Muldovan Violinist

Great shot; great lighting, but it's obviously a posed shot. Nothing wrong with that if it's intended for use as a promotional photo.

 

(A performing violinist would make sure their hair stayed out of the action.)

At best, I think this is a very nice portrait of a young woman. I don't think this is a beautiful portrait of a musician. As technically sound as this is, I just don't relate to her as a musician. The tightness of the crop that's losing the instrument, the wind-blown hair when she really isn't moving, and the non-expression are all elements that I find distracting from rendering a point of view. What I find lacking is movement and emotion, which a much looser crop would have begun to emit. I do sincerely congratulate you on the POW.

It's an excellent portrait that is quite effective at conveying this woman's skill as an entertainer. A photograph without eye contact would have emphasised her skill as a musician, but here we have a musician who is communing with her audience (the photographer and vicariously, the viewer) and is revealing her ability to relate to her audience at the same time that she is making music... it shifts the emphasis, the focus of her attention from her engagement with her instrument to her engagement with us.

I think the suggested toning of the image would also shift the emphasis from the subject to the photographer, and make the image more about photographic skills than about the woman in the photograph. With the split toning, I am too quickly directed to think about the skills and decision making processes of the photographer, and away from imagining the inner condition of the musician. This technical distraction (especially the emotionally conflicted, split toning of cool highlights and warm shadows), combined with the direct gaze of the subject, would make the photograph more of an entertaining photographic experience and less an insightful revelation of this woman's character. The intent of the image is/would be diffused by these contradictory attributes/directives.

I'd like to see a monochromatic version without eye contact from this same session, it would be more about her, and less about us photographer/observers.

The motion, composition, lighting, subject matter/selection/gesture and tonal range are all excellent... t

I saw the picture and thought- Violinist!

 

You are talented and it shows!

 

Mike, Why shoot only female muscians?

Ah, it's just beautiful.

 

I tried not to, but couldn't help but think the same as someone said: "(A performing violinist

would make sure their hair stayed out of the action.)" But so what? It's beautiful, all the

same. Anyway, this is not a concert but a gorgeous portrait.

Its a gorgeous photo. Everything about photography is excellent. But I personally would like to see her really playing the violin and convey an emotion which I feel it lacks.

 

George Chew

I get the sense that the actual production of sound is secondary to visual imagery for Mike.

 

--Lannie

Wow - I didn't expect to be put on stage like this! I feel the pressure to accommodate all of the critiques.

 

I am a violinist too, and I made an image I saw in my head. I wanted to do this one (w/bow in motion) with the male concertmaster of DSO) but Tatiana conveniently appeared. Yes it's a hot light + 3 strobes.

 

As a violinist, I know the boundaries of what's reasonable in an image like this. Maybe I fill in more of a music connection in my mind than what's portrayed. More of a "performing" shot might have reduced the attention to her beauty, which I wanted to emphasize, and took for granted the musicianship part of it. I'd be interested in any other violinist/photographers' opinions.

 

I didn't feel the need for toning this image - it might have brought unneeded attention to itself, and not have contributed to the feel. (as John & Tom seem to agree) Sometimes sepia communicates an older time, and that wouldn't be my intent.

 

Addressing the right hand - I see the bow contacting the strings (this is where the critical action is) and the left hand as most important. If it were video, I would need to see the right hand only occasionally.

 

As far as modeling vs. playing - she was playing during the shot, and often looks like this when she is performing for any audience!

 

Anyway, this is an explanation (and trying not to make it a justification!).

 

Thanks for all the comments people. You're raising the bar!

Mike

>>More of a "performing" shot might have reduced the attention to her beauty, which I wanted to emphasize<<

 

I think the beauty would show regardless. Sometimes less is more... If it's a 'beauty shot' the blur from the bow is actually distracting, imo.

 

As a guitarist, if someone took a portrait where my right hand (I am right handed) was missing I would feel a very important aspect of the image and the music (the right hand produces most of the sound both in quality and dynamics/espression) would be missing as well. Provided such portrait was taken while I was playing.

 

The question you posed "What do you think of her as a musician?" triggered all the subsequent comments regarding the subject of music and performance. Right now, I think we see the model more than the musician.

It's a good shot, though I think a little flat. I prefer Scott Eaton's bumped up version. I carries more punch

Nice gal... As to her music - have to listen to it. Also, musicians normally do not look into camera.

Nice photo- the motion of the bow and blowing hair, unusual stare into the camera while playing and cropping add to the appeal. I would call it successful. Did you by chance shoot a series you could post?

 

Take the criticism for what it's worth and enjoy some notariety. Photo.net has photographers worth listening to.

Superb picture... I'm in total agreement with Tom Meyer's post. This picture is

about HER. As such it needs no fancy of any sort, no context, nothing more

than this unique expression.

 

A case where the "K.I.S.S." advice applies - in my opinion.

 

All advices to go fancy while shooting (as opposed to post-production) are

especially useless to me, as they seem to neglect the fact that an expression

like this is rare and lasts only a fraction of a second. The job is to catch it, and

all other intents are misplaced. Be just glad you got it, Mike ! It's brilliant...

