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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Eighty-four: Documentary photography – observing a miracle of nature > Nature and design combine, Phoenix, Arizona, May 2012
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26-MAY-2012

Nature and design combine, Phoenix, Arizona, May 2012

One of the immature hawks becomes an integral part of Sagewood architecture, perching on the corner of one of its apartment buildings just as the early morning light creates a dynamic nest of geometric shadows behind it. The work of both man and nature are combined within this single image.

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Phil Douglis29-May-2016 22:56
Thanks, Marisa. The light creates the shadows that give this image it's third dimensional appearance, as well as rhythmic patterns that draw the eye through the image. The hawk sits at the heart of the image, very much at home in a world made by man.
Marisa Taddia28-May-2016 20:15
Yes Phil, the light is essential here, and enhace the drama in the composition. Everything in the work of man seem to fit perfectly in the hawk life.
Marisa
Phil Douglis17-May-2016 19:03
So much of this depends on the light, Marisa. Those rhythms you point out here would not exist if not for the interplay of light and shadow at this particular moment. In a larger sense, this image is indeed about the interplay of man and nature as well. Nature, expressed by the hawk, seems very much at home surrounded by the works of man.
Marisa Taddia17-May-2016 00:51
The whole image is repeating rhythms, evenly matched colors, geometric shapes and shadows that generate a significant abstaccion. And in the midst of this human creation, nature is at ease... symbolized by the hawk, with its own colors and repeated geometric patterns on their wings.
Phil Douglis15-Oct-2012 03:42
Thanks, Tim, for appreciating my intentions here. And you are right -- since there are few high trees in a desert area such as ours, man's towering structures offers these creatures ready-made high-level perching and nesting areas.

And thanks, Ellie, for appreciating the photographic principles that make this picture work as expression. Glad you enjoyed all of these. As for a photo-book, I have recently self-published a book called "Images and Ideas". You can find it for sale at:http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/725070
Tim May13-Oct-2012 22:11
Such a good incongruity here. Nature hopefully will be able to adapt to the world man creates.
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