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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Eighty-five: On Tour – cruising the Mississippi from Memphis to the Gulf > Oil Platforms, Gulf of Mexico, 2012
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07-DEC-2012

Oil Platforms, Gulf of Mexico, 2012

Our river cruise dramatically changed its character as we left the Mississippi River Delta behind and moved into the Gulf of Mexico. We followed a prescribed course through the Gulf from New Orleans to Pensacola, Florida. We were rarely out of sight of the massive off shore oil platforms that loomed through the mist. I placed two of them into this frame as we cruised past them at dusk. I contrast both scale and visibility here. One is large, the other small. One is clearly defined while the other seems lost in the fog. A flame glows at the top of a tower on the closest platform, flaring away unusable gas drawn to the surface along with oil. Oil platforms such as these may be essential economic machines, however the flame glowing above this tower reminds us of the risks involved when fire and oil are present. Not far from here, a BP platform exploded in 2010, killing eleven people, and polluting the Gulf of Mexico with twenty million gallons of oil – the worst spill in US history.

Panasonic LUMIX G5
1/400s f/5.6 at 175.0mm iso160 full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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Phil Douglis31-Dec-2012 03:25
You are very observant, Carol. You are right -- I did have conflicting emotions about sailing past all of these platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Everyone of them brought back memories of dying men and oil slicked waters. Yes, energy is critical to our economy and our lives. But I hope that someday, the risks of calamity will become minimal. We are still a long way from that point. And yes, it was an incongruous situation for us to move from 19th century history to 20th century history and finally, to 21st century history, all in the same trip.
Carol E Sandgren31-Dec-2012 02:56
Such a solemn reminder of what havoc this can make on all of us. The soft focus plus the soft, unbright colors both contribute to this feeling I get from your image. That had to have been unsettling as your cruise ship sailed through and right past these platforms after such a pleasant history lesson in the Delta!
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