Human Kite

Absolutely wonderful! As already stated, who would have the guts to bring equipment up there! I'd be just hanging on to that harness for dear life. In any case it is a terrific perspective and I love the way the ropes bring your eye down to the boat below! Great idea, color, execution and congratulations!

I'm wondering how much photoshopping was done on this image. It seems way too colourful compared to the second photo uploaded showing the landing platform.

Natural saturation or simulated?

If that's the way the negative looks, I give two thumbs up. Two thumbs, otherwise, for the angle, compositional leading lines and daringness.

hmmm ... maybe we should change the rating system to a simple thumbs up or down. (not)

At the time this image was posted I did not own a copy of Photoshop. The image was scanned from a 4 X 6 print. I have not found the neg yet but I'm sure I will run across it someday. Anyway, The image was resized in ACDSee. The ocean bottom near Cancun is blessed by many reefs and many different colored bottoms as well as different depths. The color "apearance" of the water changes as you move very short distances. The color looks pretty close to the print on my monitor and this print is eleven years old.

Ok I found the neg and I will try to have it scanned this week. Also now looking at the neg it appears that the film was Ektar 125 and not Kodak gold. Sorry for the mistake.

yeah!

The pictures is both an example of good and bad practices in vacation photography. David did a good job of "capturing the moment" with his shot. This picture show why you should always take your camera with you. At the same time, it is also an example of not following an important rule: a photo needs a subject. Exactly what is this supposed to be a picture of? A rope? The title says "Human Kite", but there are no humans in the picture. This picture would be vastly improved by putting something more interesting in the foreground than a rope. Even something as simple as the photographer's feet would at least let the viewer know this was taken be a person, not a machine.

My biggest complaint is that it (the subject?) is an ugly, plastic rope. The crooked horizon could be an issue with some, but I think it makes sense here in view of the activity being portrayed.

For Kevin: ______________________________________________^

I like the last pic you posted too. It definately highlights how it must have felt to be up there.

However, I also think that the original rope picture is great just the way it is. Great job on all of these.

I totally disagree with Kevin. The photo has a subject and it doesn't need to have a human to know there is a human taking the picture. I guess the brain completes the message sometimes. But I still can't believe in these colours, seem like a videogame imagine, computer generated, drawing.

Kudos to you for taking the camera with you. I read what you said about trying to decide between the underwater and above-water camera quandry and you obviously made the right choice. I have taken waterski photos from in the water (with some flotation assistance) using my Nikon FE and Pentax -- so far without dunking the equipment. Again, thanks for a great photo. You can't take the picture if you don't have the camera. You did what most of us don't.

Nice shot! I've actually been to Mexico and Central America and can vouch for the vivid colors present along the coast. I'd be willing to bet the naysayers have not been near a reef!

Great shot, Dennis! I'm thinking you could sell a big enlargement of this to a support group for people overcoming fear of heights. The POV feels real enough to make just looking at it a legitimate first step in that process!

Very refreshing and not conventional.

Interesting...I'm usually much more gracious than the average commenter on a POW, but I just can't get behind this. I don't know if it's in the original or just the scan, but absolutely nothing in this image is in focus. I like the concept and the composition, but all of the details that I'd really like to see are missing. Oddly, the other images posted from this roll are nice and sharp.

This is a great photo with a unique perspective. I almost feel dizzy looking at it. If you have any more similar pictures please post them here. As for making the horizon horizontal I don't agree with that because it creates the impression that you are so high in the air that the earth looks round! Don't change the picture, it's perfect as it is.

Sorry, it doesn't make it for me.

 

I'll try to look for explanations why this image doesn't invoke any reaction in me. As somebody already mentioned, there really is no main object. Foam from the boat is burned out (and looks a bit yellowish. I'd tweak color balance a bit). Sky is dull. There is nothing interesting on the coast. Light looks flat. Yes, there is a geometric composition of the rope/wake, and for that I give it 5 in originality. Yes, the color is kind of vivid, but doesn't convey me anything... 4 in aesthetics. Then, I might be not a big fan of this type of photography/object.

