Those are birds nests?! Dillon Marsh explores our relationship with the natural world

Starter for ten – what do these images show? If you said the nests of sociable weaver birds built around telephone poles in the southern Kalahari region, then give yourself a pat on the back (you liar!). This intriguing series Assimilation is the work of South African photographer Dillon Marsh, a huge talent whose work explores the symbiotic relationship between society and the landscapes in which it sits.

This set shows the natural world co-opting human structures for its own ends, at other times he depicts illuminated crucifixes, telegraph poles “disguised” as trees and trees which have died but not yet fallen.

“In these series I seek to find things that are out of the ordinary, picking them out of the landscape where they might otherwise blend in,” he says. “I choose objects that can be found in multitude within their environment so that I can depict a family of objects in a series of photographs. By displaying each project as such, I feel I am able to show both the character of the individual members, and the characteristics that make these objects a family.”