May 1

[ahmetmacitsahin]

[Shadowman]

Hi Amhet,

What elements of this composition did you try to emphasize to embody the movement? How do those elements support/represent the cause. I briefly looked up Halkevleri and don't really see how it relates to this composition. Nicely processed.

[rpcrowe]

I don't understand what is happening but, I feel the power in this image...

[bnnrcn]

Hi John and Richard This is an image from a special day from Turkey , so I can understand why you don't understand what is going on . I leave the explanation to Ahmet as this is his image and his thread .

[bnnrcn]

Hi Ahmet Is it an out of camera JPG or did you convert the raw image to B&W with post processing?

[Shadowman]

Hi John and Richard This is an image from a special day from Turkey , so I can understand why you don't understand what is going on . I leave the explanation to Ahmet as this is his image and his thread .

Hi Binnur,

I read up on Halkevleri but as I said the "enlightment" doesn't translate well with this particular capture, this almost appears to be a demonstration against Halkevleri as I think Richard and I see aggressiveness rather than celebration/appreciation. In one sense it is as if the participants might be protesting as if they are being excluded from the enlightenment. Will wait for Ahmet's response, I feel that perhaps this particular event is in need of a series of images to help convey the meaning behind the gathering.

This image is a good example of how sometimes a caption can better convey the meaning, a series of images is needed to relay a particular meaning, or else the photographer has to rely on the viewer to look deeper into the purpose of the posting and like a short story interpret as they see fit or make assumptions about the photographer's meaning.

And one last comment, as in the genre of short stories the author isn't required to provide their interpretation but hopes that their use of language, imagery, elements convey what their message intends.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Hi John and Richard, thank you for your comments. I think as John mentioned in his message I should have given a brief explanation about the photo. This photo was taken in moment of silence in memories of the people who fallen in democratization process. We should know the political situation in Turkey to understand the photo . May 1, Labour and Solidarity Day in Turkey , is not only celebration and demanding better conditions for workers but also is protesting the govermen’s policies. After military coup in 1980 in Turkey it was banned by the government. May 1 returned as an official holiday in 2009. Halkevleri was a project to help people to enlighten. They were opened in 1930s and closed by a conservative govenrment in 1950s. They were sponsored by the state during this period. But today’s Halkevleri is different than 30s and 40s. They are a leftist organisation and call themselves the opposition houses of the people. They are not sponsored by the state anymore. In the photo over the HALKEVLERİ writing you will see HALKIN HAKLARI VARDIR. It means people deserve their rights. They are strugling for better situation about human rights.

[Shadowman]

Ahmet,

Thank you for your explanation, I still believe a series of images would help convey the message of the participants; also perhaps a shot of the crowd taken at a different perspective (higher angle) and taken with the demonstrators facing your camera would give more voice to their cause. As Richard said, a strong image as presented.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Hi Ahmet Is it an out of camera JPG or did you convert the raw image to B&W with post processing?

Hi Binnur, it is an out of camera JPEG.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Ahmet,

Thank you for your explanation, I still believe a series of images would help convey the message of the participants; also perhaps a shot of the crowd taken at a different perspective (higher angle) and taken with the demonstrators facing your camera would give more voice to their cause. As Richard said, a strong image as presented.

Thank you for the feedback John. I am gonna upload new photos. Please waiting for your comments.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

[Shadowman]

Hi Ahmet,

First off let me say very nice processing of the images, however I believe you told Binnur that these are SOOC jpegs. Very crisp captures, I've tried shooting SOOC jpegs in B & W and when including the sky the histogram/highlight warnings perplexes me so I usually shoot in color and convert later. The SOOC B & W might be usable but I don't like to take the chance that the skies are too noisy or highlights uncontrollable.

Back to your images, I think as I stated earlier these images work best as a series and the additional images you've included provide a much better story than one single image. These additional images add to what I was able to interpret from the first image, however I'll state that because of language differences I wouldn't have been able to gather from a quick glance, it required me to translate some of the signs that the demonstrators were carrying. The final image sort of brings it full circle, "Donuyor Dunya" or "Freeze the World" if I translated correctly is the embodiment of what we as photographers attempt to achieve with our imagery.

