layered photograph

Goose Down 2

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Goose-Down2
This is a reworking of an image from a couple of years ago. The graceful form of the bird struck me when I first came across it; the water was shifting the goose back and forth in a slow rhythmic motion and the submerged down looked so soft and painterly. I have layered the bird photograph with an image of cloud reflections on water and I think I like the inky blue that spills over to the delicate palisade of golden threaded flora. Now I am thinking about how I might translate this into a painting…

© Karen McRae, 2015
Goose-Down2

The Tree Swing

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The-Tree-SwingAn early winter photograph made from a moving car (subtly layered with a similar drive-by image). I didn’t notice the swing at first but it now seems rather fitting for the dizzy ‘merry-go-round’ feel of the image.
~A placeholder for summer~

© Karen McRae, 2015

Dark Leaves

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The-Birds-Like-Leaves1
Even as I was in the car driving I could hear the lot of them. They were congregated across the high trees. Arguing. Falling like dark leaves from the branches as they took turns plundering the cornfields. Tiny seeds in greedy black beaks.

[A flock of common fabulous grackles layered with a multiple exposure of trees]
© Karen McRae, 2014

Purple Martin Stories

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PurpleMartinsLandscapeThere are moments when it’s hard not to mourn the quick passing of the summer even though we are still in it. Cold rainy days that feel like they were borrowed from another month. A month like October.

And seeing that the Purple Martins have ‘left the building‘. Their summer nesting boxes empty – devoid of those beautiful summer sounds the swallows bring – the babies fully grown, independent. Eventually, hopefully, they will make it all the way to their winter home in Brazil, some of them banded and/or outfitted with tiny GPS trackers. Little winter ‘backpacks’ to tell stories of where they go. When they return in the spring the birds will be carefully caught and the tiny GPS devices removed. The number of Purple Martins is significantly dropping and it’s not really known why so, this data is hopefully a step in finding out what might be causing the decline in their population, and a step too, in finding ways to protect them. You can read more about the fascinating Purple Martin Project here and here on the Nature Canada website.

PurpleMartin_SunonWings

[The first image is a layered photograph ~ purple martins, a rainy window and a summer landscape made with movement.]

© Karen McRae, 2014