Baker Beach waves

Very Nice Shot ! Beautifull colors and movement.

I thought in 'true' abstract imagery the subject should NOT be distinguishable. Abstract is defined as "having only intrinsic form with little or no attempt at pictorial representation or narrative content", which I believe means you should look at an image and say "what the heck is that?". I think most things defined as abstract are wrong. This is a seascape. Carls shots IMO are more conceptual or architectural since they are distinguishable as such.

 

I have always called some of my stuff abstract but in reality its not. I think it is more conceptual because it is recognizable.

 

Thoughts? Anyone?

Ask someone to define symmetry and you'd be surprised at the variety of responses. Same with abstracts. On one end of the spectrum is the belief that if you can figure out what it is, then it isn't an abstract. On the other end is an inclusive definition that implies that any photograph that has graphic content is an abstract. My own definition is right in the middle. All images can be reduced to lines, shape, and texture - a head shot is usually an oval, after all - but whether or not the initial impact is as a type of element or series of elements, rather than immediately identifiable is what suggests an abstraction. Another definition might include the inclination to redefine the elements as something other than what they are, no matter how easy it is to identify them initially.

 

One way to render an everyday scene as an abstract is to get close to a subject and render it as part of a whole. That's what Bill's image does. The proportional placement of the stone (triangle) and the line separating the sand (thin rectangle) and water (large rectangle) is framed with care. I wouldn't change it because the location of the light areas of the water (texture) and in the sand (line) are carefully balanced with the rock.

Dave,

 

If that's your definition of abstract, I think it is very hard to have ANY abstract photograph. At the end of the day, when we look at a photograph, we know it is an image of something. Abstract photographs to me are ones that let us see the thing differently than is usual, focusing in on the components of color, form and texture rather than the thing itself. But as long as it is a photograph we're stuck (unlike in painting) with some level of an underlying reality, aren't we?

 

You may be right about this being a seascape rather than an abstract, in which case, I find it disorienting. As an abstract, I find it interesting, and really like the colors and the orange line in particular, but I find the overall composition less satisfying - in part because the reality of the image is getting in the way for me. That's why I think of it as an abstract trying to get out!

 

All of this is, of course, highly subjective, and I actually think this is a great POW likely to spark some good discussion.

One interesting think I note as I look at this is that this image really has a fascinating depth to it; the loss of the horizon and the roll of the waves have a very interesting impact.

Interesting points both Sam and Carl but something SO defined as this IMO can't be described as abstract because there is really nothing abstract about it. It is fully definable. There is nothing 'different' about it as using the word 'abstract' would infer. It is a shore line shot. Maybe my definition of abstract is a bit boxed in (lol) but it will never include a shot like this. Emotive maybe, Seascape definitely.

 

I guess the majority sees more in this shot than I do. Just leaves me flat. Nice picture, just nothing special.

Bill, You've managed to capture what others have missed. One can argue that the proportions each of the elements occupies aren't right but thats all, argue. If it were mine I'd print it & hang it with pride (no, I'm not offering you money for a copy:) Good idea to have just a sliver of foreground beach to aid the rock in anchoring the scene. The apparent motion of the waves needs a static object to balance them. The slow shutter speed has created a blur to the water's features while still maintaining the overall shape of the swells. My vote? A keeper! Best, LM.

Nice colors and tones but I have a little problem with the format: I would have give a bit more space to the sand and crop a bit on the right side... making the format more square.

I really was captivated by this image. I love slow shutter shots like this. Fuji emulsion does wonderful color. This is why I go back to nature for my own work, just gets me. Bravo!

I like the image, but I'm confused about the "technical details"... 1/15 second? It looks like a long exposure to me. The odd composition works because it causes confusion, and I like the subtle colors. It's not the kind of image that draws strong emotional respose, but I find it refreshing to see images like this. I don't like to think of this as a critique, but more of a way to discuss how images affect us and appeal to us in different ways.

