In Focus

Thursday, 7 February 2013

Assignment One: Getting to Know Your Style

Photographer: Wes C. Skiles

Genre: Landscape/Documentary

Subject: Bahamas Underwater Caves

Nature photography, landscape photography and documentary style photography (which I find often go hand in hand) are my favourite styles of photography. I love how they usually capture everything in "raw", since theses styles tend to be unposed and are capturing a moment in time.

Vortex in Chimney Blue Hole

The Cascade Room

Sawmill Sink

Of all the photos in Wes C. Skiles collection from his swim through the underwater caves in the Bahamas, my favourite has to be the photo of Sawmill Sink. I love the way that at first glance, this photo looks like a light painting photo of a speeding car. When looking at this photo, it doesn't even appear to be underwater, rather giving the illusion of being night photography. In reality, this photo was taken more than 30 ft. below the surface in an underwater cave. The pink is actually a type of bacteria. Another aspect of the photo I like is the contrast between the yellow and gray of the cave walls and the bright pinks and magentas of the bacteria.
This photograph also has a good eye leading quality with the way the bacteria seem to curve around the cave wall. Sawmill Sink has a very abstract feeling, and the pink bacteria can also give the illusion of being paint brush strokes. I love how vibrant all the colours are in this photo. The pinks, yellows, and greens are all quite vivid, and they bring a more surreal look to the photo. It's amazing that Wes C. Skiles was able to capture this much colour in his underwater photos, since underwater photos normally appear very dull and washed out. Overall, Sawmill Sink is a beautiful photograph of the usually forgotten underwater world.