The environment should be on everyone’s mind. The United Nation’s 2015 Climate Summit in Paris has finally brought the world to some consensus. With this development, the demand for images concerning the environment, climate change, energy sources, etc. is on the rise. Visually addressing these issues is not an easy task. To start with, most of the sites for photographing this subject matter are remote. However, this increases the chances for serious photographers versus everyday amateurs.
Before all the coal power plants are shut down, some of us better go take photos of them. I have lots of work to contribute to that genre; images 6–1 and 6–2 are two examples. To create them, I visited the same site on two consecutive days. Image 6–1 was shot near the midday hour; image 6–2 was taken early in the morning. The weather conditions in image 6–2 created mesmerizing light. The cloud was thick yet penetrable by the sunlight, creating a halo around the sun. The backlit coal plant and eerie-looking sky made this an iconic image. On the other hand, the blue sky in image 6–1 suggests a less gloomy mood. Both can appeal to buyers, depending on their ideas about how to depict this subject matter.
“Most of the sites for photographing this subject matter are remote.”
Users of stock photos often add text to the composition. Therefore, leaving negative (open) space in the image is an important compositional consideration. In images 6–1 and 6–2, I included plenty of open sky around the power plant. Not only does this compositional element carry the message of the facility’s impact on our air, it also leaves plenty of space for graphic designers to play with adding text and other elements.
Image 6–1. KEYWORDS: coal; coal power; power generation; fossil fuel; smoke; smog; smoke stack; steam; electricity; electric; energy; coal energy; fossil energy; carbon; carbon emission; greenhouse gas; global warming; climate change
Image 6–2. KEYWORDS: coal; coal power; power generation; fossil fuel; smoke; smog; smoke stack; steam; electricity; electric; energy; coal energy; fossil energy; carbon; carbon emission; greenhouse gas; global warming; climate change
On a more progressive and hopeful note, images 6–3 through 6–7 depict wind farms in different surroundings and under different lighting. Image 6–3 is an interesting combination of industry and agriculture, as the wind farms stood on a sorghum farm with a crop ready to be harvested. Image 6–4 is an aesthetic departure from the most common image showing front-lit wind turbines; therefore, it has a good chance of standing out among competitors’ thumbnails. Image 6–5 put the wind turbines behind the red fence, suggesting inaccessibility, a concept that might match some graphic designers’ (or their boss’s) minds. Images 6–6 and 6–7 are two views of wind farms in the Mojave Desert. Both images feature a low horizon and big sky, leaving comfortable room for the addition of other graphic design elements.
The vanishing point is the point at which receding parallel lines, viewed in perspective, appear to converge. In photography, including lines that converge toward a vanishing point can help us enhance the sense of space. Including a prominent vanishing point infuses an image with a strong sense the three-dimensional world it portrays. Take image 6–3, for example. The power lines and the rows of sorghum converge to a vanishing point at the lower right corner of the composition. Imagine this image with only the wind farm and without the lines of the power cables and the field. The sense of vastness would be diminished.
Image 6–3. KEYWORDS: agriculture; electric; electricity; farm; green energy; renewable energy; sorghum; wind farm; wind power
Image 6–4. KEYWORDS: Abilene; car; clean energy; renewable energy; sunset; twilight; wind farm; wind mill; wind power; wind turbine
Image 6–5. KEYWORDS: Abilene; clean energy; farm; fence; red; renewable energy; wind farm; wind mill; wind power; wind turbine
Image 6–6. KEYWORDS: cacti; cactus; California; Mojave Desert; renewable energy; sky; wind farm; wind power; wind turbine
Image 6–7. KEYWORDS: cacti; cactus; California; Mojave Desert; renewable energy; sky; wind farm; wind power; wind turbine; sunset; dusk
The transportation of electricity through the grid happens right above us—yet most of us are visually immune to these structures or consider them eyesores. However, I find them strangely awe-inspiring. The electrical grid is the one of the most vulnerable parts of our infrastructure. For sure, it will be a talking point for years to come. Images 6–8 through 6–10 are three examples of depicting these facilities.
Image 6–8. KEYWORDS: electric; electricity; energy; grid; ground wire; hot wire; neutral wire; steel; tower
Image 6–9. KEYWORDS: cable; conductor; electric; electricity; energy; grid; ground wire; hot wire; insulator; power line; tower; wire
Image 6–10. KEYWORDS: cloud; electric; hot wire; insulator; light pole; power; rainbow; sky; street light; transformer; wire
Image 6–11. KEYWORDS: California; drought; environment; Lake Shasta; soil; water; water shortage
Image 6–12. KEYWORDS: brush fire; California; drought; fire; fire hazard; grass; haze; panorama; prairie; smoke; sun; sunset
Image 6–13. KEYWORDS: California; Shasta Lake; dam; reservoir; lake; fresh water; irrigation; drinking water; drought; water shortage
California’s severe drought that started in 2015 (and may be just the beginning of a new norm) is documented in images 6–11 through 6–14. Low water levels, brush fires, bridges with exposed foundations, and a dam that supplies California’s lifeline—these are images that send strong messages.
Although the retreat of the glaciers cannot be portrayed in a still photograph, image 6–15 is still a very good visual cue for such a topic. The overview of the glacier and the large sky make it a perfect composition for additional graphic elements.
Image 6–14. KEYWORDS: bridge; California; drought; environment; Lake Shasta; soil; train; water; water shortage
Image 6–15. KEYWORDS: Alaska; climate change; glacier; Glacier Bay; global warming; Margerie Glacier; melt; melting; mountain; National Park; peak; retreating; sea; sea level; water