Members of the PhotoForum,
Here are my VERY SUBJECTIVE comments on the work displayed by the PhotoForum members who exhibited on APR 26 2008 at http://people.rit.edu/andpph/gallery.html:
Trevor Cunningham - betelnut
There is much to like in this photo. I especially like the anonymity of the “old woman” as she prepares her mixture, the emphasis hone the right forearm and hands, and the addition of the large bowel at the top of the photo. The grinding apparatus, however, is perhaps a little low in the photo and thus a bit too de-emphasized; still, this simply adds greater emphasis via contrast to the true subject: the “old woman.” The darkened corners, while also casting emphasis on the center, are distracting for me.
Marilyn Dalrymple - Cowboy Boots
I like this picture a lot. The composition and the color are very good. The blown highlight in the right spur is too large and too distracting, however. If it could have been tamed a bit to the size of the highlight of the left spur, the distraction factor would have been managed. It appears that something happened [in Photoshop] on the way to the Forum. Some people like that kind of effect, some people do not care for it.
Emily L. Ferguson - Leaving the breakfast table
When I initially looked at this picture, I thought the focus was on the wrong subject. Is not the bird the subject? Should it not be in focus? But the more I looked, the more I liked the slightly blurred, yet still easily distinguishable from the background, effect of the bird. It adds to the theme rather than distract from it. Now there are three distinct layers: foreground, mid-ground and background. Beautiful bokeh in the background, by the way.
This is my favorite of the week.
Robert G. Earnest –
Morbid, Robert . . . very morbid.
Photos like this bring up more questions than answers. Where? When? Why? Is this a field reconstruction of aircraft (and hence the wooden platform-like structure under the fuselage on the right?
Photographically, the onlookers appear to be more curious than remorseful (concluded only from body language). The tree branches in the upper left are distracting.
A photograph to ponder.
Howard Leigh - Mrs. Willett, age 80
A delightful photograph! Mrs. Willett may have been “very poor,” but you certainly cannot tell it either from her clothes or from her _expression_. She appears very much to be a distinguished lady. This is a great capture.
Rob Miracle - Vintiage Swimsuit - Vintage Pin-Up
Interesting image, although to my mind it is mis-titled. There is nothing vintage about the model, other than the pose. The purple in her hair (or so it appears on my monitor, and I can’t tell if it is stage light or highlight), the blue fingernail, and the fact that the black strip at the front of her bathing suit is a straight vertical running the entire length of her torso all scream “Early 21st Century!”
The blue fingernail surrounded by highlight from behind the model is distracting for me. It makes the right thumb look unusual and therefore distracting.
But this image is otherwise extremely well-lit, well exposed and well composed. It is very well done.
Lea Murphy - cafe chair
This is interesting. I like it. I like tone of the photograph. The darkness at the upper right of the photo and the dark line at the bottom do not distract, but emphasize. The blown highlight on the bent wood brace under the seat is a bit distracting, but small enough not to be overwhelming.
For me, however, there are two problems. The chair leg/back on the far left leads the eye out of the picture at the top left. This leaves kind of an empty feeling for me: one of incompleteness. The other problem is the lack of texture. There is an interesting grain pattern in the wooden chair, but it seems very slightly blurred. Would a tripod have made a difference?
A very good picture.
Christopher Strevens - A stone picture
This is an interesting composition. There are two problems, however. The first is that it has the appearance of being contrived by the hand of man. The second problem is that the subject (I am assuming the subject is the center rock surrounded by six rocks as if they were rays emanating from the center rock) blends too much into the background, especially at the bottom.
The center rock, as well as the three surrounding rocks at the top, differ enough in size and color as to be easily distinguished from the background. Not so at the bottom where the blackish rocks with white highlights have to be looked at two or three times to see their true outlines. This puts a lot of the effort into the viewer that should have been borne by the photographer.
Roy Miller - Sky Diver Is Sharp Enough To Hit Mark
Nice snapshot. But if the “mark” the skydiver is trying to hit is the red/yellow/white pole, it appears that s/he is going to miss it. If there is another “mark,” it isn’t in the photo and it is difficult to assess the accuracy of the skydiver.
I find the checkered tail-like object behind the skydiver a bit distracting because I don’t know what it is. The parachute is not complete, but at least it is implied by the extra lines, so that is not a distraction. In fact, I like that effect.
This was a good group of photographs. Thanks to all for your submissions.
peace,
rand
