old musicien

I am a bit late to this party, perhaps deliberately so, because I saw this image earlier in the week but declined to comment on it because it frankly does not interest me much, and I did look at it for a while. While beauty certainly is in the eye of the beholder, I still think that this is a PHOTOGRAPHER's site, and there are certain baseline aesthetic considerations that should be expected of even the lowliest of us

Like a commenter stated earlier, this scene had POTENTIAL. The photographer squandered that potential either through bad luck or a lack of skill. It is unfortunate, but no more "worthy of discussion" than if in Yusuf Karsch's famous portrait of Winston Chgurchill, he had cropped off Churchill's head. Execution still matters, or have I gone crazy?

People, this is a metaphor.
This old woman is alone, waiting for something, something unknown. Precisely because she is alone, the case of the bass fiddle beside her acquires personification, becomes a companion--her only companion--and one thinks of the joys and richness she has shared with it through her life. The blank whites of the windows tell us we don't really know where she is. They hint only at emptiness, in contrast to the cased violin, and make us hope that this is merely a way station for this lonely maker of music. The lost detail is entirely consistent with all that is left unsaid.
We will never become virtuosos if we are constantly fiddling about technique.

A virtuoso has "fiddled" for hours on end with technique. Even the child prodigy Mozart spent hours practicing scales and learning harmony, honing technique. Had he not done that, he would long have been forgotten, despite his amazing inborn talent and musical vision. A virtuoso is someone who has the heart, soul, and technique necessary to be a great artist. It is NOT someone who makes excuses for missing one or the other. As I read the thread, I am mindful and moved by the photographer's own disappointment in his technique here. His honesty likely means he will keep improving and become a better and better artist though, like Ton, I was disappointed in his assessment of street-shooting because it lacks some key realizations. The excuse-makers will likely be content with priding themselves on being "artists" because they feel so very much and because "art" is so subjective and personal and comes only through magic with no hard work. Mediocrity, however, is the purview of a superficial, uncurious, undemanding attitude. Of course there's metaphor here. No argument. But you have to pierce through ugly shadows and flattened highlights, lack of atmosphere and tampered-with contrasts to get to the metaphor. Photography does not stop being visually even when it is metaphorical.

That is: Photography does not stop being visual even when it is metaphorical.

There are some eloquent statements about the importance of the visual impact, in the visual form, called photography. I can take that to mean that this particular photography should have been prettier in it's delivery. Regardless, the photographer has chosen the delivery method for the visual statement, and I personally, find real value in what is presented. The photograph allows me to visualize two ideas, namely "alone with one self" and the discipline of music. I have to assume that (if these were the ideas that were intended), the photographic choices made, to enable the conveyance of said ideas were appropriate, and I do find that the choices seem appropriate, and for me that boils down to rule of thirds, and the use of overexposed highlights. And indeed, those choices are visual, and therefore not in violation visual tenets...

Say what? I'm thinking that so much of what has been written about this image (a nice enough shot of an older lady just sitting at the table having a bite to eat by her instrument but not Mother Theresa praying over the sick) comes from those who either think good is good enough or those who are looking for ways to improve on a good thing. I'm thinking that even the best photos can be (or have been) enhanced in some way. What I don't like to see, though, are excuses or even justification for poor execution. In this digital age, we have many relatively easy tools we can use to improve on things like street photography without compromising (in my view) the integrity of the original. Street photography is often shot in haste (better than approaching the person beforehand and ruining the thing altogether), with preparation or an ability to react quickly determining how technically solid a shot ends up. Like this image being discussion, post-production can also help refine and improve the end product. But to suggest that it's good enough or that the photographer's vision was to actually build these imperfections into the image doesn't ring true and misses the point. If the image was worth taking to begin with, it's worth spending a little more time to tweak it as necessary.

First of all my Best Wishes and Congratulations to you on winning this award.

For me this photograph is about time and the space we each occupy in it waiting....it is a image of great emotional feeling and depth...I leave it at that....beautiful and unique work....Best regards

 

Dara

Mi era sfuggita questa grande foto!Una delle tue migliori!Hai, come molto spesso fai,fotografato una storia che suscita malinconia e tenerezza...Grande Andrea!!

I don't know about all that but,I feel personally that the composition is wrong--there's too much space between the photographer and the subject. A tighter close up would have conveyed so much more to the actual structure of the photo. I didn't quite get what the message was but would have panned closer to the lady and the instrument case...I guess I would have turned the table around and taken a face shot of the lady and her instrument,or not have moved so far away--eliminated that third window closest to the photographer. Overall I liked the photo but the too-much distance between the photographer and subject makes me think that maybe they were uncomfortable with each others presence or that he is intruding on a private moment--could have been better as a side photo with the lady in profile...That's just me talking,I guess I always try to find the juxposition between the human elemnt and still life object when photographing people. Even if he had chosen to take this photo as is--closer would have been better,would have placed the photographer in the subjects realm as a welcomed element not an intruder.

just came across this. excelent photo.

excelent photo