‘Rainbow Puddles’ Photo Series is a Positive Reinterpretation of Oil Spills

Photographer Akriti Sondhi’s photos exhibit the artist’s affinity for expressing vibrant colours, in addition to kindling the imaginations of onlookers. Mimicking a form of psychedelic acrylic paint pour, Sondhi’s photograph sequence Helix takes viewers on a journey of playful shapes, iridescent colours, and cosmic-like imagery.

The Paris-based photographer stumbled upon the concept for the sequence when she was merely strolling down the road on a wet day again in 2019. Marveling on the phenomenon referred to as ‘rainbow puddles’ — the blending of oils and water on pavement — Sondhi started to ponder about bigger and never so marvelous mixtures of the 2 substances.

“Whereas engaged on this challenge I couldn’t assist however consider the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (2010). As a teen—who has all the time cherished nature, I used to be deeply affected by the photographs of the catastrophe. The consequences of the oil spill weren’t simply restricted to marine animals and vegetation but in addition birds, and probably affected the groundwater. The devastating ecological influence which would require a long time to get better,” Sondhi says chatting with PetaPixel.

The permanence of that imagery in Sondri’s recollections, in addition to the simplistic pleasure of observing a “rainbow puddle” gave delivery to the photographer’s constructive reinterpretation of the phenomenon. She now recreates the prevalence in a managed surroundings, utilizing her photos as a type of documentation.

“This challenge is a reminder that one thing so lovely (usually resembling a rainbow) may also trigger a lot injury,” Sondhi says.

Sondhi usually begins her course of by including a number of drops of oil onto a container with water. A skinny movie interference happens related to what’s seen in cleaning soap bubbles. The varied colours depend upon the thickness of the movie, so the colours shift and alter because the oil movie spreads and strikes.

Utilizing her Canon Mark III with a 100mm f/2.8L, Sondhi manages to seize the customarily unpredictable outcomes of her experiments.

“I like images with a robust visible attraction that evokes a way of thriller, leaving the viewer questioning what it truly is [what they see] and whether or not there’s extra to it than meets the attention,” Sondhi says.

However getting the suitable outcomes for Helix was trial and error for the photographer,

“Earlier than reaching my ultimate setup, I needed to experiment with varied supplies, temperatures, varieties of mixtures, and many others. I needed to method this challenge like a scientist, document the impact at varied readings, attempt totally different permutation combos to see which gave me the perfect outcomes,” Sondhi provides.

“Over time, I used to be in a position to perceive what was serving to and what wasn’t in reaching the specified end result. Nonetheless, it was essential to not be very inflexible and let the phenomena do its factor. A few of my favourite photos had been ‘errors’.”

The photographer now has a newfound appreciation for the simplistic however unpredictable nature of the method together with the free-ranging outcomes that took a month to excellent.

“This challenge actually helped me [be] extra affected person as a photographer. In immediately’s world the place photographers are sometimes required to give you as a lot content material as they will, it was good to work on fine-tuning the identical challenge. I used to be additionally very fortunate to have a mentor who offered me with steering and Motivation.”

Sondhi’s photos proceed to spark intrigue and have left viewers mystified whereas setting imaginations adrift.

“I actually loved this challenge, I seemed ahead to on daily basis of my experimentation, to see what new factor I’d witness and attempt to perceive why it occurred the best way it did. I’d usually sit for hours researching the brand new factor I noticed immediately and if there was an evidence for it.” Sondhi provides.

“I like listening to what folks see or what these photos make them really feel. Certainly one of my favourite responses was – a dreamscape to a nebula exploding with luminescent colours and power, which is the place the identify of the challenge comesfrom. However I’ve additionally heard that some images appear like a UFO or perhaps a donut.”

For extra from Sondhi, make sure that to go to her Website and Instagram

Picture credit: Akriti Sondhi