Aerial Photos
I recently had
the good fortune to be invited to an exclusive photography
exhibition. Being an amateur shutterbug myself, I was thrilled
at the prospect of seeing the work of a world-renowned
photographer. Especially so, as I’d heard that his latest
subject (which some called an obsession) was aerial photos.
Sure, I’d seen aerial photos in the past. And what’s more,
begun to appreciate them as an art form! But I didn’t have a
clue what this particular exhibition of aerial photos had in
store for me. And boy was I swept off my feet!
Called ‘Earth
from above’ this was an exhibition of a French photographer who
specialized in taking aerial photos of different parts of the
globe. There seemed to be no country that he hadn’t covered as
a subject of his aerial photos. I was envious as I counted over
82 countries on the list that was handed out to the attendees.
But then, you should have been there to see those excellent
aerial photos. At first glimpse, you could barely make out what
some of them were all about. I mean, for most of us, being used
to seeing the world from a position where our feet are planted
firmly on the ground, subjects of photography have come to
symbolize and even signify a certain closeness. But when it
comes to aerial photos, the perspective changes altogether.
What seemed like millions of dots on a blue background actually
turned out to be flamingoes, gathered near a lake shore. And
what appeared to be a marble painting of sorts, turned out to
be the Great barrier reef from above, with swirling sands,
shades of water and even a little boat placed in the frame to
give us an idea of the enormity of the landscape.
Come to think of
it, I really never wondered how aerial photos, which began as a
science or defense project, came to become an art form capable
of such excellent quality. Archives in most public libraries
will reveal that aerial photos have existed ever since flight
became a reality. But in their initial days, aerial photos were
restricted to spy planes snooping over enemy areas of
meteorological expeditions, intent on tracking the weather and
other related phenomena. While those kinds of aerial photos
served a purpose, and were often clinical imaging of subjects
for study, the exhibition I had the opportunity to witness
extended a certain class and élan to aerial photos.
Truth be told,
beginners like me will never be able to undertake aerial
photography. Even professionals, unless they are well funded
professional photographers, will scarcely be able to afford the
prohibitive costs of specialized cameras, logistics and the
hiring costs of planes that are required in order to take
aerial photos. Aerial photos and aerial photography demand a
lot more than mere interest. They demand cold, hard cash which
most of us can never afford. But then, thanks to a minority
breed of well funded aerial photographers, the rest of us can
enjoy aerial photos and see this fascinating world of ours from
a few hundred to several thousand feet above. And believe me,
unless you’ve seen the earth from above exhibition, you will
never truly understand or even comprehend the beauty that lies
in aerial photos.
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