The PIKTO gallery in Toronto, Canada is running a gallery competition right now. They are looking for 15 images all relating to a specific theme. I wanted to try creating a collection of images that expressed some of the challenges faced by wild animals in Kenya. The theme for my collection is a synthesis of two words that seem to describe these images.

oblique – sideways, furtive, covert, sly, surreptitious, in-explicit.

bleak – unfavorable, discouraging, disheartening, depressing, dreary, somber, treeless, without vegetation, denuded.

O–bleak is therefore a furtive, surreptitious glimpse into the sombre and somewhat disheartening world of Kenyan wildlife.

My goal was to depict the animals in a way that somehow illustrates their daily struggle for survival in an environment that is steadily fading away and becoming increasingly unfavorable for them. In order to accomplish this I used Lightroom to desaturate the colours; especially the greens, insinuating the loss of the animal’s natural habitat. Clarity and sharpness were pushed to the extreme to emphasize the harshness of reality. Vignetting helped to isolate the animal from its environment. The adjustment brush was used to add contrast, saturation, clarity, and brightness to the eyes. I specifically chose images where the animal was staring directly into the lens so that the viewer could connect with the animal.

It would be great if you could jump over to my entry in the PIKTO gallery and rate my images and leave some comments. Artists need feedback in order to mature in their craft.