This weekend I decided to visit George Steinmetz Desert Air aerial photography exhibit at National Geographic. Soaring above the clouds, George captures images from an aerial perspective bringing beauty to the image of a desert. George has been able to reveal the beauty of the hidden corners on earth by flying around in a motorized hang glider. With an extensive background in geophysics, Steinmetz uses his photos to educate about the geographic features of deserts. All of his pieces are completely breathtaking, but the one that stuck out most to me was his image of the Peruvian beach in Bahia Independencia. When I first saw the picture I thought it was a closer look at the earth’s inner mantle because of the distinctive textures, colors, and layers that lie horizontal to each other. I finally realized it was a beach when I read the information underneath. The sand has formed crescent-shaped dunes caused by the strong winds that blow from one direction.The sand closer to the water is darker than the rest proving that the water is in motion and is flowing over that area. Steinmetz alters the unmistakable scene of a beach and makes the viewers second guess what they are looking at by providing an aerial perspective.
Because Steinbeck overlooks his target in his hang glider, he uses the camera in a high angle to capture what is directly below him. The picture appears to be what one would see looking down on the earth from a plane. Not only does Steinmetz capture the scene in such a unique angle, but he is still able to manage to maintain a great composition of elements in his photo. The contrast of colors between the different layers of sand and the water adds texture to the photo as well as movement. The layers that run horizontally frame the picture which also adds to the pleasing composition. Because Steinmetz probably could not make use of too much equipment suspended in a motorized hang glider, he used existing light to add to the naturalness of the images. He also uses high shutter speed to capture the specific moment where the waves are in a place that allows for the wet sand to be shown.
Furthermore, Steinmetz intention behind this piece is portray the beauty in these nonconventional areas of the world. Typically, one wouldn’t consider a barren desert to be a beautiful place, but it was Steinmet’z mission to uncover their hidden beauty. The exhibit in itself really takes on the bigger notion that beauty can be found in anything by taking on a different perspective. Steinmetz clearly had an obligation towards the desert; he left Stanford in his third year to hitchhike across the Saharan Desert with a borrowed camera. He then completed his degree in geophysics, and he uses his photographs to educate and understand better the geography of deserts.
George Steinmetz’s work appears in the National Geographic museum in Washington DC and he has also published numerous book about his work in the deserts. His work certainly does obtain value in society not only as art, but as educational tools. His pictures are tangible evidence of places that many people won’t ever get to see in person. Steinmetz’s unique approach to capture these places inspired courage in me to be more adventurous. He dropped everything, and said “I’m going to hitchhike across Africa today.” Because of his courage, the whole world benefits by getting to see the beautiful sights he saw. I absolutely loved this exhibit.
Alexa's Artistic Adventures 