Posing with a musical instrument is a commonly accepted way of portraying the virtuosity of the performer, it's also a way to highlight the glory of an instrument if that's the intention. In this picture, I see neither except a pretty girl in a technically well executed manner - the model may just as well be in an apron holding a Ginsu knife.

I like it. The photograph makes me think of confidence. She looks extremely

confident. I think the B&W redition is good, but warming it up a bit is not a bad

idea.

Very nice photo!

 

My first impressions are like many others here. In the photo, she looks more like an actor/model using a violin as a decoration, than a violinist playing the violin. Perhaps it's because her expressions seem a little "too posed" ("stillness" of her look but with the active bow movements).

 

Thanks!

Wow.....I LOVE this image......The windblown effect makes a tremendous difference, and really makes the image.

 

 

Well done!!!

Hello, excellent photo and 7/7 from me.

 

I am also an ex-violinist, violist, and now a violin, viola, and 'Cello maker. I am a beginner in photography and I like it that way.

 

I like the critical speed of bow captured with perfect shutter speed. The two string levels, G+D, D+A, work well to illusatrate the bowing and as a result the photo, good planning.

The left hand is a very natural and comfortable element giving depth to the photo. I can see that the player can play, because she looks comfortable, has a great posture and above all, her face is relaxed. The face is always the first sign of trouble! So, I must disagree with the other people who said she is not really playing.

I am sure that girl is a very beautiful and fine player. I'd bet my Fuji 69's on it. Also, Romanian violinsits tend to kick arse anyday, as do Russian and Chinese ones too.

 

I think interesting arty violinist shots of the left hand and scroll etc. might be had with a very fast 50mm 1.2 and a neutral background.

Very narrow DOF works well to isolate the subject.

 

I plan to shoot a Strad in London soon, any tips? I need detailed and standard photos for reference whilst making a copy of the instrument for a friend.

I think B+W iso 25 will work well, perhaps I will use a speed graphic.

 

Cheers.

A wonderful choice for POW. The image is not only eye catchingly beautiful but compositionally & technically outstanding. I prefer the B&W, and I like that the child is making eye contact with the viewer. Her eyes are so very bright. They convey to me her "playful" spirit, while her bow movement conveys her "artful playing". So nice to capture both! I love the captured motion of both the bow & the hair. Perfect DOF! Terrific choice for POW!

As a commercial photographer, I see the commercial potential here enhanced by superb technical execution. The lighting is soft, deeply liquid and diffuse. This sort of approach with this young lady as your subject is highly effective. This lighting technique enhances her connection to the viewer. This image is also not hindered by the fact that the young lady is at the center of the field of focus. The image becomes a bit more of an interpretive statement by your choice to illustrate the bow as a multi-positioned blurred element.

The one thing it lacks to me, is my belief in the involvement of the subject with the music or to put it another way, the way I think a musician would be involved in the rendering and performance of the music. The pose is slightly rigid and she appears to be a bit self-conscious. As a photo of a young woman who happens to be a musician, it suceeds mightily.

It is also a great example of how Fuji cameras handle the rendering of gray-scale tonalities. Again, I am deferring to the commercial possibilities in this image. I think you might approach Fuji with this shot which illustrates the Fuji S2's wonderful technological capability and aesthetics. I would have sworn this was a silver based image from a Black and White negative from the start! Bravo!

As a technical achievement, this is amazing. As a portrait, here eyes I find riveting and her expression delightful.

However, the violin is the sticking point: It perhaps belongs as a matter of principle (since she apparently has invested a lot of herself in it) but I find it to be a distraction because it comes off as a prop. If the violin were not in motion we would be witness to a moment in which she pauses to engage the camera or perhaps the pregnant moment before she launches into a song. The motion of the violin, however, leaves me wanting more. It leaves me wishing this were a portrait that captures the true magic of the dedicated, gifted musician; those transcendant moments when musician and instrument are one. I suspect the violin is more than a prop to her so I find myself wanting to see her engage her instrument the way she engages the camera.

I can not imagine any violinist playing their instrument with their hair blowing across the strings and the bow. I would not do it, you would not do it. It would be like playing a piano wearing gloves. That, combined with the lack of attention that the model is displaying, renders this a prop-shot for me. The camera did a nice job of imaging the subject. Regards.

Hair on the G-string? Fiddle-sticks. I have played the viola in the snow. I recommend it to anyone wishing to experience some of life.

 

As I said before, excellent photo.

To me, its a portrait of her, and an excellent one at that. I don't necessarily need to feel the music; there's no pretense that this is a candid moment of her playing. the instrument is a prop, likely important to her. i would be very proud to do a work like this, set up or not.

The following image is a crop of a shot taken with a digicam at 10x zoom at a Celtic festival. This is the world famous and incredible Eileen Ivers. I've tried to create a shot similar to the POW in terms of cropping, but technically, this is of course nowhere close to the same quality. Nonetheless, I believe this better represents someone who is "connected" to the music. And, in my very humble opinion, a similar pose in Mike's photo would have better portrayed the feeling he was hoping to emote.