Aesthetically, I like the full body shots 3 and 4 even though image #1 has a nice sense of inclusion and a wonderful combination of textures and shapes. I like how you included a variety of positions and perspectives to capture the event.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Hi Ahmet,

First off let me say very nice processing of the images, however I believe you told Binnur that these are SOOC jpegs. Very crisp captures, I've tried shooting SOOC jpegs in B & W and when including the sky the histogram/highlight warnings perplexes me so I usually shoot in color and convert later. The SOOC B & W might be usable but I don't like to take the chance that the skies are too noisy or highlights uncontrollable.

Back to your images, I think as I stated earlier these images work best as a series and the additional images you've included provide a much better story than one single image. These additional images add to what I was able to interpret from the first image, however I'll state that because of language differences I wouldn't have been able to gather from a quick glance, it required me to translate some of the signs that the demonstrators were carrying. The final image sort of brings it full circle, "Donuyor Dunya" or "Freeze the World" if I translated correctly is the embodiment of what we as photographers attempt to achieve with our imagery.

Aesthetically, I like the full body shots 3 and 4 even though image #1 has a nice sense of inclusion and a wonderful combination of textures and shapes. I like how you included a variety of positions and perspectives to capture the event.

Thank you very much for your comments John. Your sentences about my photos make me happy. I am still a beginner in photography and there are a lot to learn.
We have different letters in Turkish than English like ç,ı,ö,ş,ü. If you use O , U instead of Ö, Ü ( like you did) , you may have a wrong translation. For example DONUYOR means it is freezing but DÖNÜYOR means it is turning around. The whole sentence in the banner is’’ KADINLARIN EMEĞİ İLE DÖNÜYOR DÜNYA. ÇANAKKALE KADIN DAYANIŞMASI’’. When you translate it word by Word it means ‘’ the world turns around with the women’s effort. Çanakkale Women’s Solidarity’’. They say women are as much a part of life as men. They are a feminist organisation. The placard which is in the hand of the woman on the left says ‘’GECELERİ DE, SOKAKLARI DA, MEYDANLARI DA TERKETMEYECEĞİZ.’’ It means the women will be in night life , walk in the Street independently and join in the protests. The modern women in Turkey don’t want to lose their rights . They do not want to be locked up in their houses again.

[Shadowman]

Thank you very much for your comments John. Your sentences about my photos make me happy. I am still a beginner in photography and there are a lot to learn.
We have different letters in Turkish than English like ç,ı,ö,ş,ü. If you use O , U instead of Ö, Ü ( like you did) , you may have a wrong translation. For example DONUYOR means it is freezing but DÖNÜYOR means it is turning around. The whole sentence in the banner is’’ KADINLARIN EMEĞİ İLE DÖNÜYOR DÜNYA. ÇANAKKALE KADIN DAYANIŞMASI’’. When you translate it word by Word it means ‘’ the world turns around with the women’s effort. Çanakkale Women’s Solidarity’’. They say women are as much a part of life as men. They are a feminist organisation. The placard which is in the hand of the woman on the left says ‘’GECELERİ DE, SOKAKLARI DA, MEYDANLARI DA TERKETMEYECEĞİZ.’’ It means the women will be in night life , walk in the Street independently and join in the protests. The modern women in Turkey don’t want to lose their rights . They do not want to be locked up in their houses again.

Hi Ahmet,

Thanks for clarifying , yes I did get the "freeze" translation but was also directed to a Wikipedia link that technically described what the movement was about; good to here firsthand the meaning. Looking forward to seeing more images.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Here are the new images John.

[Shadowman]

Ahmet,

Nice follow up images, series looks good as a slideshow.

[ahmetmacitsahin]

Ahmet,

Nice follow up images, series looks good as a slideshow.

Thank you John.