Dream of Sleep

Really a very nicely done underwater portrait. I like the effect where her hair cuts the water. The small air bubbles add a touch of animation. It's a very dreamy ethereal shot. It reminds me of the drown proofing technique taught in the Coast Guard. A very worthy POW. Congrats!

I would like to get the hair in focus. It looks almost as if it was purposly blurred and it makes my eye wonder up there every time I look at it. I would at least cut half of the hair away by cropping off the top of the photograph. But then the composition isn't quite right.
I like the little bubbles. They focus your view and you know you are under water. The mottled shadows caused by the water's surface are nice too.
The hair really turns me off more than anything.
Willie the Cropper

the light play is really nice, lending the image a surreal quality. I am not sure if I like the bubbles, I wonder what it would look like without them. Maybe too deathlike, but it would be worth a try. Might make it more surreal.

There is nothing to discuss actually, it's a top photo with a very good impact.

simply....stunning

I must disagree with Willie the Cropper. The subject's hair is not distracting at all, and its floating on the water's surface adds to the ethereal mood of the photograph as a whole.

Although your title goes nicely with the photograph, I'm not sure the subject is dreaming of sleep. She may be in a dreamlike state, but it is more self-reflective than simply dreaming. (Think of the film "Altered States" and the use of a flotation tank to induce transcendent states of consciousness.)

This photograph was aptly chosen for POW. In my view, it should be photograph of the year!

 

Great shot and idea. The only thing that detracts and could be improved, for me at least, is the mascara (it seems unnatural) and the bubbles (seems less peacefull than if were no bubbles).

I like this photo because I like dreamy works. This is a dreamy work. The light and the colours are very interesting. I would not change something. Congratulations.

There seems to be such great complexity underlying the simple appearance. The facial expression along with the feminine features is to a large extent reminiscent of Virgin Mary in some great art works of the past, especially that of the iconic version, La Pieta by Michelangelo. Once the explicit femininity is discounted, there appears Jesus on the Cross immersed in the light of hope -- this, though, may not be the first artistic attempt to symbolically depict a female as Jesus if it is the abstract behind it.

Or, am I reading too much into it? Is this just a stylistic study of light? Should I just take the abstract as the title suggests? I see in your portfolio similar attempts to reinterpret icons or iconic images, so I just cannot characterize it as a stylistic exercise.

At any rate, such a discrepancy between the title and what appears to be a great display of symbolism content-wise is unexpected and somewhat discouraging.

Either way, the photo is expertly crafted and challenges me to think. The interpretation and execution are creative and stimulating.

Please, disregard my previous comment. Apprarently, I mistook the garment she is wearing. She is sleeping alright. Still a wonderful image.

I guess I had seen one photo too many of symbolism and religious pastiche before this one. :o) So, dear moderator, please remove all my comments if possible. Thanks.

Young, I don't know why you wanted to delete your first commment - indeed, the moment I saw this photograph the image of Jesus as depicted in some extraordinary classical works came to my mind. Often the artist unknowingly puts in symbolisms. And also beauty and symbols are in the eyes of the beholder. If your reason for withdrawal of the first comment is something other than artistic judgmetn only, I have nothing to say. But a lot of Vinchi's work are famous for arousing similar feelings of reading an androgynous person in the image. It did took me a while to decipher whether this is a man or woman, and the stretched hand, and the top of the hair definitely resembles some depictions of Jesus. I would consider the title one layer of menaing and what you said and I feel - a second layer.
And the photograph is so very good, as are many others of Read's portfolio, that i am completely overwhelmed. Despite PN's repeated caution that this is not the right forum to congratulate only, that's all I can offer to the photographer.

Jayanti Basu,

The reason I want my comments removed is that I do not wish to unnecessarily turn the course of discussion into one about religion by directly mentioning female Jesus, especially when the idea of female Jesus can be considered “sacrilegious” by many people of the faith. I really do not wish to initiate anything with religious overtone here when the context provided in the photo (visual cues, title, etc.) suggests little of such. Thanks for taking your time on my comment and the thoughtful response, Jayanti.

Extraordinary and great work. Actually each photo in your underwater series are very original. Congratulations on the POW !

I find this image extremely unusual, serene and very sensual. Her hair is debatable, but OK. In the preview, I thought she was wearing a hat, but that's the mirroring of the surface. The only thing I would really try to remove are the tiny bubbles around her mouth, which disturb the moment of tranquility. They are not really needed to know she is underwater.

Lovely. Congrats.

Superb!
I haven't seen an image as unusual as this for a long time.
I love how the rippled reflection at the top turns into a fancy hat.

Wonderful shot. Very creative and attractive shot. This is a very pleasing image to look at, and has all the qualities a photograph should have. I like the sharpness of the girls face and the reflections of the water through out the image. Terrific job! 7/7.

 

Very best of wishes and congratulations................ Mike

Just Outstanding! Every time I look at the picture the shadows that play on her arms and chest seem to just about form an image and then dissolve again..........
Diane

I was surprised to see that not one person mentioned the bubbles before this became POW!!? Then it was mentioned fairly quickly (not all of us are 'yes people' I guess). They are definitely distracting (ah, how to judge/discern a distraction over that of a 'proper center of interest'; something we may say we like "just because we see it?" thus being wrong.
All else seems fine, well done and interesting.

Put the bubbles back!
Without them, the photo is lifeless.
Literally, a dead body lying face down in the water.
Seriously, put the bubbles back into the scene!

Bill P.

Well, I wondered if it would make her look 'more dead', but in reality I thought she looked dead to start with! Dead with little distracting bubbles leftover from when someone threw her in the pool!!?
However, I do notice a lot more in the image now, such as the wonderful water movement atop the right side of her head, and the hair over on that side too. Before the bubble erasure, the distractions never let the eye into those details. But then again as the saying goes, one mans poison is another mans pleasure.

http://static.photo.net/v3graphics/member-status-icons/trophy.gif

Right ? I thought she looked pretty dead myself, the bubbles gave the shot meaning to me.

It brought home the fragility of life itself.

Check out something like....

"Death of Sophonisba" by Giovanni Battista Pittoni

http://www.humanitiesweb.org/human.php?s=g&p=c&a=p&ID=543

....and see the 'life' in the painting.

Bill P.

This is a real photo , not of the week, of the year. Unique, exquisite beauty, transporting us in another reality, inspirative. Photos like this make PN the best photo site. Congratulations!!!!!!

It's a very nice photo, but not really something that speaks to me... with or without the bubbles. Technically, it seems to be well done for the most part, and something that is beyond what I could achieve. However, I suppose I'm somewhat spoiled due to Alix Malka's fantastic "women under water" fashion photo shoots. All in all, a nicely executed effort though.

A successful - and difficult - photo, that I find interesting... Here's a minor suggestion nevertheless: dodge the darker part of the face a little and lessen the amount of red in it.

This image is mesmerizing to me , I'm afraid of drowning so it scares me , yet I find it very peaceful and beautiful . Well done .