What lies beneath?
Down on the waterfront, it could have a contender for the "Cult of Babooshka's Ramsey Swing Bridge" but nah it's an offer I could refuse. Today we have instead an image that has perplexed me possibly as much as it will you. Why the hell did I take this. Simply an exercise in colour, light, texture and geometry.
It's taken of course on the edge of the harbour walkway, looking directly underneath The Ramsey Swing Bridge entrance. The first thing that struck me was the colour of the metalwork. It's a faded red and matt compared to the images you've seen before above which are deep red gloss paint. The bolsters underneath are covered in verdigris and rusting creating these green, gold orange tints. The moored boats blue and white bounce the light hitting the other side of the bridge rendering a slight purple tinge to the water in the right hand corner against the the true colour of the water in the top left corner which is barely blue. The criss crossing metal work creating form a strange matrix of lines encircling the cylindrical bolster. Each of those sections created by the grid of lines has caught it's own level of light and enhanced, trapped or obscured light to cast differing colours onto the water. No two sections therefore are the same colour. The swan bright white caught centrally has a ring of light water around it due to the light bouncing off him.
The image is a curio, a passing image that could only be taken at that angle due to the walkway edge. Always look above and below so much going on. Like the Matrix the reality on a cold grey day, poor light would be flat, lifeless and real. On a sunny day, at the tight angle the colours and reality are heightened. Use your illusion.
It's not a wall hanging image. I doubt I would tender for sale or commission for use. However if I did this is the kind of pretentious nonsense above that would sell it. It's all true, but does it need saying? Sometimes you just like an image, sometimes you don't. I do because I like the quirkiness. The reality of photography is this month I should have been photographing corporate images of new registration cars for a dealership. Your bog standard side on, head on shots. Got the text today to say that people aren't buying new cars in droves this month. The shoot is postponed until they do. The reality of photography for most photographers is the next shoot, mundane or creative not long drawn out discussions on the virtue of an image. That doesn't pay the bills. So maybe you understand why I make light of this strange way to make a living and sometimes want to blog about anything but photography!
So how was your day?