 

this shot is from the perspective of the kite (or its passenger) -- the angled horizon indicates a banked turn, gives feeling of motion, is more dynamic and dramatic than a level horizon would have been. i might have liked a little more angle. i wonder whether the horizon angle was dictated more by actual flying at time of photo than photographer's choice of camera orientation.

 

i would like for the boat to have appeared bigger. however, to include the strip of land at top of frame (highly desirable), one would need a bigger boat.

 

colors are great (yellow/blue) and i think ropes are in pretty good shape (clean and colorful)considering their use and owners.

 

how much more could the photographer have controlled without choosing the parasailing equipment? GREAT JOB. but these are the comments of a rank amateur/beginner.

 

I'd like to second the opinion that there are photos that don't require a "subject" - sometimes the scene is the subject, doofus. To claim otherwise is to seem that you just don't "get it". This shot really works because of that "ugly yellow rope", it pulls your eye down very effectively and makes an otherwise good scenic shot into a great moment~

I really like this photo. Great lines. Everyone else complaining of a "subject" is just jealous. Keep shooting!!!

I gave this a 9 / 9 simply based on the sheer size of the cajones Dennis must have to risk the well being of his Nikon in this environment... and knowing he would have to land in water.

 

The tilt of the horizon gives the image a unique feeling of speed and direction.

 

Congrats!

GREAT picture!Congratulations.

 

 

Tripod? Haaaaaaaaahahahahaaaaaaahahaaaaaaaaaaaaa, ahhhhhhh.

Ok I'll take the bait this time. First let me say thank you for taking the time to post your comments. They are greatly appreciated. That goes for all of you. Second let me address the lack of sharpness. In retrospect I think the shutter speed might have been a little slow for all that motion. I wanted the smallest apeture possible for the DOF on the rope. Focus was infinity. This was scanned from an eleven year old 4x6 print just for the purpose of archiving it. I never had any intention of posting it so unlike most of the other photos in my portfolio, this roll was scanned as a low quality jpeg. I just got bored one night after seeing so many "abstracts" with no "clear subject" posted here, getting favorable responses. It seems like anything "wierd" is well received on this site. So, I uploaded it. If you have read all the previous comments then you know it was not "Photoshopped". Personally I don't like to spend any time in Photoshop because I would rather be out shooting. If I have to work on it in Photoshop then it probabally isn't a very good photo to begin with. Adding the rope later would not have been "capturing the moment". As far as parasailing goes, if you haven't been parasailing in Mexico, then you have never been parasailing. Parasailing in the US is not the same, believe me. When you land they don't "snatch the rope". You have to pull strings, one in each hand, that work shrouds to guide yourself down to the dock. I have another friend who went parasailing in Mexico and the boat turned too sharp and the line went slack. It was severed by the prop and he was cut loose. The wind blew him past the beach, over the houses and he landed on a roof top. He was injured but not too severely. The chutes have round holes in them and they are not designed to freefall so he came down rather fast. When the guys from the boat came to find him they were only interested in getting their parachute back which was tangled up in the telephone lines. The Nikonos belonged to a friend of mine and it really was not a "risk". I did have a strap around my neck for the camera. As far as a disposable camera, this shot was taken in 1990 and considering the lack of availability and quality of disposable cameras back then, along with the fact that I had two "real" cameras to choose from I opted for the Nikonos because it was water proof. This shot would have been crisper had I used my Minolta, but I would have rendered it useless after being dunked like a tea bag in salt water. I have since found the negative and as mentioned before I will try to have it scanned as soon as possible. The neg looks sharp through my loop but we shall see. Thanks again Dennis and all the rest for your comments! And a special thanks to the elves for choosing this photo. And also a special thanks to my good friend Tom McCoy for scanning all this stuff. I'm done rambling for the moment.

Great shot!...Congrats.