For me, the main element of this image is its ability to translate .
The 'magic' of a moment, forever captured in time. Just plain, simple, unsensational photojournalism that everybody can relate to;
the nicer side of human nature.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
"Since the beginning of human evolution on this planet, beings have recorded forms and events of the world around them. As skills and intellect developed so too did the urge for communication. With each new rise of civilisation culture grew and the art of making, telling, preserving, appeasing, recording and enshrining led to works on a scale both intricate and enormous.
Yet, for all human preoccupation with art for art's sake, there is an art form so far beyond the fragility of frame that its very existence is within us all. Its presence shows we are but interpreters, `creators' of creation, copiers of kind, for what we have accomplished is nothing when compared to what already is!"
As individual as it might be, this Conspicuous Angelfish Chaetodontoplus conspicillatus is just another part of the whole. Nothing on the planet is really a single entity, everything is connected and everything is dependant. Life has evolved as a perpetual system with each organism playing a part.
As humans, we place importance on the things that affect us and tend to only look after those things that appeal to us. This attitude must be expanded because to save anything we must first protect where it lives and nature is all around us.( photo: Neville Coleman)
The many forms by which art is depicted and administered, along with each series of impressions and expressions, are more or less interpretations regarding the measurement of art.
One can no more measure art than one can measure love.
For me, there are three main forms of art.
The Art of Reality - is - The World of Nature
The Art of Expression - is - The World of Human Nature
The Art of Invention - is - The World of Imagine-Nature (NC 1993)
To me, photography is the ultimate form of self-expression; through it I can express my love of life through my visions.
Pictures communicate!
As an environmental photographer I see everything as important and endeavour to capture the meaning of life in a way everyone can understand. Yet even as the natural world in all its splendour is out there for all to see, for all to experience, for all to absorb, feel, smell and care about, for many, it is just there...it has always been there, and it always will be there.
Not everybody can go to 30 metres and see the magnificence of this male Red Stripe Basslet Pseudanthias fasciatus, but all can appreciate the individual splendour of its captured image.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
It took me several expeditions to discover where the relatively unknown Spotted - thighed frog Litoria cyclorhyncha lived and in the end it was the frog that found me. Each time I go out in search of nature I am rewarded beyond belief. Each life form is a living treasure, nature is the ultimate artist, how can we not all be enthralled? ( photo: Neville Coleman)
Humans have cast their shadows upon the world as we know it and we have affected all forms of life. We have populated and expanded our species to the point of where our presence is now responsible for the extinction of hundreds of species every year. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
This attitude is no longer justified. The future of nature depends on the attitudes and decisions of human nature, and human nature has taken nature for granted for too long!
If we can provide the circumstances whereby an entire island forrested in giant Norfolk pines in the South Pacific ( Phillip Island) can in the space of human intervention be reduced to a single tree, then we need to lift our game.( photo: Neville Coleman)
If we are not able to adequately protect what we can see on the land around us, it is hardly feasible we will protect what most are not even aware of, or are unable to relate to.( Photo: Neville Coleman)
The true essence of my photography stems from a desire to capture, create, produce, display and share moments in time which give meaning to my life and by examples set, perhaps enrich the lives of others. If, through photography, I can show that there is artistic merit in even the `lowliest' of beings and they can be seen as beautiful, then, perhaps people will care for the essence of all nature a little more, and through that realisation, see more in each other.
If I can open eyes, minds and hearts with words and images and let others see the beauty of nature, perhaps they too will find their own reasons for being, and strive to bring about a greater understanding towards our seas, our shores, our selves.
If anything, most people are only able to relate to the larger marine mammals, sharks, rays and turtles as subjects of conservation measures.
Everything else in the sea is fair game, to catch and eat. It is very difficult to change the minds of hunters and gatherers when their skills and mind sets have been forged over generations. The only way to do this is to retrain their skills and be able to retain them as paid caretakers of the reefs.( photo: Neville Coleman)
Therefore, I am seeking to portray parts of the whole, rather than singular entities. Environmental photography is not just something I do to record and share what goes on with the nature of things around me...it is also what I do to share what goes on with the nature of things within me.
The pictures themselves are not really mine, they are but visual expressions of life forces. The images are already created; all I do is interpret with a little technique and a lot of love.
Photography is a wonderful manifestation of self.
A basic camera exposes a negative, yet produces a positive, a marvellous philosophic concept.
Words and pictures are the most powerful weapons we have to combat the environmental woes of the world. They put hope back into hearts, spirit the souls and light fires in the minds of apathy and ignorance.
Then there is the other side of exacting empathy for conservation concerns. Images that beget pity for the plight of our wildlife in gereral might be seen by some as the only way to have humans realize their responsibilities?
