Blog # 16: Finn McCool

A writer friend, Debra Davis Hinkle, who loves playing with her photo program, sent me this picture of her beloved horse, Finn McCool, who she lost in 2011. You can check her out on her KritiqueKritics Website: http://www.kritiquekritics.com . She’s a fabulous writer and not bad with photos, either. She’s given us lots to play with here.

Horse Photo in infrared

Ask yourself: Why are the images limned in neon colors? Is it merely a trick of the light, or has something happened to the sun? Is this a post-apocalyptic world? Is the atmosphere dangerous now? Does everything glow with that unearthly light? Or is there something going on just in this field, in this one isolated spot? What could it be?

Is the horse confined within the field? If you look at the two parts of the fence, it appears as tough Finn had the latch in his mouth and is pushing through a gate. Where is he going? What is enticing him away from the field? Perhaps someone stole him away from his owner, and he is trying to get back. Or perhaps he is now part of this eerie world and has a more sinister errand in mind.

Why are there no stars in the sky? No moon glow? Is this a real scene, or only an illusion? A dreamscape of some kind. And whose illusion might it be—a person’s or the horse’s?

If you look closely at the horse, it appears that his body and mane are covered with a light coating of moss. Perhaps this is merely a statue, sculpted from bronze, slowly greening in a farmer’s field. If so, why would it be there? Who would have put it there? For what purpose? Or is this perhaps a long-lost painting from Vincent VanGogh? Where has it been all these years? Who found it. What is it worth? Will the art world accept it as authentic?

Even images that have been computer-enhanced can tell their own stories, tales very different from those the original photo would inspire. What do you see in this computer-twisted image?

Susan Tuttle

Comments? Your ideas from this photo…

On Writing: “A novel is an impression, not an argument.” ~Thomas Hardy