This photo owes much of its inspiration to The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. At the time I shot it I was in Lublin to attend the 2017 Eastreet photo festival. The Polish city is filled with numerous parks, many of which offer beautiful scenery, so in my mind, the walk back to my hotel presented another chance to capture something interesting. I walked through a park, absorbing the night scents and sounds. That was when I was drawn by the harsh caw of what sounded like a crow; to my amazement, there were hundreds of crows sitting in the trees. Crows are not known for the beauty of their song, but in my ears it was a mesmerizing sound which made “my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore”. Without any hesitation, I started taking multiple photos but, due to the low light conditions, I had to use slow shutter speed, thus transforming the moving birds into something entirely different from what my eyes saw. Interestingly, I went back to the park the following night at approximately the same time – however, the birds did not offer me a second go at it. - Lukas Vasilkos