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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Fifty: Using silhouettes as abstract symbols and metaphors > Dog’s Night Out, El Malpais, near Gallup, New Mexico, 2007
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07-NOV-2007

Dog’s Night Out, El Malpais, near Gallup, New Mexico, 2007

As our group of photographers was working on the same sunset seen in both the previous and following image, another tripod-bearing photographer joined us, along with his huge four-legged friend. The excited dog apparently needed only one of those four legs at this moment in time. In this image, the photographers and dog are each doing their own thing. By exposing for the sky, I have not only thrown each of them into silhouette, but also the ridge upon which they stand (or run) and the tree at left, as well. A giant diagonal shadow slices through the sky, focusing the illuminated area on the cast of characters at work and play on the ridge. The silhouette gives this fragmented activity a sense of unity it would not otherwise have.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/500s f/7.1 at 7.4mm iso100 full exif

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Phil Douglis19-Apr-2008 03:50
Thanks, Iris, for enjoying this image. this is the reason I was not up there on the ridge shooting the sunset. I like to hang back and shoot the interaction of people (and the dog), while using the sunset as context.
Iris Maybloom (irislm)16-Apr-2008 01:19
Phil, this is an image that just makes one gasp! It shows the overwhelming power of nature and man's effort to harness a grand moment in time...and your image has certainly accomplished that. The dog is icing on the cake of this very dramatic western scene.
Phil Douglis28-Nov-2007 00:48
It was a wonderful moment to behold and photograph, Kal. i also feel this image does justice to the medium -- it's an example of a delightful moment in light, time, and space.
Kal Khogali27-Nov-2007 22:09
If an image sold the art of photography...here it stands. Who could resist thisand to be there and a part of this moment? K
Phil Douglis26-Nov-2007 01:35
Thanks, Ceci. Your comment adds an entirely new dimension to this image, turning it from romanticism to surrealism. The moment is quite bizarre, and can be interpreted in a number of ways. I knew you would like that dog suspended on one leg. If not for the cameras and tripods, we might even view this gathering as a ritualistic event of some kind involving the solstice, with the dog as cult leader!
Guest 25-Nov-2007 10:08
Except for the man with the tripod on the right, this image could be straight out of Robert Redford's THE MILAGRO BEANFIELD WAR, a wonderful film which includes supernatural events mixed with poor people of the South West. The dog makes the picture, turning it into something mysterious, strange, almost humorous, and definitely unreal. The people are obviously people, but the dog is unearthly in its 3 legged pose and loping posture, and makes me think of ghosts and goblins and creatures of the night -- which the ancient people in this part of the world believed in. I love the inky black of the tree and the humans and dog against the shell-like luminosity of the sky, and all the action caught in this marvelous photo.
Phil Douglis22-Nov-2007 20:03
I shall cherish your comment, Tim. I see the dog as a metaphor for sheer spur of the moment exuberance and pleasure, which contrasts to the stolid forms of the photographers who have a more serious purpose in mind.
Tim May22-Nov-2007 19:05
I love this image - As I try to figure out why I think it has to do with the dog - dogs are an interesting amalgam of wild and tame. We have domesticated them and they love and serve us, but not far below the surface, they are wild animals. In this image a group of photographers are striving to "capture" the spirit of place, the wildness of the wilderness. Right in the center of the image is a prancing dog which seems to be saying, "You may try to domesticate this landscape through your lens, but it still can run free."
Phil Douglis20-Nov-2007 04:30
You are right, Patricia -- the diagonal band of light is a powerful force here, creating not only an umbrella of inclusion, but also a cone of light that helps make the group into a group. The dog on one leg may be the incongruous focal point of that group but the two people on each end, being a bit larger than the others, create "bookends" that bonds the disparate parts here into a coherent whole.
Patricia Lay-Dorsey20-Nov-2007 04:22
Phil, this series of silhouettes is taking my breath away! In this image you have these disparate two- and three-legged creatures turned every which way, yet they come across as a unified whole. I know having them all in silhouette fosters that impression, but I think it's more than just that. I see the diagonal band of light as being like an umbrella under which they all stand. Yet another perfect example of your theme.
Phil Douglis18-Nov-2007 20:33
Thanks, Cyndy, for seeing the rhythmic repetition in the dog's legs and the legs of the tripod. I just kept shooting as the dog ran along the ridge, and one of those shots happened to catch him running on only one leg.
Guest 18-Nov-2007 20:22
I like the way the dog mirrors the legs of the tripod on the right. Your timing was remarkable.
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