Birth of an idea

This particular image was quite possibly the largest file I have worked on: more than one and a half gigabytes. I began with a simple close-up of a rock, as I was keenly interested in the texture, and then brought a similar file onto the image, replicating that layer many times after modifying the shape, tonal qualities and texture, before positioning it the way you see it here.

I have also experimented with this image at different angles: with the "birth" happening upwards, sideways, what have you. It pretty much works for me all the way around in fact. I do like this variation the best, however.