The Comedy Wildlife Photo awards have rolled around yet again, annual prizes for bad photography where technical flaws like unwanted foreshortening are revered and the welfare of subjects irrelevant.
Presumably, a picture of an adolescent lion falling from a tree in the Serengeti is as funny as an adolescent human falling from a Bangkok balcony. The planet is dying and almost all the animals in these pictures face extinction. Is this the time to “lighten up”?
It is hard to see how it benefits the fish for us to “laugh” at the work of a photographer who believes that fish can smile. Don’t we have enough pictures of fish already? Is there any need to take more? Wouldn’t the world be a better place with the photographer at home and the fish left in peace?
But you know, if you just got through watching Seaspiracy and if you are despairing about what you have done to the world’s oceans, perhaps a simpering fish can take away the fragment of guilt you feel as you tuck into the frozen cod and chips that travelled 10,000 kilometres from the North Atlantic to become the dish of the day in your Pattaya rest home.
Stalker – someone who prowls or sneaks about, usually with unlawful intentions. Snooper – A spy who makes uninvited inquiries into the private affairs of others.
“It took me no time at all to notice that this nothing, this hole where a head should have been was no ordinary vacancy, no mere nothing. On the contrary, it was very much occupied.” – Douglas E. Harding.
They sipped until the sun, as golden and syrupy as the bourbon, slipped into the sea. – Delia Owens
I recognise this animal. We’d roast them over a flame pit as children. Their flesh was quite delicious. – Drax
Then, after circling once around them, he dropped to the earth, all four hoofs together, looking awkward and surprised, but extremely pleased. “Is it good, Fledge?” said Aslan. “It is very good, Aslan,” said Fledge.
Buzzie : Aw, come off it. Things are right dead all over. Ziggy : You mean you wish they were.
Kids are meant to believe that their stepping stone to massive money is ‘The X Factor.’ Luck is great, but most of life is hard work. We do not celebrate people who have made a success out of serious hard work. – Iain Duncan Smith
Coniferous forests noticeably reduce the number of germs in the air, which feels particularly good to people who suffer from allergies. ― Peter Wohlleben
You can never win a race by looking over your shoulder at what the other people are doing or saying. You must keep your focus on crossing the line. – Roger Bannister
“I’m not all that interested in the subject of photography. Once the picture is in the box, I’m not all that interested in what happens next. Hunters, after all, aren’t cooks. — Henri Cartier-Bresson
There is no need to worry about mere size. We do not necessarily respect a fat man more than a thin man. Sir Isaac Newton was very much smaller than a hippopotamus, but we do not on that account value him less. – Bertrand Russell
Is that a fish in your ear? – David Bellows
You may hate gravity, but gravity doesn’t care. ~ Clayton Christensen.
A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape. – Mark Twain
As long as I know how to love I know I’ll stay alive. I’ve got all my life to live. I’ve got all my love to give. And I’ll survive I will survive, hey, hey – Gloria Gaynor
Jon Whitman is a seasoned journalist and author who has been living and working in Asia for more than two decades. Born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland, Jon has been at the forefront of some of the most important stories coming out of China in the past decade. After a long and successful career in East sia, Jon is now semi-retired and living in the Outer Hebrides. He continues to write and is an avid traveller and photographer, documenting his experiences across the world.
