Phoneography and Non-SLR Digital Devices Photo Challenge: Macro (What Do a Factory and a Flower Have in Common?)

14 July 2014

Lens:

Part I-Debris at Abandoned Factory

1. Abandoned Factory, Delaware, iPhone 4s; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

2. Abandoned Factory, Delaware, iPhone 4s; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

II. Part Two-Japanese Iris

3. Japanese Iris in Pond, iPhone 4s; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

Let me know which you prefer and why.

Pens:

While my grandson and I meandered around the countryside waiting for an apt spot to do a photo shoot, a previously mentioned site suddenly was within a mile’s drive. That sealed our afternoon with cameras in hand and a destination that satiated our quest.

As we stood and scanned the abandoned industrial site, we knew that our time there would be dictated by the chain-link fence that surrounded the acres of factory buildings. We positioned ourselves on the edge of the site where we only had access to what was directly in front of us: about a few hundred yards that bordered the road. No doubt we will return to scout the overgrown property and search for other vantage points.

It’s not worth discussing the history of the well-known company held hostage by progressive decay, because many of the images that I framed are abstractions–close-ups through spaces in the fence. Fortunately, some of the materials and buildings were inches from the wire barriers.

The most intriguing part of the afternoon’s shoot was how the abandoned grounds gave birth to a variety of possibilities. Since this week is macro week, the site proved a place to record features that are seemingly not what they appear to be–at least in my visual universe.

What was before me was fragments of what was: the recognizable rearranged by time’s weathering hand. Materials. which were once made utilitarian, are now dislodged and useless. I was beckoned by numerous subplots.

In the Lens section are two images from that photo shoot. Each shows a small slice of the deconstruction found at the site-a site with its integrity compromised. Slowly human-made materials are being covered by nature; vines and underbrush march forward with a vengeance.

For some deeply-held reasons the state of the factory’s demise reminded of another image that I took last month. The Japanese iris (image #3) that is included in this post is a companion of sorts to the other two photographs.

The Japanese iris is one of a dozen that bloomed in my pond this spring. They grow in a large container that has been there for over a decade. They reside the entire year.

During their blooming stage, I am enthralled with their stunning designs and deep purple hues. That single petal that hangs in its finality reminded me of the cycle of life that occurs in a sundry of disparate entities in nature and human nature.

The similarity between the deserted factory in the final stages of existence and the flower being depleted of its potency are surprisingly similar, yet not. Once each had a vibrancy that sought attention. Then each did their swan song in opposite ways: one rather quickly, the other in glacial pace.

The factory’s materials were plant-based and used to make commercial products, providing generations of jobs and keeping a community economically lively. The Japanese iris’s splendor is so delicate and strong that it defies its short fleeting beauty. The flower’s presence in American gardens provides a tribute to our global economy and the import of other countries’ horticultural products.

In their demise they share the end of an intersection between nature and human nature. They both become memories in the annals of everyday life. But each has brought a more examined (macro) view of what we see, and how we interpret our individual visual landscapes.

Tip of the Week: Recently, I spent some time viewing the works of finalists from Eighth Annual iPhone Photography Awards. This competition has much to offer those who use iPhones or any Smartphone as their lens or anyone interested in photography. I hope that you will peruse their Website, where winners’ works are featured from as far back as 2008. To see this year’s winners, click here. To view previous years’ winners, click here. Julio Lucas from Bradenton, Florida, United States, is the 2014 IPPA Photographer of the Year. Click here to view his Instagram site. While he is the overall winner, there are several categories of awards in this competition.

View other entries for this week’s challenge:

http://sustainabilitea.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/phoneography-and-non-slr-digital-devices-photo-challenge-macro-unexpected-visitors/

http://completelydisappear.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/one-day-ill-fly-away/

http://piecesofstarlight.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/phoneography-up-close-with-a-flamboyant-beauty/

http://uniqueartchic.com/2014/07/14/hipstamatic-app-review/

http://angelinem.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/phoneography-macro-challenge-a-sultry-red/

http://steve-says.net/2014/07/14/tell-someone-the-time-not-on-my-watch/

http://austindetails.me/2014/07/14/surprise-inside/

https://shareandconnect.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/phoneography-and-non-slr-digital-devices-photo-challenge-macro-2/

http://livingwithmyancestors.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/phoneography-and-non-slr-digital-devices-photo-challenge-macro-3/

http://helpalongthepath.com/2014/07/14/tertiary-phoneography-and-non-slr-digital-devices-photo-challenge/

http://nocrybabies.net/2014/07/16/macro-monday/

http://allkindsaeverything.wordpress.com/2014/07/16/phoneography-and-non-slr-challenge-macro-3/

Note:

Congratulations to me: It’s my 300th post.  

If you’d like to join the Photo Challenge, please click here for details. If you have any questions, please contact me. Below is a reminder of the monthly schedule with themes for upcoming Photo Challenges:

1st Monday: Nature.

2nd Monday: Macro.

3rd Monday: Black and White.

4th Monday Challenger’s Choice (Pick One: Abstraction, Animals, Architecture, Food Photography, Night Photography, Objects, Portraiture, Still Life, Street Photography, and Travel).

5th Monday: Editing and Processing with Various Apps Using Themes from the Fourth Week.

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