Here is an excellent example of how a 'negative' image may produce a positive result?
I guess that while images of extraordinary creatures and those of stark reality may both work at the end of the day, a balance of visuals is probably the best
(photo: Neville Coleman)
Every day and night we are touched by the essence of nature;
photography allows that touch to linger... (photo: Neville Coleman)
VISIONS
We are constantly surrounded by a multitude of things all taken in through our eyes and processed by our brains to form images through which we recognise and understand our environment, measure our existence, and interpret all the aspects necessary for our lifestyles and ultimate survival. Every day and night our eyes and brains scan thousands of images, which are recorded automatically; the intensity of each recorded image is determined by the amount of value we place on what is seen. In effect, it depends on the power of the specific visual stimulation by which we store or discard our visual memories.
Who might have imagined that this rugged bluff might reveal an absolute feast of remarkable images similar to the one at the right hand side? Not an accident that I wandered over there after my dive. I could see the strata from several hundred metres away and knew what might be possible, even though it was not visible as such.( photos: Neville Coleman)
However, no matter how fantastic our vision may be, or how brilliant the images and experiences, we see them only for ourselves. Because we grow up surrounded by different circumstances, things that are always there often appear trivial.
Sometimes it takes somebody else's vision to enable us to really see the nature of what is around us and recognise the beauty of what is within us. Once the `just looking' is replaced by the art of seeing, the entire perception of nature becomes an exciting new world and a lifetime adventure in learning begins.
The sponge Ianthella flabelliformis lives on offshore reefs at around 20 metres.
On its face it has quite a remarkable pattern. However, nothing can compare with the pattern (at right) that is on the underside of the sponge.
A matter of seeing beyond what is taken for granted.
( photos: Neville Coleman)
When viewing images such as this natural rock 'painting' it is not to far removed from some of the art depicted by the ancients. Hundreds of colourful images were composed from a shoreline of hidden rock art exposed by the erosion of the sea. Just a matter of 'seeing' the compositions and constructing each vision to the best perspective.( photo: Neville Coleman)
To even have a chance at finding such an image means that one would need to be at a billabong, or frogpond just after sunset, for the lilly is diurnal and the frog is nocturnal. The chance of having the subjects together for the long term is hardly feasible. The most interesting aspect of this image is the frog's finger extended around the edge of the closing petal.( photo: Neville Coleman)
WE ARE ALL TALENTED BEYOND OUR DREAMS
We all have the ability to create.
As children, we are naturally creative but generally lacking discipline and more often than not the "big" people misinterpret our sources of inspiration and early attempts are often judged as mischievous.
Anybody who can remember their first venture at decorating the lounge room walls with crayons can vouch for this. Emphasized by red backsides and bashed ears, our survival instincts lead us to be more confined in our approach.
For others, the seed of talent is just waiting to be watered with encouragement.
Art is amongst the highest form of self expression, and for as many "self's" in the world, there may be as many expressions.
Yet so few ever pursue beyond the edge of their momentary visions, or have the ability to caress a medium with their souls and turn captured perceptions into the magic of meaning.
Few of us recognise that we all have the ability to translate, to infuse nature with human nature in a way that everyone can share and understand.
How do I know?.....I know, because we are all part of the whole. All it takes is a little belief and a great deal of work!
Appealing in its simplicity, it does not take too much imagination to think that the image of this young Australian Fur Seal Archtocephalus pusillus doriferus was posed for. Understanding behaviour and setting the stage for the right composition resulted in the exact image I required. " Save our Seals"
( photo: Neville Coleman)
It's amazing the talent we are all capable of. All it just needs is a chance. Many have the ability to capture the feelings of aquatica, and produce expressions so intricately landscaped within the elements of form, texture, pattern, colour, light, shadow, depth, habitat, proportion and behaviour that just by looking, we are transported into the very heart of nature.
THE SPIRIT OF THE UNIVERSE
Not everybody can go to the moon, or observe the fascinating creatures in the hot thermals of the abyssal rifts (deep trenches under the ocean). Not everybody has the experience, or knowledge to mount expeditions to far off places and make discoveries on their own and bring back exciting new species, observations and photographs. Yet everyone can have an appreciation of nature, and for those seeking the spirit of the universe there is no greater adventure than exploring the
World of Water at our very doorsteps.( photo: Neville Coleman)
Scuba diving is (to me) the greatest under - rated adventure activety on the planet. It retains all the elements of human endeavour besides providing a vast opportunity to share the beauty and wonderment of our World of Water.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
Living throughout the Asia/Indo-Pacific area we are all in the same unique boat. Islands surrounded by water where the largest oceans of the world pound, in day after day, year after year. Yet even though 100,000,000 people may live within 50 kilometres of an aquatic or coastal environment few understand what makes up this huge, vitally important area which covers over 80 per cent of our planet.
