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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Thirty Two: On Safari -- expressing the essence of nature > Monochromatic Stork roost, South Luangwa National Park, Zambia, 2006
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11-JAN-2006

Monochromatic Stork roost, South Luangwa National Park, Zambia, 2006

Nature itself has converted this image from color to black and white. There is not a shred of color in it. Five black storks on a long dead tree, which has been shredded by elephants, are silhouetted under a leaden gray sky. While conceptually similar to the previous bird image, this picture differs in that the form of the branches is as much subject as context here. The mass of dead wood symbolizes decay, and the storks take on the persona of scavengers. It represents a harsh and unforgiving Africa.

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Phil Douglis26-Jan-2006 18:06
Exactly as I had hope it would, Ramma. This image is about the harsh and unforgiving nature of Africa itself -- an ecosystem that is based on the survival of the fittest. To see it as haunting or spooky is very much in line with my own point of view here.
Ramma 26-Jan-2006 09:09
I dont know why, but this image looks very spooky to me. It may as well be a clip from a haunted movie. The storks seem so evil, perched on a dead tree, waiting for their next target.
Phil Douglis26-Jan-2006 06:34
Thanks, John. That's what brings incongruity to this image. If you study this entire cyberbook, and take a long look at Gallery Two, you will see how important I feel incongruity is to photographic expression.
John Reed 26-Jan-2006 04:24
I love tree silhouettes anyway, but to have one populated by storks is really special!
Phil Douglis25-Jan-2006 18:39
Good question, Dandan. When I turned it into black and white, it became more of a symbolic image and less of a Safari image. It loses some of its subtle reality -- there is color in those gray clouds, the birds and the trees. Just enough to make it seem real. And reality is what this kind of imagery is all about.
Guest 25-Jan-2006 11:58
Phil, this image almost has no color, I am wondering if B&W would do better here...
Phil Douglis24-Jan-2006 03:46
As I said in my caption, this tree represents the harsh and unforgiving Africa. But as you say, even in death, this tree supports the lives of those storks. Who, in turn, often feed on dead animals.
Tim May24-Jan-2006 00:26
It is almost as if the storks are the leaves of the dead tree - even in its death - the tree provides a place for life.
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