StanMac Loc: Tennessee

If you have a problem with Kudzu, get a couple of goats - they will keep it at bay. And you can make gourmet cheese with their milk. Maybe it won’t taste kudzuey . . . 😏

Stan

JBRIII

This is also true for several other problems, grasses introduced by the USDA to control problems along roadways, etc.
Living things placed in a new environment can become quite invasive.

wetreed

I saw you are from Yakima. I think this one of the great places in this country. I believe it’s considered the Palm Springs of the High Desert.

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

Unreal and interesting 💚💚💚💚💚

JBRIII

A dynamic photo would be set camera on tripod, use a timer, go stand in kuzu, photo it swallowing you up!

I think it was also used as cattle feed, but something wrong there, they don't like it or can't control growth enough??

User ID

You’re touching on what I’ll call “the back story issue”. Briefly, some pix stand on their own. The message or intent is well represented by the content of the frame, no dependency on prior knowledge, explanations, etc.

Other pix might be aesthetically reeeeally worthwhile (or not) but certain nonvisual information must be applied if the viewer is to grasp the author’s message.

Your challenge is that kudzu is visually intriguing or even appealing. IOW it seldom if ever appears as negative or menacing based solely on the visual content of the frame. If you’re a Civilian Conservation Corps member and so most images of kudzu anger or irritate you, that response depends on your being privy to the “back story” about the subject of the photo.

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Personally I have no interest in imagery that depends on a back story. There may be a significant back story to an image that intrigues or pleases me. No hey problemo ! But aesthetically the back story is of no value to me. For instance, to me a “BIF in sky” is a bif in sky is a bif is a bif is a bif in sky ... Aesthetically it matters not at all if it’s a park pigeon or a species thought to be extinct. The status of the species is just another back story. Aesthetically it contributes nada.

revhen Loc: By the beautiful Hudson

I remember seeing kudzu some 80 years ago. It had pretty much conquered the south even then. All I can say is don't stand too long in one spot while taking a shot. You could could be conquered in the same way houses, telephone poles, trees, etc, etc., etc. are smothered. LOL

srt101fan

Interesting observations! Could be / should be the basis for a separate discussion topic. Might want to consider that an appealing image can lead you to create your own version of a "back story"...

But the challenge is still there. Say you never heard of kudzu - no "back story". You're walking down a country lane. You come across this very large expanse of wavy, green growth, looming tall in some places, more like a ground cover in others.

You realize It's all one plant, or a group of connected plants, that has totally engulfed everything underneath. The scene gives you the willies. Resurrects memories of sci-fi movies about agressive plants, blobs and miscellaneous evil oozes. You've got to tell your buddies about this! Better yet, send them a picture.

But how do you photograph this scene so it elicits the same fearful reaction in others that you had standing in front of it?

Some folks here have made some good suggestions. Anybody else have any thoughts?

pyroManiac Loc: HIXSON,TN

fr we could turn kudzu into gasoline all our fuel wories would be gone--maybe wood alcohol????

Darkroom317 Loc: Mishawaka, IN

You should look at Sally Mann's landscape work. She conveys it very well.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Wow, what evil lurks... I thought OK they grab CO2 so that is good... oops... Not the case! read the following!!

"Existing stands of kudzu, they found,release an amount of carbon that is equivalent to the amount of carbon stored in 12 million acres of forests. In other research, scientists studying kudzu in Georgia found that kudzu invasions doubled the rate of nitrogen oxide emissions as well as volatile organic compounds. These compounds are the primary contributors to ozone pollution. By killing forests, kudzu also destroys one of our best defenses to climate change. According to the U.S. Forest Service, forests provide 90% of the U.S. carbon sink and sequester about 10% of the U.S. carbon emissions.

Kudzu has invaded more than 7 million acres of land in the U.S. and is spreading at a rate of 120,000 acres each year—far north of its Southern stronghold—into Maine and Ontario. "
https://flagpole.com/news/letters-to-the-editor/2019/08/07/kudzu-wont-fix-climate-change/

So since it is invading Maine... we now know why Linda left.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Yes, kudzu is a horrible plant, and there seems to be no way to control it. Taking pictures of it totally overcoming an area would be a good way to show its destructive power. I remember riding in TN (I think) and seeing nothing but kudzu on the side of the road. It had taken over every other type of growth.

User ID

.
Maybe BW IR ?
Or color/tone inversion ?

Humans are an invasive species that does a lotta damage. I’ve included a photo of a human below. You tell me how to make it look scarey ....

(Download)

srt101fan

No fair, User ID! 🙄

I still wonder how to photographically capture the menacing aspect of kudzu. Would take lots of effort scouting around the plant to find the right location, angle, things protruding, etc.

The question is, does the linear growth rate of kudzu exceed the run rate of my 80-year old legs?

kvanhook Loc: Oriental, NC

Don't stand too close or it may consume you as well as the rest of the world.