In some ways our ignorance is quite natural, for as land beings, we are more or less only familiar with what is around us in our day-to-day lives. Most people relate to the elements and seasons, the sun and the rain. Trees and most plants are upright and all around us their flowers have bright, attractive colours. Terrestrial animals of our lands are known to most from a very early age. Even the smaller backyard denizens such as snails, grasshoppers, cockroaches, flies, mosquitoes, butterflies, lizards and frogs are commonly encountered. We grow up with them; they are there. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD OF WATER
With the World of Water it is different. We go only as visitors so our time there is limited. We generally go for pleasure, or to relax, to enjoy ourselves, to participate in sport, or in the pursuit of food. There is usually little time left over to devote to looking at the sea and shore and relating to the plants and animals as living things.
There isn't a great deal of time between tides to discover the secrets of the intertidal zone. Like the entire World of Water we only go as visitors and our learning endeavours are truly miniscule compared to what is there.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
More than any other reason our fear of sharks has discouraged many people from experiencing the enthralling learning adventure of Scuba Diving and Snorkelling.
In some ways this is quite natural, but when the risk of shark attack is compared to the risk of many of our normal activities, shark attacks are so few and far between, they do not even register in the equasion.( photo: Neville Coleman)
Because of this lack of familiarity much of the true beauty of the World of Water is hidden behind the blinds in our minds, our ignorance.
The majority of animals hide from predators and the heat of the day in nooks and crannies and beneath the sand and mud. It takes more than a little interest to find and observe them. With the exception of birds and the larger, marine animals such as whales, sea lions, dolphins and sharks many aquatic organisms are relatively small (nudibranchs) and although beautiful, may be well camouflaged.
Yet, it is the retiring habits and nocturnal behaviours of sea creatures that make them all the more interesting.
For every aspect of nature's benevolence we can absorb and recognise, our lives are made that much richer by the knowledge.
Gaining knowledge is like fertilising the mind, the more we know...
the more we grow. (NC 1979)
EYE-SIGHT
With the multitude of amazing "critters" of every shape, colour, pattern, design and size living in such a vast community of habitats and micro-habitats, trying to "sort out the stuff!" and make sense out of it all may appear enormous at first.
However, once there is a basic understanding of the major groups (see Underwater Naturalist Coleman 2004) it is amazing just how easy it becomes to fit species into there various phyla.
When faced with a myriad of colour and unfamilar shapes and patterns it requires some knowledge of marine natural history, identification, relationships and behaviour to sort out the 'STUFF'. While the larger animals and plants are easy to see, there are thousands of others that are present but due to cryptic camouflage, mimicry, unusual associations, or shape, they are virtually invisible to the untrained eye.( photo: Neville Coleman)
The secret lies in the ability to recognise and distinguish interesting photogenic subjects from the masses of mediocre surroundings, `seeing through' the very essence of nature (including adaptive resemblance and the art of camouflage and subterfuge), and being able to capture an intrinsic appreciation of what may remain unnoticed by most.
With almost identical mantle colours and pattern as that of its host gorgonian this Rosy Spindle Cowry Phenacovolva rosea is not easily recognised even in close up.
From several metres away it is virtually invisible.( photo: Neville Coleman)
Living out its entire life on a single feather star, this commensal shrimp Periclimenes amboinensis has produced a colour pattern almost identical to its host.
Only 20 mm in size it is very difficult to find and recognise in its natural habitat. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
When I discovered this fabulous species of commensal shrimp in 1974 it was undescribed. Now known as Coleman's shrimp Periclimenes colemani, I would never have found them if I had not been inquisitive enough to check out the sea urchin they lived on, and there they were. Other divers had been diving that same dive site for 10 years before I got there, yet the shrimps had not been recognised because of their adaptive resemblance to their host.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
Experience is based on our ability to learn.
Most talent is generally a feature of experience. One of the greatest talents is enthusiasm for life, because enthusiasm can be encouraged and with it you can learn anything you want. However, to succeed generally requires a healthy respect for another aspect of natural ability, tenacity!
ART OF SEEING
One of the main features which shows in the work of a good photographer is `insight', that remarkable ability to `see' pictures; to know what will make a good natural history photograph, and to know how it should be approached and taken.
Practical technique can be taught, or learnt from experience, but no amount of theory can replace the ability to use one's eyes and one's mind's eye (the imagination): to create pictures in one's head and be able to `see' some quality in a simple subject that transforms ordinary into the extraordinary.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
