Home

I love it !!

I swear I've seen that building before. Trondheim?

Please note the following:

• This image has been selected for discussion. It is not necessarily the "best" picture the Elves have seen this week, nor is it a contest.
• Discussion of photo.net policy, including the choice of Photograph of the Week should not take place here, but in the Help & Questions Forum.
• The About Photograph of the Week page tells you more about this feature of photo.net.
• Before writing a contribution to this thread, please consider our reason for having this forum: to help people learn about photography. Visitors have browsed the gallery, found a few striking images and want to know things like why is it a good picture, why does it work? Or, indeed, why doesn't it work, or how could it be improved? Try to answer such questions with your contribution.

I think that evaluating this photo, there are probably two levels to look at, the technical and the aesthetic. Normally, I think these are combined but here it is probably more important to separate them.

On a technical level, I think the image is very well done. The tonality is nice, the detail is well captured and the photoshop work appears flawless.

So, we start with a well executed photograph and what appears, at this size, to be excellent processing and post work. Where I have some issue is in the aesthetics of the image. An image like this should be telling a story and be "loaded", and here, it all seems like props and an exercise. The image is precisely centered with the man standing very still. Everything is so static that no dynamic or story is unfolding. Instead, we have some symbols that just don't seem to be telling a story but appear to be presented for their own purpose. I think the idea is wonderful, but unrealized because of the lack of dynamics and context.

As to the elements on the suitcase, although well done, their placement also bother me a bit. I feel that the door being crammed into the bottom of the case leaves little room for us to move into it and takes some more life away from the image. Just moving it up a bit would allow more room to separate it and give us a sense that it is a place that could actually be entered-or be a place of its own, a separate reality. My opinion and it probably seems minor, but I think it would have a major impact on the quality of the image.

What I suggest is a reworking of the idea, where there would be some urgency or context given to the shot. A man who carries his home with him while he is busy traveling or something of that nature. There just needs something to elevate the excellent work by introducing a dynamic that elevates the idea to more than a collection of symbols and brings the story to life.

Great start and good technical work! If you get a chance, check out Hugh Kretschmer's work, I think it might give you some ideas as to what I am referring to-- http://www.hughkretschmer.net/

When I first saw this, my first thought was, "Why didn't I think of that?" I like both the concept and the execution. I like the fact that the man is anonymous...he could be every man who's wandered the earth. His stillness suggests that he's waiting...either waiting for something to take him to his next destination, or that he's just stopped and deciding where to go next. There's also a sense of resignation here for me. There's the tried and true metaphor of carrying one's home with you wherever you go, but it's not overdone here. There's also the "home is where the heart is" analogy here, as evidenced by the heart-shaped patterns on the curtains in the window. I could go on and on with this, but the point here for me is that this is a photograph/creation that makes the viewer think of things other than photography...and it works extremely well here. Bottom line is that I like it a lot, and if I had a print of it, it would be hanging on my wall right now.

This is a superb example of surreal imagery. There is a definite feeling of viewing a painted canvas. The dichotomy of the well tailored man; long leather coat(?), striped trousers and polished shoes; holding a vintage suitcase with a tattered elevation of a front door and window imposed on it makes this an engaging visual statement.

Even the placing of the suitcase frame center works for me. The leg and foot below the suitcase is the one compositional element that is not centered. It creates a sense of movement without the necessity of an actual step. Kudos to your vision.

Wonderful concept - very creative indeed. I wish for two things (if indeed I get any wishes :) - brighter overall and some sharpening inside the suitcase frame.

Cheers ~
Alberta

I must say that I laughed at this presentation when I first looked at it. (Second and third time as well) I find it not only amusing, but it stimulates me to want to try something similar.

Unlike John A. above, I do have a small problem with the technical aspects of the photo. It's the background. It looks as if it has been over photoshopped to the extent that the wall actually "Looks"as if it was lightened by photoshop. In fact even that isn't too bad, but halfway to the wall from the back of the suitcase is a blurry white vertical line. The idea was great, although the execution needs tweeking a tad.

Willie the Cropper

I like the well "worn" look of the wall. Overall it reminds me of Escher, the artist.

http://www.mcescher.com/Gallery/gallery.htm

I do agree that the white shade on the right hand side looks like an "effect remnant"

Overall very creative and well done.

I love this image...it speaks loudly to so many interpretations. I appreciate the creativity here with original thought..carrying around our baggage is always interesting to me. Bravo,well done!

The imagery kinda stopped me in my tracks and invited me to explore it. What struck me as a little odd was the sharp detail of the man holding the suitcase, contrasted to the softness of detail in the brief case. And that on the brief case, left to right, the sharpness wasn't consistent. Very minor points though. The image itself shows great imagination and creativity. Very well done.

well exectuted overall. You might make another rendition of it down the line, adding the lightest of coloring throughout the case, but only on the case.

Agree the door too close to the bottom is the only major distracting aspect, but it's not enough to lower a 7/7 rating in my mind. It's my desktop image for the day at this point, really cool.

Beata:

The Elves' opening description of the photograph is right on the money. As other colleagues have noted, I think the main value of the photo is its imagery (pardon the pun). It certainly evokes feelings of traveling far from home, seeing nameless faces, longing for family and friends. But, the window on the suitcase also evokes a feeling of adventure, as if there are new places to visit, new horizons, new challenges. I love the clothing the subject is wearing. It appears typical of European immgrants who passed through Ellis Island in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

My sincere congratulations on some outstanding work.

For me it is one of the best POW I have seen on PN in a long time. I love Your originality, Your imagination and the power to tell so much via a very simple and sober image. Chapeau ! cheers Jana

I find the selection of the plant in the window (a cactus) to be interesting... perhaps an added subtle suggestion. Nice poetic/philosophic image.

... sic transit gloria mundi... Hi

Ha, very smart shot! I am sure there're more than one way to see this picture... Perfect!

Very good idea, I love it :-))))

So good and special that is has been copied, see link:

http://1x.com/photos/latest-additions/29509/

I have mentioned it to the owner of the site 1X, to make public in the "Forum".

I think, he never will try again.

Best regards,

Ben

We take our home with us, inside us, wherever we travel...so so true!

It's an absolutely excellent work! 7/7...

Y.G

very good work!

Wow!  What a commentary on the sad state of the economy!  We're turning into a nation of hobos again.  Lots of people uprooted and on the move looking for something better.