Photo of the Week - #25 - 3/7/22

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I very much like the 'concept' of this photo - the well-lit woman's face in an otherwise dark, moody background. I also like the clear eye contact between the woman and the man. Especially as he's in deep shadow. The plant and leaves make for a graphically interesting background.

 

For me, the most interesting part of this photo is in the bottom-right three-quarters (roughly) of the photo. The canopy at the top and the pole + half-person on the left are part of the 'context' but IMHO they don't add much to the photo. They don't tell me much about what the actual 'context is - perhaps some kind of market stall - and In fact, they distract me from 'the eye contact'.

 

I'm an avid 'cropper' so my instinct is to crop the photo at the top and on the left, leaving the three people on the right with - no canopy overhead- that 'fill the frame'. My guess is that the cropped photo might be more 'mysterious' in the sense that - without the 'market stall' context - the scene could be anywhere. Losing the half-person on the left might lead the viewer to consider a possible relationship between 'baseball cap' and the man on the right. And I just think 3 people in a photo usually look better than 3 1/2:).

This is ALL about her expression to me. I'm thinking, "What is the man telling her", "Is she surprised", "is she scared", "is something wrong?" A picture looking to support a story...

I was also drawn in by the interesting expression and for the blatant lighting.

I immediately saw it as contempt. And then imagined a relationship narrative to make it fit. Of course that's just one read from one perspective but it engaged me in a manner to personalize it.

It lead me to an interesting google search on facial expessions.

Firstly intrigued by the "what" is the reason/cause for the expression of the woman's face; secondly intrigued by the "what" is 'accepted here'.

 

I like the Major / Minor interplay of those two separate puzzles and the two separate pairs of people.

 

WW

An image loaded with questions: Is the bright-faced woman looking over the tall person's shoulder - as her head position seems to indicate? Her eyes glancing upwards seems to go with this interpretation. Or are they engaged in conversation? Overall, the image doesn't seem to evidence any real human contact by the 3 persons in the frame other than the proverbial ships passing in the night. Kudos to the author of this photograph; it demonstrates lots of expertise and a sense of the artistic.

Wow this photo is a wildly theatrical one. The lighted face is so dramatic as to inspire the imagining of multiple story lines at once! Not like she's the only thing lit, tho, as there's a fair amount of *other* light here & there in the shot. All in all, this is a super interesting photo. I won't overstate my feelings about this one but I like it very much.

What I see here is a play between drama and intensity of expression, somewhat theatrically spotlighted, surrounded by a more random collection of people and elements. For me, the photo produces more of these kinds of disparate feelings than it does a particular narrative. I'm drawn to her face, what I see as her inquisitive eyes, but then I'm perfectly willing to get lost in the shady tangle behind her, which almost feels like a metaphor for the picture itself. I think there's a counterpoint here between distinctness and murkiness that hits a sweet spot. The way the wall fades into sidelight at the left gives me the feeling that something else is coming ... or going.

Thank you for all your insightful comments. I had always wanted to have a discussion on this particular photo since it naturally invites narratives, at the same time is rather open-ended and uncertain.

 

Mikemorrell,

The reason I kept the canopy on the top was to give her face the much needed space, otherwise it was robbing the photo of the ‘ordinary’ ambience to balance the ‘dramatized’ expression. I also feel that the random elements in the background and the somewhat unconnected postures of the people in the shadow act like noise to contrast even more with the sole element in the frame that shows ‘gravitas’, similar to what focal blur does to the background. These are of course my own thoughts, there can be other ways to interpret the scene and it’s elements. I removed the background elements that you mentioned, through cropping, and it changes the impact of the picture. I am not saying whether in a good or bad way, but it does become a different image.

 

when I read Sam’s comment above, I feel he was reading the picture in a similar way that I read it.

 

Part of what drew me to this scene was the strong connection to classic cinema with the subtle under-lighting and fully open delineated eyes, that were more seen in the early days of silent movies with stars such as Greta Garbo. The black and white treatment was specially geared towards this effect, not sure if I succeeded …

Thank you for all your insightful comments. I had always wanted to have a discussion on this particular photo since it naturally invites narratives, at the same time is rather open-ended and uncertain.

 

Mikemorrell,

The reason I kept the canopy on the top was to give her face the much needed space, otherwise it was robbing the photo of the ‘ordinary’ ambience to balance the ‘dramatized’ expression. I also feel that the random elements in the background and the somewhat unconnected postures of the people in the shadow act like noise to contrast even more with the sole element in the frame that shows ‘gravitas’, similar to what focal blur does to the background. These are of course my own thoughts, there can be other ways to interpret the scene and it’s elements. I removed the background elements that you mentioned, through cropping, and it changes the impact of the picture. I am not saying whether in a good or bad way, but it does become a different image.

 

when I read Sam’s comment above, I feel he was reading the picture in a similar way that I read it.

 

Part of what drew me to this scene was the strong connection to classic cinema with the subtle under-lighting and fully open delineated eyes, that were more seen in the early days of silent movies with stars such as Greta Garbo. The black and white treatment was specially geared towards this effect, not sure if I succeeded …

 

Supriyo, since you apparently don't post for critique anymore, I found this image fortuitous. Had I been critiquing the image, I would have said more about both aesthetic and technical elements. Nonetheless, thanks for posting as the POTW. - - My best always, michael

With the current world news, I can't help but think this could be from a scene in Ukraine.

Supriyo, since you apparently don't post for critique anymore, I found this image fortuitous. Had I been critiquing the image, I would have said more about both aesthetic and technical elements. Nonetheless, thanks for posting as the POTW. - - My best always, michael

 

Thanks Michael. I happen to take much less pictures nowadays than 1.5 years back, a combination of less outdoor exposure due to Covid and lack of time. Hopefully, this will change. This picture was taken before the pandemic hit.

 

I have always enjoyed and appreciated the critique forum.

With the current world news, I can't help but think this could be from a scene in Ukraine.

 

A lone face in an otherwise dark ambience with shadowy individuals. A reminder that humanity prevails, even during dark times?

 

Would welcome expansion of your thoughts on how this scene reminds you of the war in Ukraine.

A lone face in an otherwise dark ambience with shadowy individuals. A reminder that humanity prevails, even during dark times?

 

Would welcome expansion of your thoughts on how this scene reminds you of the war in Ukraine.

 

The woman looks like she could be East European, very concerned about something serious, perhaps being interogated with light in her face by the dark figures or be working with them, possibly underground fighters. This scene could also be something out of a spy novel, her coat with zipper underneath and black band/scarf in hair has a very cloak and dagger feel. This is just my mind creating an interesting story. It could be a mom talking to her nieghbor about what the teenage kids are doing for all I know.