Hi folks. I posted this image many years ago, and I recall scanning the slide with a mid-90s vintage scanner. I don't know if that affected the sharpness, or if the original was as fuzzy as this version.

1/15 second is consistent with similar images I've shot more recently with digital cameras that eliminate the possibility of record keeping errors. When I first started playing with this sort of thing I was recording exposure data diligently in attempt to waste less film, so I suspect the listed exposure time is correct. These two digital images (links:1 ,2 ) show 1/15 in the EXIF header.

I have always been interested in this sort of slightly confusing image. I think I got the idea for this shot from the 1975 album cover (Peter Schmidt paintingshown here) of  Brian Eno's Morning Star album. A Japanese painter (can't recall the name), very popular in commercial galleries in the 80s, also painted a lot of similar images. I was trying my hand at a  Japanese-influenced placement of the shapes, hence the goofy positioning of the rock. I was never really sure if it worked either, so I'm glad to see it getting some review here.

reminds me of Monet grainstacks

Although there are similar type of shots around, quite impressed by this one with such a simple composition. The light reflection is magic addition to this wonderful scene.

I told a painter friend: You've done it Joe!: Created motion in stillness, more with less. The art of irony. So it is with this Beach shot. Nice work Bill!

without reading what others said, the first thing that came to mind was that your photo looked like a painting. with that said, the paintings that i have seen that looked like this weren't half as good!

 

good job

(Sans reading all the before - who has time for that?)

This is a celebration of a moment of lines, curves and lighting unique to the photographer. A tiny moment. A moment when he felt free to endeavour the capture. Split second. "This is how it makes me feel." To attempt that, the stepping down of feeling to something tangible we can all (supposedly) feel is ridiculous. This image speaks of a time to which none - save image maker - were privy.

Well done.

i remember this shot from seeing this weeks pow

 

http://www.infinitysurf.com/Assets/images/inf_wavgal/wave.jpg

this one is better and from the phtographer and tells more but looks just like the POW. Congradulations Bill Storage

 

http://www.surfshooter.com/DolphinInfo.html

"Art lies in concealing art". You have acieved that.

Very nice idea! I know the lovely flowing water is a beautiful element but it is too much in contrast with the foreground. The rock itself is not as strong a subject as it should be and cannot sustain attention from the viewer. It, and the foreground could be better placed in the overall scheme of the composition. The lighting and eratic shadows of the foreground are too distracting. The eye is drawn into the granules of sand in the brightest part of the foreground and seem to remain there. Perhaps there is too much contrast between foreground and background - proportionate size, texture, colour, light and shadow all seem to act to push the elements of the image apart rather than bring them together.

 

The thoughts and ideas put into this image, by the photographer, are very creative!

Hoya!

 

I like this one very much.

It looks like a painting and, I do not know if you used any digital trick, but it is remarkable!

Have to agree with Dave, I've just viewed Baker Beach Sunset and find it much more pleasing than the POW choice

Not goofy, but chaotic. I guess this may be full frame, Bill? I'd suggest some serious cropping if you're looking for some Zen harmony ... at least, IMO, this would remove the top-heavy feel to the composition and allow the rock to behave like an anchor rather than a broken tooth. I know, I know, but compared with your portfolio this one looks like it needs some thought.

Very well executed technique indeed the timing is excellent. The slow shutter speed have made it all.

Perhaps what defines abstract from other forms of representation is

autonomy. While this image is boarderline abstract, it falls short of true

abstraction in that it has clear and distinguishable ties the material world. One

can't help but read the rock as a rock and the shore line as a shore line.

Placement and points of reference makes that reading specific. Take out

these elements and the image would read as more of an abstract, free of

personal influence and direction. But , in doing so the image is less about the

experience of the photographer. So my guess is Bill was less concerned with

the 'universal' and more concerned with the 'specifics' of what he saw, how he

felt, and how he chose to record it. An interesting topic for discussion, and a

fine image to promote the dialogue. I enjoyed both. Well done Bill.

 

Sally