference is so small I didn’t bother re-posting.
@Lon_Overacker - As always your thoughtful comments are most appreciated.
All of this rock (mostly granite) is part of the vast Canadian Shield. Millions of years ago, this was the largest mountain range the earth has ever known (The Grenville Mountain Range extended from from Hudson’s Bay all the way down to Texas) but time and the retreat of numerous ice sheets wore it down and carved out what are now tens of thousands of lakes. These “rock piles” are remnants of that mountain range and, I suppose were “quarried” but not by human hands. As for the “figure head”, see my comment to Igor above.