THE WOMAN AND THE RAIN.JPG

Winter arrives to Madrid, raining and sunny at the same time, crazy weather

because is very windy and this woman is carried by its umbrella pushed by

a very strong wind. We are not prepared for this weather but is nice to see

the people dealing with it. From the main square of Madrid This arc goes to

plaza de Cuchilleros a place full of history, and near is the oldest restaurant

in the world.

excellent frame Jesus --- i admire your authority in managing the wind itself so as to render the picture dynamic with light and energy and terrific depth as well (you have friends in high places).

(If this fine picture was mine) I would consider square cropping to both lateral handlebars and bring the woman, and the wonderful umbrella, closer to the viewer. Either way, bravo; this is a winner!

This image could have easily been included in the portfolio of some of the greatest photographers of the previous century. Simply amazing, amazingly simple. One of the very best i have ever seen, i can't get out of it, i am trapped in it for good.

Bravooo!!!

ps. I don't know what i was thinking when i rated it only 6. Sorry.

I must agree with Michael. There's a sense of a classic when we look at this. This is a piece of art to get delighted for a long time... I keep room in my favourites for uniquenesess as this one and it's where it goes right now.

Congrats and regards,

ricardo

Beautiful street shot!

i like the dramatic tension that the grittiness and flying wide open umbrella give to this shot. with the light coming down and the inclusive angle, the image moves dynamically... i'm putting it in faves ;-} dp

Amazing. Art. What's more to say. 

Tommy 

'THE WOMAN AND THE RAIN' is the magical click that brings it all together, and a picture that instantly joins the archives of the best great images I carry in my head as teaching examples of the elusive beauty all photographers forever seek but seldom find, the sweet spot when light and geometry become a visual poem!

A powerful image, telling so many stories. Technically excellent, with so many top quality photographic elements. A great Photo (note the capital P) indeed.

DG

This is a very nice digital B&W. Perfect timing.

I like the scene and timing a great deal. My eye is too drawn, though, by the pushed contrast on the subject, and the lack of it elsewhere in the image. The processing halo around her, and the resulting puddle of tone curve difference, distracts from an otherwise very enjoyable composition.

I tend to agree with Matt. The composition and pov are perfect for the story Jesus appears to be telling. However, the blacks along the right edge, including those of the subject, are grossly exaggerated.

Very nice shot, but I tend to agree with Matt and Michael above. I think this is very often what happens when the frame is too busy and one tries desperate to create order and focus by postprocessing.
It would be much more clean and focused, if the frame had concentrated on the two three main elements : the blurred man between the two globes, advancing towards her, and the woman (or left part of her silhouette) preparing to go down the staircase, and her umbrella. Beautiful scene !

+1 to the comments, both positive and negative, from Matt, Michael, and Anders, above. I particularly like the textures and materiality in the pavers in the foreground. I think this could be a truly outstanding image if the artifacts surrounding the woman were corrected or mitigated, though the blown-out sun glare in the mid-ground may remain problematic.

David,
I agree with you about the blown highlights, and rationally speaking it would seem to be a technical deficit. However when I look at it in the bigger context, the blown bright part looks unworldly and unreal, like a huge cosmic firework. The two human characters are being drawn to it. When I first saw the picture, I felt there is something surreal about the scene, and may be this is one element of it.

The image is of interest in view of the disequilibrating geometries, that add enigma or tension to the scene. The white blotch is not at all bothersome as it works to increase the tension or unknowness of the photo. The man might I think be printed with more contrast and impact, as he is necessary to it but he fades a bit too much in this rendition of the photo. Nonetheless, this week's POW departs a lot from the usual.

I think the elphs may have missed looking at his portfolio, that contains some other interesting images. I think Jesus J will be one photographer I will follow here in future.

Supriyo; I think this image faces an issue of exposure balance, or lack thereof. If the overall exposure is adjusted to keep the woman in view and the main focus, then the bright area will truly be blown out. If the light area is kept just within the upper white limit, then we lose the best, most interesting part of the image. I believe the real challenge here is to apply a very skillful PP to keep our subject in view, as well as keeping the bright from going over the top, all while avoiding the types of PP artifacts we are calling out. Like I said, I think this has real potential, but achieving it will require some very skillful work. On the other hand, your suggestions regarding the surreal have me thinking that just taking the whole image into the surreal zone might be very effective.

For me, it's mostly the depth of field that's not working. I do like the idea of the shot, the story being told, and the sensibility behind the timing and composition. But, given that the guy is so far in the distance and in a haze of sunlight rays and in such different lighting conditions, I don't see that anything is gained (and do think something is lost) by his being so out of focus. It's one of those visceral things for me that I don't want to over-analyze but it just feels like it would be a stronger photo with the background in a little more focus. In terms of the tones, I'd prefer it a little less exposed or a slightly different angle to have avoided that major light reflection on the road. Would have then been easy to open the shadows a little in post.

I like its 1930s-uncoated-lens-35mm-slow-film look. Same tonality and feel as an early Cartier-Bresson or similar. As to whether the subject works for me as an overall statement of something - I'm not so sure.

Very film noir look. The chiaroscuro works well in the scene.

David,

I agree, it is a tricky exposure. Besides the highlight and the main subject, there is also the challenge with the sun-rays (which are beautifully captured here). If the exposure is under-compensated to avoid blowing out the highlights, the rays of light won't be as prominent in my opinion. I feel, the blown out area would be much more disturbing if there were no sun-rays leading to it. Of course, I may be completely wrong, because I am deducing things without actually taking any shot.

Fred,

To me, the DOF does not pose too much problem, because it gives a sense of distance. It separates the girl's dark world from the bright (cosmic/galactic) world. Also I feel there is too much clutter in the bright part (the parked motorcycle, array of trees etc.) so that in sharp focus these would distract from the walking human figure. On the other hand, even in out of focus situation, our eyes are pretty good in picking out human shapes. So I feel, the out of focus actually helps to make the walking man more prominent. Of course, this is just my opinion.

I would interpret the scene as magical, with the girl holding a magic wand (the umbrella) to light up the world in front of her. The sunrays and the bright reflection to me represent a cosmic phenomenon. A glimpse of the greater universe in a dark gloomy world. However I don't want to turn this into a cliche by bringing analogies to Harry Potter movies.

The picture was taken with a Leica M9 and a Leica Summilux asph 50 mm At F1.4 manual focus on a moving target and only spot light meeting.

There is no artifacts just water drops around her and the light shining on his arm.
I'm glad for your comments and reviews.
Jesus Jimenez.

Want a photo that tells a story; This is the epitome. She remains crisp within the fog, Now you have to move thru the fog with her. I love this!