Photographic Research

I’ve chosen to critique one of my own photo sequences from a previous assignment. I like the contrast between the two images; one mostly black and one mostly white. I also like the stopped motion of the gas flame and the contrast between the light from the flame and the artificial light reflected on the holding tanks. I like the contrast of the abstract shape of the flame in comparison to the hard geometric lines and shapes of the holding tanks. I think the images are full of contrast yet connected in a way.

While the photos are appealing in an aesthetic sense, I find the duality of the content more interesting. The left photo depicts a natural gas flare, where excess gas is burned off the ease the extraction of oil, and the right depicts holding tanks where the oil is stored until a tanker truck collects it.

For some people, these images represent the industry and resulting economic prosperity that Texas is most famous for – oil. It’s called Texas Tea for a reason, after all. It brings employment to thousands of people. It enriches the landowner, the local economy and provides a healthy stream of tax revenue for the state.

For others, these images represent how humans continue to destroy the environment with reckless abandon. The Earth is treated like a business in liquidation. We strip it of every valuable resource we can in the name of profit.

As a landowner, this duality is something I sometimes struggle with. The Earth is a limited resource that can’t be repaired very easily, much less replaced. As I’m sure you’ve heard, hydraulic fracturing is a much-debated issue. I tend to believe that hydraulic fracturing is mostly good, with a few isolated examples of bad side effects. And the exploding dinosaur-juice that’s buried down there is a great stimulus for our local economy.

On one hand I have potential damage to the environment, and on the other I have the potential for economic prosperity; selflessness against selfishness.

Put in those terms, I admit I feel a bit embarrassed about taking advantage of the natural resources underneath my feet. But it isn’t a black and white issue. Fracturing isn’t 100% bad, and leaving the oil where it sits isn’t 100% good. It deals is shades of gray that aren't entirely set in stone yet.