Monday, July 28, 2008

Crows and Telegraph Wires: Creative Photography # 7

I'm not sure which initiated my thoughts, the visual sighting or the photo taking, but the sight of the three crows on the branch immediately radiated the image to my brain and out came the litany in my head; "three crows a letter".

Marshall McLuhan had coined his famous phrase, "the medium is the message" in the 1960's. McLuhan placed his emphasis on the study of media, or the way a message was relayed, as being that of most importance for he felt that the media would have the greatest impact on society.

Did you notice the broken telegraph wires in the photo? That medium is now obsolete, as perhaps is also my childhood belief of the letter receiving, fortune telling, properties of crows.
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This photo represents to me the media of the past being portrayed by the media of the present: digital photos and blogging! In this case the 'medium is the message'.
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To view other creative photo entries, please visit Creative Photography . Thanks to Roger for hosting this contest.

21 comments:

Ruth said...

Interesting image representing significant changes in our lifetimes. (which aren't even over yet!) Twenty-five years ago I had to send a telegram to my parents announcing the birth of our twins, but since then, communication is altered in ways we could have never imagined. I like the changes!

Mary said...

It is always interesting to watch the things that have become obsolete, that we remember so well from the past and their importance at that time. Your photo is super and your description is very thought provoking. I didn't know the "3 crows a letter" litany, but your explanation makes it perfectly clear.

me ann my camera said...

ruth:
I love the changes and the ability to initiate instant communication is so totally amazing; still!! Years ago, in my parent's time, a long distance telephone call was an event! Now I can keep in touch daily with family both near and far. And make new friends with the click of a mouse!

mary:
One crow sorrow, two crows joy, three crows a letter, four crows a boy....

Patti said...

This is an interesting story accompanying a cool photo of the three crows and the telephone pole.

The role of the media has changed so drastically since I was born in the 50s. My parents didn't even have a TV when I was born!

The old and the new - excellent post!

Good luck in the contest.

;-)

RW said...

Thank you for your Creative Photography submission.

Cool metaphors!

Gattina said...

Nice thinking, I thought about chatting housewives when I saw the picture ! It's a very nice composition. Best wishes for the contest !

Lori Stilger said...

GREAT post. Love the symbolism you discussed, the composition. Thanks for sharing!
Good luck! :) Have a great day - BE BLESSED!

Becky said...

I love your story.
Past and present. Gary and I have collected telegraph insulators for many years, and we have quite a display. Millions of messages traveled over the wires that these insulators held.

Anonymous said...

This photo brings out more thoughts than just 3 crows spotted. Delightful :)

Anonymous said...

Your insightful commentary is mirrored in the focal effect of the image. Nicely done.
cheers
dale

Raven said...

I like this and the thought process that went into it. I have to say that that little group of crows looks to me like a committee gathered to discuss the problem. I can almost hear a conversation. "Well, Charlie, I think we should..." Guess I'm just being silly.

Daryl said...

Really nice


:-Daryl

Dianne said...

the broken wires make an interesting backdrop and whatever the little knobby things are, look like giant bolts - in my mind they were large stationary birds looking over the crows.

me ann my camera said...

raven:
Well, Crows being Crows, I wouldn't be at all surprised if you might be right.

dianne:
The knobby little things are called insulators; some are of coloured glass and rare ones are sought after by collectors. I like your idea of them being stationary birds, for certainly they are immovable in their perch.

Ralph said...

I like looking at the original natural branch on a 'real' tree as opposed to the more modern interpretation of a tree as seen in the telegraph pole.

I don't often pay attention to crows, so seeing three of them on one branch is almost unreal.

The telegraph may seem quaint, but consider life prior to its use. In the 1860s. telegraph was that day's high tech!

Anonymous said...

Very creative hope you win...

me ann my camera said...

ralph:
I never thought of the telegraph pole as being a 'high tech tree' but yours is a great comparison!

Anonymous said...

That's a great photo... I love the story "behind".

Good luck!

maryt/theteach said...

Ann, this is excellent! I love the story/info you give along with the photo! Good luck in Roger's contest! :)

Anonymous said...

Great shot on this one.

Linda said...

I'm late getting here from last week's contest (it was a hectic week!) but I did want to pop by to check out everyone's entries.

That's a very nice shot, I really like the imagery - three crows indeed!