Environmental Degradation

This shot is a great reminder of the turmoil of man and how it affects our environment. The mask is almost like a flag flapping in the wind, a relic of international chaos, yet the serene scene around captures an entirely different emotion. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of this shot and think it's quite evocative.

This is such an interesting shot, the water softly passing over this trash left behind- the "universal solvent." It seems the earth is attempting to reclaim this keyboard, the circuitry exposed, interesting lines and shapes that draw the viewer in. It seems no matter where you look these days, there is no escaping the omnipresence of human wastefulness.

It is quite interesting to see a wild animal interacting with pollution in this way, tragic really. The bold colors of the can drew me in immediately as a viewer. Waste is a frequent killer of wildlife, their inherent curiosity and opportunistic nature can lead to great detriment in these situations. It is a fantastic portrait of human wildlife conflict.

This image is shocking an appalling- showing a breadth of damage to the environment at the hands of humans. The decaying ship in the background is almost a warning or omen. This poor deceased turtle surrounded by plastic is a shocking sight, yet conveys the urgency and turmoil of human wildlife conflict quite succinctly.

I cannot think of a more fitting place to capture the essence of environmental decay than Pripyat. The wasteland of the fallout here, still as desolate as it was left, create a really tremendous atmosphere in this photo. The off centered framing of the ferris wheel is simply perfect, and I especially like the blown snow and broken glass in the foreground. A reminder to us all that all that we have can be lost in a blink of the eye.

This image encapsulates the spirit of this contest perfectly for me. The minimalism of the heron's feet, perched over his waste filled habitat. One can imagine the animal trying to go about his natural biological behaviors, hunting and trying to raise young in this garbage filled wetland. It is an image of simplicity, yet full of deep meaning. Quite poignant and caught my eye immediately.

This image is strangely beautiful, and the composition is well shot. I like the distortion of the water creating such a unique effect around your subject. The viewer can see that the bicycle is slowly being reclaimed by the riverbed, fated to be another of mankind's skeletal remnants of pollution beneath the silt forever. A reminder that we must do better.

This image is quite haunting, it reminds me of a surreal scene from a sci fi of a dystopian not-so-distant future. The tree seems almost strangled by this sea of synthetic material. One last soldier remaining on the battlefield. I am not sure the context of the image, or what kind of industry this is to be fair, but it is a striking image nonetheless evoking a disquiet sense of desolation.

This image is as beautiful as is it is tragic, like a rainbow made of dead butterflies. At first glance the bright blues and vibrance of the sea star are pleasing to the eye- until one recognizes the disease that has gripped this seabed. The acidification of the ocean is largely ignored and sadly likely to only get worse. Images such as this, a live animal clinging hopelessly to a habitat that once nourished it, bring awareness to the widespread destruction of the earth's natural habitat. It is a fabulously well captured shot.

The sparseness of this image really captures my eye, it is shocking how much land here has been destroyed for the sake of coal mining. It evokes a question in me of what this place once looked like before scarred by mankind. The perspective and composition of the shot really pull the eye effectively through the wasteland. What was once earth- rendered into an almost desolate unrecognizable surface of a dead planet.

This image is beautiful, I love the slow shutter speed and soft color palette, but the real beauty came to me after regarding the shot for a moment. The decaying bunker is an incredible symbol of nature reclaiming the past. This was once a place symbolic of the incredible ugliness of mankind, yet now it is beautiful, embraced by soft waves, slowly disappearing back into the earth. A powerful image and well captured.

The energy of this image is quite poignant. The decayed walls, graffiti, and rubble all tell a story of destruction and loss. But nothing is more powerful than the discarded child's toy, left behind, evoking questions of what occurred in this place. Maybe there was something beautiful here once, but it is gone now. I love the storytelling work in this shot.

These nets are an absolute environmental disaster and one can clearly see why here. This beautiful scene is tarnished by a tangle of man's destructive inventions, thrown up from the water like poison. The colors in this shot are gorgeous and I think this captures the essence of environmental decay well. I love the flotsam in the foreground, tangled and chaotic, and the serenity of the sea churning away behind.

I absolutely love this image and think it is a perfect representation of the energy of this contest prompt. The rainforest is consuming this ruin, returning back to what once was. It actually gives me a sense of peacefulness and hope, that maybe our more negative impacts can be reversed someday, too. I wonder what this place once was, and there is something beautiful in the thought that it was once likely full of life and society, and now abandoned will transform into another form of abundant life.

This is such a gorgeous image, and I think it was a truly bold choice to not remove the trash before the shot. It turns this beautiful scenic landscape into a more journalistic piece, an immediate reminder of how human wastefulness is detracting and ruining our wild spaces. A true tragedy. I admire your dedication to creating a remarkable image and feel almost sick to my stomach over the amount of this horrible garbage that will plague the ocean for hundreds of years.