The Ends of the Earth
Asy Plateau, Kazakhstan 2016
An abandoned observatory, built by the Soviets, is wreathed by razor wire. Does it remind you of the Doomsday feeling that the cold war brought to both the U.S.A and the Soviet Union? That is what I tried to evoke with my treatment of this image. I used Alien Skin Exposure X : lots of clarity and contrast with a dark vignette.
Here is the same image in black and white. I used NIK Silver Effects 2 and a “noir” look. Which is more sinister? Or maybe you are so young that you don’t know what I’m talking about.
When I asked the Kazakh men we met, and who could speak English, about their feelings toward Russia, they spoke of the benefits that the Soviets brought…mainly education. They hadn’t experienced the hardships of their parents or grandparents when the communists confiscated all livestock and anything that was “valuable” such as a metal tea kettle. The people were left to fend for themselves as best they could. Luckily, the Kazakhs were tribal and they could find at least some kind of shelter if they could make it to a kinsman’s tent.