Vietnam War Memorial

Excellent composition!

I regret not having seen this earlier, especially with the signature which I try hard to ignore when evaluating a photo. Sometimes a signature if not left discreetly undermines the aesthetics of the image. But I don't believe I'd have found it offensive per se.

 

That said, the ghost-imaged man and the out-of-focus forewall both enhance this image. The one thing I wish is that you had chosen a slightly lower tripod angle in which to shoot this. Had you done so then you'd have accomplish four neat things: the wall would loom higher, the trees would be cropped out completely, you'd have less black space on the right, and you'd have separated more of the man from the background. As in many photos, the precise position of the camera is perhaps the one thing which the photographer completely controls where even a small alteration matters for conveying the most visual impact.

 

Thank you for exhibiting this wonderful photo!

Thank you all very much for the very nice thoughts and comments. This image is a sleeper in my book. I only took two because of all the moving people, as well as the very long time this took (perhaps 20 or more seconds) and I never thought either of the two exposures would be worth two cents. It was a shock when I first saw this original.

 

I can partly agree regards the DOF..would have been nice for clear names...I think. However, like mentioned above I too think there is a greater value to not having any of the names clear and visible...(including mine now). It is the memorial or "the Wall" as a whole, as well as the person contemplating what it represents, that makes this entire scene work in my opinion. I also LIKE the barren tree limbs in this image.

 

Here is the unedited original. You can see other faces that after careful consideration I decided to clone out so that only one person is in the scene. For the record I did consider not marking this as manipulated, but decided that cloning out these other two figures would still be acceptable. If it is not, it would not bother me one bit to change that box.

 

Anyway, I would like to hear a few comments comparing the original to the posted version. Thanks again for your time and thoughts. It is always appreciated!

Outstanding. Poignant.

Impressive shot.

A great photo.Very very touching it is...! I love your edited version.....than the original.

Very impressive shot Vincent! I have a divergent opinion- I like the original with multiple people in it. I think it illustrates how the "Realities of War" have effected, not only a multitude of soldiers, but a multitude of loved ones and family members too. Just a thought.

Excellent and creative......well done...Regards Roger

This is fabulous. The only way to improve this would be to have the ghost images in uniform.

I LIKE THIS SHOT AND I LIKE YOUR OTHER SHOT'S AS WELL NICE WORK.

Vincent, this is the first I see this photo and I am stunned (I found it by following Lou Ann's comments), not only by the composition and the color, but also because I did a similar shot.

 

I like your shot and I am going to take it again with F100 on Fuji Reala 100 film. My D70 has too much noise for night scenes as such.

 

Regards. -- Ray

 

P.S. Love all your landscape photos.

Wonderful capture of the full impact of THE WALL. As a Viet Nam veteran i've yet to muster the courage to confront it face to face! Thanks 7/7

I have no problem with this shot Great work Vince

unless you are gifted with patience and creativity, as you are.

 

As a whole I appreciated you unmanipulated photos, your patience, endurance and technique.