Thanks to all the commenters. I must admit that I drew mainly on the novel title as opposed to any deeper meaning from the storyline... But if you saw it, then I guess that is "art" being art.
A hauntingly beautiful memento mori. The title of the novel derives from an old folk wisdom that it is immoral to kill a mockingbird because they do nothing but sing and bring goodness to our lives. Atticus says as much in one of his monologues to Scout. And this is a central theme in the book, because there are individuals in the town, especially Boo, who are feared and reviled and mocked when all they want to do, is good.
As such, I take the imagery here to be sort of a post-mockingbird conceit, as it were, a commentary on how we've gone and sucked all the beauty and good out of life in our post-modern times. It's MY conceit of course: no reason it has to be yours. But it ties the whole thing together fabulously for me, and I have no technical nits to pick, being a lover of photographing dead things on slate myself.
For such an iconic novel and familiar story, it is painful to see it interpreted or "inspired" in this way. The book itself is the antithesis of this image insofar as the message is to "not kill a mockingbird". On the other hand, the image is technically and even artistically well done with excellent tonality and details including its gritty texture. The processing to include some arty vignetting is quite well done. If this were somehow more sympathetic to the book, I could feel comfortable with giving a 6 or maybe better. But for this topic only a 5.
graphic.
i don't like the very graphic nature, but i appreciate that this is part of life and happens to us all. art is also about pushing peoples boundries of acceptability, to make them see more than the surface.
a 6 from me for that.
Need to explain a bit. The mere anatomy of the bird on the cold rock is beautiful. The dark area looks like the last drops of its soul are crossing the last passage. I wonder if more details in the dark area of the tail would have brought more to the image. I also would have tried a softer focus. But all these do not matter and won't alter the vote. Good luck 8
What a beauty this is! It looks like a fossil. It looks like it was constructed from tiny, most delicate pieces of ivory. It looks like a fabrication of the mind.
It's too bad that you applied the title of this novel to it. Might have been as well Dante's Inferno. or a Conrad novel.
Still, as a photo in itself it's fascinating.
9
Now that is one of the more literal book title representations I’ve seen. I like the way you have produced this image. The vignetting works well and I’m glad you left in the colour. 7.
as roadkill goes, this is magnificent. The skeleton is in some somber procession. Even the vignetting is excellent and interesting. look at the texture of the surface and the mysterious dark shapes.
I think I see the soul escaping through his forehead. 8
Gorgeous image. I had to review the significance of the title in the book, and after some pondering, your image is more telling than I had first thought. The posture of the skeleton, even its being a skeleton with the barest of dead plumage is so vulnerable; but even better is the open beak... 9
Lovely in its morbidity. A good find, unless you carry one of these around in you bag ;) I think it connects with the novel wonderfully and has an artistic impact, good lighting and enough grungy detail to pull it off.8.
7...I've come back to this a few times. I love the skeleton, the delicate-ness of it. What I don't care for is the vignette, or maybe more of how the vignette is done. A more careful darkening around the remains would have been more effective I think, not the typical/generic bring-in-the-darkness-from-the-corners sort of thing. I also think a careful B&W conversion could be stunning. As far as the novel inspiration part...it works for me, everything's allegory.
Very fitting photograph for the title.
Creepy and eerie. But nicely executed.
The vignette on the bottom seems a little too much... but other than that, I really like this photo.
Great sharpness and lighting. 7
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