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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Twenty Seven: Bringing far to near with the telephoto lens > A mind of their own, Erg Chebbi, Sahara Desert, Morocco, 2006
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18-DEC-2006

A mind of their own, Erg Chebbi, Sahara Desert, Morocco, 2006

A pair of camels has broken away from the herd, and set off on their own into the deeply shadowed dunes of the Sahara. It took awhile for the herd master to corral them. I used my longest telephoto focal length (750mm) to reach them, as well as to flatten the image and bring the dunes in front of then and behind them closer together. The image expresses both the power and majesty of the Sahara, as well as the independent nature of the camel.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/500s f/6.3 at 88.8mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time18-Dec-2006 01:52:16
MakeLeica
ModelV-LUX 1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length88.8 mm
Exposure Time1/500 sec
Aperturef/6.3
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis26-Sep-2007 23:12
Good to hear from you again, Zandra -- and glad you came to this image. It is one of my favorites, for many of the reasons you cite. There is a sense of the intrepid, the courageous, the inquisitive here. The two camels have a mind of their own, and nothing will stop them until they get to where they want to go. Yes, it is all about the independent nature of this creature. And as you point out, they offer lessons here for all of us. Thank you.
Guest 11-Sep-2007 14:08
Hi Phil,

Long time no see :)I thougt it was about time i came back for some commenting i your galleries. As i was scrolling down your galleries this photos caught my attention for several reasons. Firstly, the pure beauty of the image. I love how the light enhances the charchter of the dunes adding to the magic atmosphere which i alwasy have regardes as part of the dessert. The dunes are the soul of the dessert. Flattening the image by using the telephoto lense works well in thei scene as it gives a sense of that the dunes continue forever. Another thing that crossed my mind was thatin a sense this is a cliche picture of the dessert as well. Mnay similar pictures has been taken by the dessert...camels or people walking in the distance. A perfect way of adding scale to the image as most people know the aproximate size of a camel. Just as you say in your note, this photo does show teh free spirit of the animal. How it fearlessly wonder out in to the unknown. Not caring for the dangers that may lie behind the next dune, no conern about where the next water whole is. Again you have captured somethign which makes me draw parralelles to the human sprit...the adventorus, the fearless. Wheater it is taking on a trip to a distant unknow country or it being a trip in to the unknown corners of our hart and soul. It is a pictures which speaks of courage...o not be afraid of wondering off in to those unknow corners. The light road representing the hope and joy and the darker areas representing the unknown, sometimes frightening areas of our lifes. still, ther is light on hte other side of the dark dune as shown in the top of your photos...showing, that if we dare to enter teh dark, we will come out in the light of the other side. Full of new visdom and knowledge.
Phil Douglis11-Jan-2007 04:46
Thanks, Christine. You are right -- the dunes and their shadows make geometry out of nature.
Christine P. Newman11-Jan-2007 01:58
The "geometry of this photo makes it even more beautiful - the lines of the shadows and the light, or the line of their imprints.
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