Anything Not About Elephants Is Just Irrelephant

When I first went to look for photographs for this assignment, I just looked for photographs that were aesthetically pleasing. Beautiful pictures. I also wanted these photographs to pull at my artistic heartstrings, wish I could some day have the opportunity to shoot myself. When I came across this photograph, I was instantly taken over. Incredibly beautiful, serene, and compositionally golden. I actually don't know the photographer who shot this, but whoever they are, they created a gorgeous narrative. 

The lighting used, around sunset, created a silhouette of both the elephant, the focus of the photograph, and the trees. The light reflected off the clouds was also paired with the sunset and the reflection in the water, giving the photograph a yellow tinge. As for the composition, the law of thirds definitely applies, both horizontally and vertically. Horizontally, the first third is filled with the foreground, the watering hole. The second third, the middle ground, holds the elephant, the trees, and the sunset. The uppermost third is comprised of the thick, cumulous clouds. Vertically, the first third is filled with the elephant, the second, by the sunset, and the third, by the collection of trees.

Beyond the technical aspects of this photograph, it seems to emit feelings of immenseness, of eternity. Just as the African elephant is the largest land mammal, so is the seemingly endless extent of clouds. The perspective of the photograph, single point perspective, also adds to feeling of distance and enormity. At the same time, a photograph like this is special, because each intricate piece only comes together in a single moment. It is a matter of capturing this moment that makes it unique. And just as it is rare to have all the pieces come together, so also are African elephants, as well as the vast savannas they call home. Perhaps the photograph had an environmental objective, to display this giant in its home.

Continuing with the environmental argument, this photograph seems to present a narrative of a lost time. A lumbering herbivore, alone in the wilderness, as the final rays of light pass over the tall grass. Perhaps this time, this next century, may be the final hours for this creature and many others who inhabit the savanna. I may be inserting a bit of anthropomorphism, but this magnificent animal seems to have purpose as it continues on. The rays of light seem to instill the viewer with a sign of hope, that humans may be able to help prevent their extinction. Overall, this photograph conveys of feeling of doubt and, conversely, hope. There's something beautiful in trying to explain something you can't understand.