The Crestock Photography Contest 2007

Description: “The basic pattern of the circle with a center is found in nature and seen in biology, geology, chemistry, physics and astronomy. On our planet, living things are made of cells and each cell has a nucleus—all display circles with centers. The crystals that form ice, rocks, and mountains are made of atoms. Each atom is a mandala. Within the Milky Way Galaxy is our solar system and within our solar system, is Earth. Each is a mandala that is part of a larger mandala. Flowers, spider webs, and the rings found in tree trunks all reflect the primal mandala pattern. The “circle with a center” pattern is the basic structure of a creation that is reflected from the micro to the macro in the world as we know it.” Process: “Specimens are meticulously selected from the wild and brought back to my studio for cleaning. Once ready, they are placed on a glass plate and photographed close up over a period of time and at different stages of decomposition. This particular photograph is of the dried and dead mushroom cap, several days after it has released its spores.”