Another attempt at this week's get-pushed challenge, which was memento mori, as issued by Kali. She said I didn't have to do skulls, but when I came across this collection of skulls, well they demanded to be photographed for my challenge.
What I learned in taking this photo: Antique stores are not the place to find skulls, but the beach is. Who knew?
@kali66 I know you said I didn't have to do skulls, but, well......I did. Again, not exactly the still life type of shot, but I just couldn't pass it up.
wow you had two great finds this week! wonder if you would have noticed or thoguht to photograph without the push? i find it funny how synchronist the getpushed challenge can be.
Wow Ron never see anything as colourful as these before, lovely perspective, point of focus and depth of field what a great find suits your get-pushed challenge extremely well:)
Great PoV and love how the colours become soft and, as the DoF becomes more shallow, start to bleed into each other, .. in spite of the subject i find it has a feel of 'carnival' about it, a lightness/freshness.. i like your point of focus..
@taffy Thanks Taffy - always good to hear from you. BTW I am loving the material that you guys got in NYC. I've always wanted to roam around there and do some photography, especially in Manhattan, but never seem to be able to break free with enough time. Lots of material there!
@kali66 I do believe that had it not been for your challenge I would likely have never zeroed in on these. Love getting pushed! Many thanks for the challenge. I have a whole new interest now!
@joannakate Thanks Joanna. You are quite right, and if fact they are not supposed to be scary. It's a bit of a long history that combines ancient Aztec culture and the Spanish conquistadors, but long story short the Mexicans actually celebrate the deceased rather than mourn them. To them the skull symbolizes death but in a positive manner as they regard death not as a termination of life but instead a step forward into a higher level of conscience. Likely more than you cared to know.
@pamknowler Thanks Pam. Well, to be clear, this was Venice Beach, a popular tourist destination here in L.A. And where there are tourists there are "merchants" selling their goods. These are common in Mexico and you can see such arrays of skulls all over Southern California where the Mexican influence is strong.
@pcoulson Thanks so much Peter. I greatly appreciate all of your technical points and compliments. You can see such colorful displays all over this area and especially in Mexican tourists areas. It's their method of celebration.
@jorlam Thanks Jorlam. I had fun with this one. Your feeling of carnival is actually quite appropriate. See above for a little background on why such skulls are so brightly coloured. It's a grand Mexican heritage thing.
@salza Thank you Sally. You obviously have no Mexican heritage in you blood as they are quite comfortable living with them...but I'm with you (although I did end up buying one - I'll let you know how restful my sleep is.)
@tigerdreamer Thanks Karen. I know what you mean. We see these all the time, but outside of our little world here, I guess they're not so well known. That's whats so fun about 365 to me.
@Weezilou Yeah, they're a pretty common sight in these parts, but I guess not so common elsewhere. I've always enjoyed viewing them, but never thought to try to get a photo of them. Had it not been for my get-pushed challenge I probably never would have taken it. Gotta love 365!
@stray_shooter Thanks! It's always fun to photograph there, and of course, with Michael, it's even better as we get to go to some of his favorite spots. NYC is one of my favorite places to visit.
Love the way you filled the frame with all the color.
It's always fascinating to me how things we take as ordinary in our own area, others find unusual. Expected of course, but interesting.