Me, Dad, and the Cat

Does this photo communicate any emotion, if so, what? I think I may be too

close to trust my editing on this one.

Interesting question. For me, no, but I still like it. I don't get a particular emotion from it, but it seems to have a narrative that connects with me. The shadow and the stripes of light are suggestive, the whizzing blur of the cat is eminently photographic, the barrenness (maybe that's an emotion!) of the grass and leaves against the organized geometry of the brick, the slightly off kilter angle. For me, it operates more visually than emotionally, especially as it has a sense of high key in the lightness of the shadow and overall lack of contrast except for the cat emerging from the sidelines. It has movement.

It does stir some emotion for me as it immediately stuck a chord with a song I used to listen to in my car all the time from wayyyyyy back. It kind of went something like : -

"The wind blows the ashes of summer, and tears at a torn paper face on the hording, and a marmalade cat with dark mangled ears, slips through the fence without speaking"

It's quite a haunting song, I just wish I could remember the artist....but I like the image, there is movement as Fred indicated and the suggestion of human presence from the shadow that connects the two whilst the rustic leaf covered paving is somehow comforting and homely.

Best Regards

Alf

I love Alf's take on the image, he always has something interesting and almost Poetic to say. Truly unusual and very fetching. The movement somehow makes me feel that the 'image lives on', if that makes any sense, as if the cat has not reached it's destination yet.

Very nice,

Kindest regards, Gail

Thanks for the thoughtful responses Fred, Alf, and Gail. Fred, I think that you are correct: emotion was probably not the word I was searching for, but I didn't know how else to articulate it.

When I look at this I have a vague sense of the dichotomies of life/death, order/chaos. The cat, though not black, has a sinister presence to me, and he's moving towards my Dad's shadow, like Death, slowly but surely coming to get him. The order of the herringbone pattern in the bricks is disturbed by the uneven ground underneath and the scattered dead leaves and pine straw. Hence, my feeling that I might be too close to my own interpretations to decide if this one works as a photo that stands on its own without my personal narrative.

Your critiques seem to indicate that it does work on some levels anyway. Thank you all for your insightful responses. 

Amy

I firmly believe that, in many cases, for a photo to work there doesn't have to be anything like a literal understanding of it. So it would be rare that someone would look at this and think about a father and his death other than you. But that you were under such influence goes into the gestalt and the mood of the photo, and I think viewers can often pick up, more or less loosely, on the "tone" of a photo. For it to be understood more literally, if that is what you may sometimes want, actually including your father or part of him would provide us a kind of factual information visually (we might not know he's your father but the "mortality of a man" issue could be made more clear). I'm not suggesting you would want such literal meaning here, just that it could be done if desired.

If you wanted your viewers to think death, I think you have a good start in the barrenness of the scene, the leaves, etc. I wonder if a darker shadow, more ominous, would give a very different feel that could work. The high key approach I happen to like visually here and it seems to go with the scene and time of day, but I'm not sure it's landing your expression in the ballpark of what you were feeling at the time. I think high key and barrenness could suggest something more deathlike, or at least the kind of relationship you're talking about with some changes in composition.

As to composition and content, honestly, this may be my own denseness, but the title confused me because I didn't sense the presence of "Dad." I assumed that was your shadow because of the perspective. Now that I look at it knowing what it is, I realize that of course that shadow is your Dad. But I think your shooting perspective could have been such to make it more obvious that the shadow was coming from a third party, which would definitely have given this a very different feel to me and set up the kind of triangular (me, Dad, cat) relationship that was in play for you at the time. I got much more of a dual relationship between shadow and cat (perhaps shadow, cat, environment) and as I said the shadow stood for you, not someone else.

I've done some work, unintentionally, where a few people have said they really feel the presence of the photographer (not by using my shadow). That often is a matter of perspective, geometry, and angle, giving the viewer the feeling of your presence outside the frame by your geometrically completing something that starts within the frame.

Naturally, when you're dealing with cats (my favorite critters), all this has to come together rather quickly, since few cats wait for any (wo)man and when you'd like a cat to be in one place you can be sure it will be in another! :-)

Thanks for your comment. As you were new to me  I went to see  your works. So first welcome to PN .Traveling a bit in your work, this one caught my eye as a thumbnail. Enlarging it I understood why.The title did not explain it to me, but the composition  did .Evaluating a photo, it is not always emotionaly,but an interesting structure, timing, light ,form, and end result does it  as a photographic work. There is some enigmatic touch to the scene,with the cat in the corner like sneaking into the frame..I like the form of the floor vs . the dry leaves and remnants. I did not think about death but I understood why you have had that feeling. For me the diagonal light lines, the grey forms of surrounding with the touch of black cat and the general arrangment, is very nicely executed. Well enough to stay for a while and comment...;-))

Pnina, thanks so much for visiting my portfolio and for your taking time to comment on this piece. I'm very much enjoying being a part of PN; there's lots to learn and enjoy here.

Amy

I really like this one and was drawn to it because of the shadows and light, and the textures of the brick and leaves. I was hit by a feeling of passing time, especially when reading the title. As far as I am concerned, when ever a cat is present, it is the icing on the cake (I have 12 cats and love them dearly). You questioned about whether emotion came through; I'd have to answer that it did not... that is immediately. I began looking more and then a certain sadness came to mind which I am not sure was suggested by your title or not, I guess that doesn't really matter. There is a sadness for me in this one because I have lost my father. I watched him suffer through grief losing my mother to cancer to turn around and find himself dealing with his own cancer. I can't help but apply that to this image and there is so much hidden in this photo that speaks to me in a way I can't even explain. The more I look at it, the more comes to light and it touches me profoundly. Thank you for sharing this photo - a photo that for me, at first glance was all about light, shadows and textures but has proven to be so much more!

I am so sorry for your losses. I am glad to know that in some small way my photo has provided some catharsis for you.

This photo has a feeling of sadness to me too, but as before, I think I'm too close to be objective. Thank you for taking time to comment on this piece.

Best to you.

Amy

:-)

Wow, this is a masterpiece.  Amy, have you got an eye!

--Lannie