Face in the Sand 2015
A blogger friend Steve Schwartzman writes Portraits of Wildflowers, from which I draw both wisdom and inspiration. Recently, I’d commented on one of his photographs showing various ripples in the sand and he in turn taught me the word “pareidolia.”
Pareidolia is basically a type of illusion of phenomenon wherein the mind perceives a familiar pattern in nature or things. Like seeing the face of Jesus in a potato chip, the Man in the Moon, seeing animal shapes in clouds or, in my case, seeing Salvador Dali in the rill mark image, above. Or maybe it’s Edgar Allen Poe. I don’t see ALL of him, just the most of the top of his face before alien rill marks melts the rest away. One of my all time favorite passions is to go out at low tide and take photos of the rill marks that occur at low tide as the sea drains back into the ocean. I’ve spotted dragons, women, amoebas and Christmas trees as well as all manner of abstracts. All lovingly captured and set aside. I seem to be the only one who thinks these images are amusing or captivating. Maybe, just maybe, there are others out there.
So, do you see Salvador Dali? Have you ever experienced pareidolia? If so, do tell!
Debi Bradford Photography 
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