Title: Review of gallery for 10-11-03
Started on a review last week but never finished it, this week I'll make amends.
1. Greg 'Carney' Fraser - "Coaster"
Photograph of a roller coaster ride at the Western Fair "rip-off" (interesting name for a fair). Not that crazy about this image since it's way too busy. The flow of the track from the top foreground is almost lost among the guy wires and girders going in every direction. Maybe moving, or zooming, closer would eliminate some of the distraction and still get the car in the picture. How about moving to the right and shooting a vertical.
2. Shawna Hanel - "Concern"
Photograph of colored plastic bags caught on the branches of a tree, being (apparently) blown by the wind. This reminds me of post card that a Rochester photographer (Stuart Larson, I believe) produced a few years ago titled "Rochester in Bloom" which showed a plastic bag caught in a tree. Not sure whether he was making an environmental statement, or just producing a bit of whimsy. Anyway, given your title, this seems to be an environmental statement. I like the contrast between the stark tree branch and the pastel colored bags, other than that it doesn't do much for me. Try cropping the out-of-focus sections of the bags on the right which don't really do much to give a feeling of motion, and the tree in the background. It eliminates the more disruptive elements.
3. Fletcher Jernigan - "Geometry"
Artistic photograph of sycamore balls hanging from a branch. My favorite this week. It appears to be a toned print, with the background removed. There is a nice balance to the overall picture, which lends an almost restful quality to it. It reminds me of those botanical illustrations from the 18th and 19th century. My only quibble is, like those illustrations, it appears very static and lacking in dimension. What pray tell is "Pw31?"
4. Dan Mitchell - "Ascent"
Photograph of a winding staircase taken from the ground floor. The metallic quality of the lighting made me think that this was the passage way in a ship when I initially looked at it (don't ask). The picture is fairly well composed, with most of the banister rail visible almost to the top. From the looks of it I assume that this building has been well maintained.
5. John Warner - "Morning, between E. Harding and Cocking"
A photograph along a dark, foggy forest road leading into a fog shrouded, sunlit field (?). My first impression was, "Lord of the Rings!" The eye is nicely led up the road and out into field. The fog lends an air of gothic mystery, although the overall picture is a bit too dark. There needs to be a point of interest to really make this a good image.
6. Alan Zinn - "Mama" by Louise Bourgeois
A photograph of something that looks like a prop from "Star Wars," or a big mama spider (eight legs, yep could be a spider). There's a nice symmetry to the "legs" (although one breaks that symmetry), and I like the perspective. Not quite tack sharp focus, but good enough. Haven't read about the sculpture yet, will do that next.
7. Scott Thurmond - "Keeper of the Door"
The title's a bit lame, but what the hell.
8. Bob Talbot - "Cantona"
A picture of a fishing boat surrounded by seagulls. This is another restful image. Having spent a lot of time in my youth in and around the ocean, this brings back memories (although the seagull poop was less than memorable). The hills in the upper quarter of your photo don't add much and could probably be cropped to produce a stronger composition. The same goes for some of the left side. Other than that, it's a nice image.
Thanks everyone! Now back to beer and football (American).
