down to earth
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 at 10:35AM 
man & nature # 140 • ALL PICTURES - click to embiggen
man & nature # 141
man & nature # 142
man & nature # 143
man & nature # 144Recently I have become quite intrigued with looking down. As a matter of fact, not to long ago (ku # 593) I mentioned that I was pining for a very expensive 20' tall "tripod" with which I could picture the ground.
Well, I've decided to start "small" and, I might add, close to home - in my yard. Eventually, my plan is to purchase a painter's scaffold - 2 ladders and a plank - that can be hauled around in my car and assembled in the forest, bog, swamp, field, etc. But, for now, I'm going to stick to picturing my yard.
gravitas et nugalis
Featured Comment: Anil Rao wrote: "This is an interesting idea, i.e. looking straight down, and I think it can provide a unique perspective on things. However, from looking at today's pictures, it doesn't appear that your (straight-down) view offers a lot beyond what one would get from the oblique angle of typical eye-level shots. So, can you kindly elaborate on why you felt that a straight-down view was necessary for these (particular) pictures?
my response: it's simple really - looking straight down is, in fact, a unique perspective that creates a "slightly-off" visual sense of looking / seeing precisely because is does differ ever so subtly from the "standard" oblique angle with which most of us view the world. Add to that the idea that these pictures will be exhibited flat on the floor where they will be viewed at an oblique angle and you might begin to see where I'm going with this.
Reader Comments (3)
Yeah, I'm with you on the sky hook view from above. Short of trailering around a Genie lift with a 30 foot boom, your "Dove Trap" concept of 2 ladders and a scaffold board will work. I've used an 8 foot step ladder for a few locations, but never found it quite tall enough. A 10 ft or 12 ft ladder would be better, but a lot heavier to carry around, especially very far from your vehicle. Hmmm, maybe remote controlled model helicopters with a video feed are the way to go?
Hi Mark,
This is an interesting idea, i.e. looking straight down, and it I think it can provide a unique perspective on things. However, from looking at todays pictures, it doesn't appear that your (straight-down) view offers a lot beyond what one would get from the oblique angle of typical eye-level shots. So, can you kindly elaborate on why you felt that a stright-down view was necessary for these (particular) pictures?
Mark, I can relate to this. On Wednesday May 6th I posted a picture of a stump with old mushrooms on it, I knew it was awful, I shot it from my car. I went back to shoot it again and this time I stood over it and posted the results today on my blog, a completely different picture.