Welgevonden: |An African Wilderness Reborn
By Ian Finlay
(Firefinch Publications in conjunction with Wild Dog Press, R395)
AND
Best of Getaway Gallery
(Jacana Media, R275)
While both Best of Getaway Gallery and Welgevonden are nature photography books, I would recommend each to its own distinct audience: the former to photography enthusiasts and the latter to nature lovers.
Of the two, easily the most alluring to the eye is Best of Getaway, a compilation of the best photographs that readers have sent to the nature and travel magazine over the past seven years. Beneath each photo is |the photographer’s name, a description of the equipment employed and a brief summary of where and how the image was captured.
The introduction’s claim that nearly all the images sent to Gallery are the work of “pure amateur enthusiasts” is the blackest of white lies. The term “amateur” seems ludicrous when you consider the top-of-the-range cameras and lenses used (trust me, none of these marvels were produced on a BlackBerry or some snap-and-tap) and the complexity of technique behind some of these images.
In addition, quite a number |of the images selected for this anthology are taken by the award-winning Greg du Toit, |who is to amateur wildlife photo-graphy what Tiger Woods is |to amateur golf (or amateur adultery).
That quibble aside, the quality and beauty of the images inside this really rather affordable coffee table book is practically outrageous. On many pages, your eyes will not want to blink. Among the images that I found most striking were Chad Cocking’s remarkable inverted portrait of a leopard lapping at a waterhole, the clear reflection of her face staring straight at the viewer (Cocking has recently had a book of his photos published); (actual amateur) Jason Prince’s elegiac and sepia-toned capture |of a lion, its mane mingling in the long grass as the wind blows; and (actual amateur) Devin Alexander’s startling close-up of a dragonfly.
Welgevonden is a tribute to |the protected reserve that was |set up to restore an area of the Waterberg back to its original state. Ian Finlay is a photo-grapher most famous for the iconic U2 album covers for Boy and War, quite possibly the most famous diptych in popular culture. He worked on this project for 10 years, starting with film before using digital cameras. Oddly, his efforts look quite amateurish in comparison to those featured in the Best of Getaway Gallery.
Many of the images have the level of grain you would usually find in digital photos taken on a high ISO and there is nominal but noticeable purple fringing in several photos. Still, the lack of Photoshop, polish and pretension actually adds to the book.
When Finlay captures the last drops of daylight dripping off the long dry grass, you know that this is how the sunset looks, without HDR toning to boost the colours. There are flies everywhere in Finlay’s book – on tails, snouts and eyelids – as there are in the wild, and these flies are not exterminated with a digital version of Doom. His photos, though most may be plain in comparison to those in Getaway Gallery, do have the odour of the veld. They carry the depth and heat of the day. In the same way that these animals exist in a natural state, so too do his images of them.
The animals are not humani-sed or deified or excessively prettified. They are what they are, which, needless to say, is more than enough.
Welgevonden is not a magical kingdom but a natural habitat. It is not a heaven but a haven where animals are free to be.