On the Tracks

A standard railway shot (which is always interesting, yet shot quite often) while making it interesting and fun. I like it. Nice work.

Yes, unusual treatment of a rather cliché subject. But why use HIE instead of normal B&W. Without the red filter, there's isn't much IR effect and what you basically get is a very grainy and expensive film. The photo works very well as it is, though.

 

Note: a red #25 filter was used with this shot, and all my IR shots, although I usually don't bother to remark it...

An interesting perspective. What kind of lens did you use for this shot?

 

Alex

Alex: Its a Nikon 24-120 zoom. I'm guessing I had it at 24 for this, I usually do for IR stuff.

That's pretty cool Amy.I liked the texture around and the pose :). What if one of them wore black? :-)

It's very nice.

 

"standard railway shot" or not, I like it. It's sale material, worth a 11x14 frame.

I looked at the picture... got a strong feeling for it... but wondered why... read comments trying to find some insight... looked back at the picture and noticed the reason of it's power!

 

The railway to me is unimportant, it is only an elevated object to be balanced on. The two subjects have been capture in a very short moment where they are in equilibrium. They are also in a playful moment of true joy, moments that are rare in an adult life. The moment they fall back on the ground, the game is over. This moment is therefore fixed in time.

 

If the quest to represent movement in a still image is a goal in photography, then the image missed the target, but it hits a better one. The trees look totally still. Of course you idiot, you might say. But I think they look more still then Ive ever seen them, because of the surrounding subject.

 

I dont know about the railway, it is a cold subject most of the time. But here it became alive, it became a toy, a plaything. If the railway is a clichéé, then the cliché has been broken here.

 

I dont know if this was all planned intentionally, was subconsciously guessed or am I losing my mind? To be honest, I dont think it really matters.

 

Thank you for your comments, Oliver, I like it when people tell me about the mental process they have when they look at my work.

Deborah and Jaelle are good friends of mine, and they are close to each other as well...They are alike in that they both are much stronger models when you don't pose or direct them too much.

My technique with them is: take them to photogenic places, usually dressed in some way that I think will be appropriate and/or visually interesting, and then just follow them around, shooting. They both love to explore, climb on/into/over things, and just play...

Sometimes I give them a direction - for this shot, they were playing on the tracks, focused on their push-pull balancing game, and I yelled "Hey, over here!". They both looked over at me, and I hit the shutter.

Jaelle's brand of modeling, in particular, can be a bit hair-raising at times - I have a number of shots I have taken of her where I am saying "Yes, thats cool, now come down from there. No, don't stand up. No, Jaelle, for God's sakes, come back here, that sign says Danger Do Not Enter!" Its enough to turn my hair grey.

But I am pleased by what I have gotten with them. I actually have a big backlog of shots I'd like to scan and upload, and I've been too busy to do it. So, stay tuned...

I dislike it for two primary reasons, 1) the models are too much a part of the scenery. and 2) the Ir seems unnecessary. I like the IR stuff you've done, but here it doesn't seem to add anything.

 

The model on the left has a great expression/hair fall/pose, but it isn't striking because it doesn't envelope the frame. I'd love to see her adventurous personality featured in a shot that both captures her personality and her dangerous position with full on force. She seems a natural for the film gaze, but most of your shots of her I've seen have presented the fragility of her circumstance instead of the courage she exhibits in that dangle. I hope that makes sense.

 

I look forward to future scans...

I disagree about the IR not adding anything, just look at the sky! It adds drama for me. What I especially like is the the tunnel effect of the tracks running through, firstly leading you into the frame toward the girls, then through them, and onward into a symbolic future. Since the girls are friendly and playful, it's almost as if they are welcoming you to a fresh and carefree road ahead.

This photo is incredible. Fantastic composition, and the IR gives it an almost other-worldly feeling. The sky feels alive. There are three kinds of life in this photo: The girls and the vegetation are obvious, but the sky in concert with the girls and vegetation shows that the Earth herself is alive; a life form in her own right.

The tracks have a strong symbolic element: Man-made, resting upon Mother Earth's bosom, traveling off into the distance and curving around to a place out-of-sight although in the direction of Father Sky (himself always out-of-reach for earth-bound critters), yet suggesting a connection between the two. The two women, wearing clothing the color of Father Sky's clothing (the clouds), connecting with each other, standing upon the rail barefooted (and thus connecting with it), imply a connection between Earth and Sky and suggests a link between all life.

Very powerful metaphors in this photo. Maybe it should be titled "Mother Earth and Father Sky," or perhaps simply "Gaia"?

great dOf... really nice in b/w... another fine image