A Balance of Crows
I photographed this rail on a foggy morning last friday. Mostly I was shooting closeups but as I was leaving I noticed the symmetry of the park bench and the rail. A crow landed and threw my planned photo off-balance. I took a picture anyway. The other crow landed, but out of place. I took more pictures. Then that crow obligingly sidled to the right, and I made this picture. Had I any treats, they would have been paid; soon enough they flew away, refusing to be exploited any longer.
This is actually a strange place for a bench, and I expect that it only is used under particular environmental conditions, such as on windy days, from the west. It sits atop a sewage treatment plant, and my nose paid the price while I photographed the railing. There is no way I would have hung around for even a few seconds after that first whiff, except this galvanized railing is brand new and was catching the light in just the right way on an otherwise dull and featureless day.
This picture is also by way of introductory context for an upcoming series of abstracts that feature this railing, or the view. I hope you don’t get tired of those pictures, you are going to see quite a few of them over the next while in an upcoming series. And I promise, they won’t all have this cold green tone.
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Canon EOS 5D MkII, Canon 50mm/f1.4 lens, ISO800, f7.1, 1/2,000th Processed in Lightroom 4 and Topaz B&WEffects.
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burnt embers 
Love the symmetry in this – clearly they are keeping their distance, the one from the other.
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Yes, I think you are right. I find it fascinating to watch personal space in action with birds, they so often line up at near identical distances apart on roof tops, or wires.
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Great capture on this one, Ehpem. The tones really express the damp and chilly feel of the days of late here on the island. LOVE the symmetry of those crazy crows there.
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Hi Toad – they are crazy symmetrical crows. They are seated right above a vent from the treatment facility. But then they are crows, so maybe it makes no difference to them. Symmetry might make a difference to crows however. I think they indulge in it quite often!
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They are looking wistfully out to sea, too. You have them well trained. : )
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Crows are trainable, though I am not of that mind. In fact, I rather have a thing against crows – they live too comfortably with humans (our fault I suppose) and create their own forms of havoc. Even so, these ones behaved exceptionally well, for crows, so I am not complaining about them.
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This is a very good shot – particularly the way the blue-green of the railing in the foreground is balanced with the color in the sky. I also like the way the landmass on the left breaks up the symmetry just a little bit.
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Thanks Melinda! In the foreground is the back part of the park bench, which IS green, unlike the water which was bluish gray. The match in tones is one of the reasons I stuck with this treatment, so I am glad you noticed that! And, yes, the far shore of Ross Bay, and the hint of Trial Island, do break the symmetry, just the right amount. Thanks for your comment!
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I really like this. I think this would make a great print!
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Hi littleislander! I am glad you like it. I should think about getting a print made just to see what it looks like off screen.
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Now you have whet my appatite. Looking forward to seeing how you assemble a series starring the railing and this location!
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Thanks Howard! You won’t have to wait too long, though the railing will be appearing in the location some of the time, and just the location at other times. I am having some fun with this spot, and some results that are very pleasing to me.
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Looks simple enough but among your best!
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Thanks Joseph! I am starting to look for simple more of the time. It appeals to me in various ways.
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I know you have gone to extraordinary measures to get shots before but how much did you have to pay these birds to pose. I must not be offering enough. Possibly the Canadian dollar is worth a lot more than a USD.
This is another potential prize winner. Keyword “Portfolio” and give it 5 stars.
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Thanks Ken! I am glad you like it. The photos without crows just don’t cut it, so I do owe them something. I expect it is other people that trained them – they were hoping for some food from me, but soon gave up.
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Reminds me of Polonius in Hamlet, at least it would make a possible caption:
Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatch’d, unfledged comrade.
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Ha! How apt and amusing!
This is the first Shakespeare that has crept into my blog. Who could have predicted it would take crows, a fogged in view and sewage to make that happen?
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Yes, those crows channelled Shakespeare for sure.
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This reminds me of your winning 500pix photo. Something about pulling my attention in two directions simultaneously.
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Thank you Linda. Interesting observation, and now that you mention it I see a few similarities too.
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Oh but I like the tones in this. And the whole thing, actually.
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Thank you Ashley. I like the tones too, but I think I have to go easy on them around here. And they make me feel chilly.
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haha!
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