SnakeMedicine_Book1

C o n v e r s a t i o n s w i t h t h e A r t i s t
This highly eroded landscape immediately attracts attention. The towering rock is
so powerful that it dwarfs the landscape and underscores the importance of the people
who lived here. Yet in the foreground, the plants draw your attention away from
the dramatic rock formation. I purposely photographed this vertically to emphasize
the rock spiral. By doing that, you can see that the contrasting green life in the foreground
draws attention and dominates the photo. The focal point is the plant which
leads you to the chimney rock.
The photo could stand a tighter crop to minimize the sky and the red earth. It’s
kind of a cold photograph. In fact, knowing how hot this desert gets, I’m attracted to
the coldness of the place. I did not want to stay long here. Nonetheless it is a place
that demanded attention.
The black-and-white brings out the different ages in the striped strata of ancient
geologic formations.
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