Where is our Dad?

[zebra]

And the last one for today:

[DanK]

You have been posting some very interesting images, but this one doesn't do it for me. The people are crammed into about 30% of the photo, and the interesting person--the face of the child--is a tiny proportion of the whole. The block wall on the left isn't interesting, and the blown-out sky is featureless. I think you could improve it substantially just by cropping, for example, something like this:



This leaves less distraction on the left and makes the people a larger share of the whole. However, I don't find even the cropped image all that interesting; it's mostly an image of the woman's back as she stares off into the distance. This is very different from some of your other images, such as Insomnia, in which a person's face is central.

[zen]

My take on this shot is just the opposite to Dan's. I see Mom searching the horizon, while the little tyke wonders what she is doing. To me, almost classic!

But these two opposite reactions are a good example of how an image can draw out one's emotion while viewing it. The same applies to any piece of art.

Thanks for sharing.

Zen

[Manfred M]

Photographing people from the back is usually not going to give you an image that people are going to find interesting, with one general exception. That is when the direction that they are looking helps guide the viewer's eye to the centre of interest.

All of the key ingredients are there except that the woman is the subject and the view beyond the gate is not particularly interesting, so her position does not lead the viewer's eye to something of interest. The child and the gate are interesting elements, but I suspect you would have had a far stronger image had you taken this scene from in front of the woman, rather than from behind.

As for Dan's crop, I find that it is an improvement over the original, but the weakness is still the point of view you used.

[mugge]

I prefer the original because the pair looking for dad are partly 'protected' by gates and are secure in their confine. They are two very different pictures, to my mind.
Cheers Ole

[zebra]

Certainly, people may have different opinions on the artistic value of one and the same picture they are looking at and one might criticise a picture while others mey call it a masterpiece. I listen to both but in the end the rating of thousands of people will decide whether it is good or not on the whole.

This picture was a winner of some expositons in our town and nearby. But nevertheless I'm very thankful to hear your opinions.

As regards the particulars on the picture - when I'm shooting I don't have time to analyse whether I should or should not photograph a woman from behind , I only have time to analyse if the scene might come out interesting on the photo or not (from my own experience I can say that not many ineresting scenes can be transformed into interesting photos!)

Three or four years ago the Central Television of my country bought from me the right to show one of my photos in their new film: They opened the film with my photo projecting titles on it. They wrote to me: "The photo in itself is nice but as you are an amateur provincial photographer, our metropolitan masters will put additional strokes to it so that it may look better!"
This is what they did:

[zebra]

Your cropped version looks much better, I must admit it.

[Donald]

I listen to both but in the end the rating of thousands of people will decide whether it is good or not on the whole.

First of all. It would be nice to know your real name so that we know what to call you. And it would also be good to know where in the world you are. You can do both in your profile settings.

I was reading an article by Alain Briot in which he argued that popularity (and selling) will have very little to do with whether the image is any good and everything to do with how and where the photographer displays the image. In other words, seeing the approval of thousands of people is more to do with marketing than with photography.

Whether the image is good is something that only you can decide. Because only you know what emotion led to the creation of the image.

If other people decide that the image is good, they will decide based on the emotion stirred in them by the image, which may be very different to that which you feel.

[george013]

Certainly, people may have different opinions on the artistic value of one and the same picture they are looking at and one might criticise a picture while others mey call it a masterpiece. I listen to both but in the end the rating of thousands of people will decide whether it is good or not on the whole.

This picture was a winner of some expositons in our town and nearby. But nevertheless I'm very thankful to hear your opinions.

As regards the particulars on the picture - when I'm shooting I don't have time to analyse whether I should or should not photograph a woman from behind , I only have time to analyse if the scene might come out interesting on the photo or not (from my own experience I can say that not many ineresting scenes can be transformed into interesting photos!)

Three or four years ago the Central Television of my country bought from me the right to show one of my photos in their new film: They opened the film with my photo projecting titles on it. They wrote to me: "The photo in itself is nice but as you are an amateur provincial photographer, our metropolitan masters will put additional strokes to it so that it may look better!"
This is what they did:

I like it. And I think shooting from the bag is essential in this picture.
You shoot your pictures as other russians write books: very melancholic. To me anyway.

George

[zebra]

I have thought on that point and I come to the same conclusion as Alain Briot (popularity: (and selling) will have very little to do with whether the image is any good)

But then, who is that final judje who decides whether the photograph (book, oil picture, any piece of art) is good or not?

My name is Vladimir I live in a small village on the river Volga, one hundred miles from a provincial town where Vladimir Lenin was born.

[zebra]

Thank you, George.

[mugge]

Certainly, people may have different opinions on the artistic value of one and the same picture they are looking at and one might criticise a picture while others mey call it a masterpiece. I listen to both but in the end the rating of thousands of people will decide whether it is good or not on the whole.

This picture was a winner of some expositons in our town and nearby. But nevertheless I'm very thankful to hear your opinions.

As regards the particulars on the picture - when I'm shooting I don't have time to analyse whether I should or should not photograph a woman from behind , I only have time to analyse if the scene might come out interesting on the photo or not (from my own experience I can say that not many ineresting scenes can be transformed into interesting photos!)

Three or four years ago the Central Television of my country bought from me the right to show one of my photos in their new film: They opened the film with my photo projecting titles on it. They wrote to me: "The photo in itself is nice but as you are an amateur provincial photographer, our metropolitan masters will put additional strokes to it so that it may look better!"
This is what they did:

In Australia we would call them dingbats.
Cheers Ole

[zebra]

I like that people here come from all parts of the world!

[Manfred M]

I have thought on that point and I come to the same conclusion as Alain Briot (popularity: (and selling) will have very little to do with whether the image is any good)

Agree 100%. When a photograph (or a piece of art) is sold, it is because it meets the needs of the individual or organization that buys the piece. When a photograph is sold to an individual buyer, emotional impact is the main reason it is bought. I have seen far too many mediocre wedding photos or baby photos to suggest that quality has any role in these purchases (or even selection of the photographer).

But then, who is that final judje who decides whether the photograph (book, oil picture, any pide of art) is good or not?

This is always a problem when reviewing a photograph for critique. In a photograph we can look at three aspects; technical considerations (focus, white balance, appropriate aperture / shutter speed, etc.), how the image is organized (composition, use of space and distracting elements in the image) and emotional impact on the viewer (mood, impact, subject matter, etc.). These three criteria are what CAPA (Canadian Association for Photographic Art) judges are trained to evaluate when judging photo competitions, which is just one very specific way of evaluating a photographic image.

Of these, the emotional impact is always the most challenging part to critique because it is the part that is largely based on the individual's own tastes and experiences. Someone with a fear of spiders is going to have a different emotional view than someone who does not. A photographer who specializes in macro work of insects and spiders will have a totally different view when they see a "well done" image of a rare or unusual spider.

A trained photographic critic should be able to put aside his or her emotions and be quite clinical when analyzing images. A couple buying a wedding package from a photographer will have a totally different criterion for judging the images (it may be as simple as the shots where the wedding dress is shown off the best).

Corporate clients are going to look at how well the image will sell the product they are trying to represent. This is very much what has happened to your image of the child watching television; the corporate client (Central Television) wanted it to deliver a message, so in the end it bears little resemblance to your original image.

My name is Vladimir I live in a small village on the river Volga, one hundred miles from a provincial town where Vladimir Lenin was born.

Could you please go to the top of this page and click on the "My Profile" button and enter your name and where you are from into your profile. That way this information will follow you around with your postings.

I'm enjoying your work; welcome to CiC, Vladimir!