The Even Ratio

This photo is the defining photo of my elective in Tobago. I am currently a medical student with a degree in Zoology, and as part of my medical studies I had to spend time in another country practicing medicine. Thankfully, while there I was able to use some of my time to take in the natural beauty of this wonderful island. I knew before going out that Tobago is a bird watchers paradise due to its incredibly high species density, but I had not quite appreciated how incredible it could be.

One such bird that epitomized my visit is the one pictured here. The Trinidad motmot. It is vibrantly colorful, from its pumpkin orange belly to its electric blue cap, and finished with its ruby bejeweled eyes. I was lucky enough to have four of this bird live in the trees by my house. This is what lead to my breakthrough; it gave me the time to learn my camera. Previously I am ashamed to say I would rush shots and not take the time to enjoy finding the shutter speed I wanted or working out which area I wanted the focus to highlight most. With this stunning subject I was able to change that.  More than just this it displayed to me how photography is truly an art form, I am not someone who is able to draw or paint, however through manipulation of the cameras abilities I am starting to create images, that without the perspective you add to it would be unseen by others. The final area that this photo displays the breakthrough I had while away, is it embodies the reignition of my love of immersing myself in nature, and what better to do it then recognizing its splendor through art.

This photo exemplifies, the breakthrough in photography and nature that I had with this experience. I hope that you are able to enjoy the photograph as much as I did in creating it.

I finally was able to capture this being in such a way on a day trip to a 1700s fort. There were two motmots flying around, and as always, I felt incredibly excited at the opportunity. This is one of the photos that I managed to capture. I have shown it in 1:1 ratio (hence the pun in the name “The even ratio) to enhance the effect the bisecting roof line has on the image. In addition to this I have removed the color from the foliage on the left-hand side of the photo to give the sense of the bird being elevated out of the photograph towards you the viewer. This bird is so magnificent in person that it is a challenge to purvey that in one photo, however I hope that I have managed to capture some of its essence here.

 


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