Hello everyone. Now that the giddy fog of Valentine's Day Week has lifted, I
respectfully present My Take for the week of 19 February 2005.
Bob Talbot - Abstract
Nicely done, Bob. The "common household object" has translucence and (what
appears to be) a refractive quality about it, which establishes its curious
ambiguity right up front. Adding to it is its delightful symmetry and
contrast between the dark areas and striated gray, as well as the streaks of
light and shadow in the background. Your choice of B/W here, I believe, is
appropriate, as a wash of competing colors may have distracted from and/or
diluted the strength of the subject.
D.L. Shipman - {Untitled}
Overall, this image looks a little on the dark side. The depth of field
and sharp focus on the droplets suspended in the web and frame-filling
composition is commendable, as is the use of a uniform (non-distracting)
background. However, it seems that a little bit of a brightness/contrast
adjustment may really add some life to this image, particularly with a dull
olive-colored backdrop. I like the shade of red in the leaves/branches and
how it relates to the rest of the image, and had the bit of light on the
topmost leaf been absent, the picture just would not be the same.
Jim Snarski - Preparing For Departure
OK, just looking at this makes me want to sneeze. You have done a great
job with the camera angle, which takes advantage of the brilliant
backlighting here; each seed has its own luminescent individuality, symbolic
of an impending realization of purpose. I would have liked to see just a
twinge more fill light coming from the viewer's left; the stem seems a
little dark and somewhat hides against the background. An added bonus is the
spider web, keeping the anxious flower tethered to the ground; at this time
I'm not sure whether it is an extraneous distraction or not. I was about to
congratulate you on your excellent aperture selection, then discovered I
should be giving the kudos to your camera.
Jim Thyer - Queen to Jump
This is an amusing new version of what has become a classic undergrad
cliché photo: the Chess Board. It reminds me of the 3-D chess game I used to
play until my brain one day imploded and I was reluctantly forced to take up
photography ;-) ... I am interested to know how the concept for this image
evolved. Composition looks OK, with the exception of the clipping of the
rightmost square/rhomboid/tetragon (the rook's space). There may be an issue
with contrast, too, as the separation between dark and light looks a little
flat. Perfect focus and depth of field. Layout could use a few subtle
changes. The pawns probably need to swap places, as the black one is lost in
its square. I also would have liked to see a larger "chess board", perhaps
one that fills the frame, as I believe the carpet is a bit distracting.
Gary M. Thomas - Claire
What a wonderful quasi-vintage fashion photo! Everything about this image
works so well. The color of the wardrobe complements the wall, which in turn
invokes thoughts of a bygone era, which in turn agrees with the style of the
woman's clothing. The lighting used here is soft, and adequate; the
gradation on the wall from top to bottom is so delicately feathered. The
hardness of the shadow off her shoulder is a little on the bothersome side,
but not enough of a problem to have demanded a reshoot, in my opinion. The
model is beautiful, with smooth skin, expressive eyes, and an engaging
slight smile. This photograph should be included in your portfolio.
Trevor Cunningham - Khafre
You say this is "a bright sunny day." Why does it appear so dark and
moody? Compositionally, you have nailed this image. By eliminating the
existing ground here, replacing it with the entire bottom of the frame, you
have created your own surreal world in a flat box. The dramatic sky behind
the Pyramid adds to its mystique. By presenting the photograph as a floating
image casting a shadow, you seemingly reaffirm your position as a person
with control over dimension. Just as an aside, I'd like to see this image
had it been shot on Fuji Velvia or something similar; the thought of this as
a trichromatic image (blue/white/sand) almost makes me drool. Well done.
Christopher Strevens - Bus Queue at Morden
Again, we have an image that only vaguely appears like a photograph. For
want of unnecessary repetition (myriad points covered in last week's
discussion), I will simply say this: it is inherently difficult to critique
a photograph that somewhere down the line refuses to be a photograph.
Although an image may be improved (read: exuding higher levels of artistic
merit) by using such measures of modification, I have a hard time commenting
on technical successes and suggestions for improvement alike. As a result,
the photographer submitting such work misses out on both praise and advice,
as do all list members who hope to gain knowledge and insight from the
critique. That said, I do believe this is a beautiful image, and would like
to see a series of similar works, albeit in a different forum.
Jeff Spirer - Girl with Bangs
This image leaves me with more questions than statements. Your work has
typically been top-notch, and I always look forward to your submissions.
However, this week I'm sorry, Jeff. I just don't see anything particularly
admirable about this photo, unless that it is an image boldly defiant of
technical and compositional norms and standards. In short, the subject is
harshly and dimly lit, the background is distracting, and the top of the
girl's head is lopped off (which sometimes works, but not in this case). The
photo could have been improved by implementing (or better use of)
supplemental lighting and a vertical format. Please accept my apologies if I
have missed the point. Looking forward to your next one.
Emily L. Ferguson - Upper Ranch, Pierce Point
Twisted trees, a partially obscured ring of buildings, fallen wood hulks,
a hazy sky. Was the saturation intentionally dropped out of this image? It's
intriguing to have a largely monochromatic image with just enough color in
it to maintain a sense of reality, while depicting a somewhat alien
landscape. I like the composition here, although having been given the
camera and the opportunity to make this shot, I probably would have moved
forward a bit to enlarge the buildings, and used the next fallen tree in
much the same way as the framing device toward the bottom of the image. But
on second thought, I would have lost the tree on the right in the process,
and on third thought I am not you, and it's probably not the kind of
photograph I'd have shot anyway. Given that, I think you have done a great
job.
Polly - The Old Postbox
A commendable decision to (I'm assuming) digitally hand-tint the
letterbox. Admittedly it took a few moments for me to realize that the
surrounding world was black and white; I remember gray days in Scotland
looking like this. I have to wonder how much blurring was done in the
post-process; depth of field looks like it was either shot very cleverly or
played with a little. Great composition; just enough, but not too much,
detail in the background; exposure looks very good. Slightly hot highlights
on the box's roof don't really bother me that much. It would have been
better to have a sharper document/chart-thing in the window on the box's
front, but a wonderful shot nonetheless.
Once again, I thank the participants for their submissions, and I look
forward to everyone's comments on the photographs and ensuing discussions.
Yours very truly,
Darin Heinz
Melbourne, Florida
