'The Benediction (Blessing) For Dropped Alms'

Christ and company seem to be offering a 'benediction' (blessing) to

this beggar woman, who has dropped a small alms coin onto the

pavement stones in front of a very ornate Russian Orthodox Church.

Your ratings, critiques, and remarks are invited and most welcome. If

you rate harshly, very critically, or wish to make an observation, please

submit a helpful and constructive comment; thank you in advance for

sharing your photographic knowledge to help improve my

photography. Enjoy! John

Alternate caption:  'The Spiritual and the Secular Worlds' (Lost Alms)

john

John (Crosley)

A really beautiful shot with very nice colours and title, John!

This makes a terrific black and white photo, but the colors were stunning, so when colors are so good (and they aren't in many or most black and white photos, then it demands first posting in color.

Some photosonly can show best in black and white, others are purely color dependent.  This is one that shows well either way, but color is vastly preferred, at least for visual appeal to the senses, if NOT the message.

Color and 'lost alms' may be a little contradictory.

You might see the colloquy under the photo 'Fighting Inflation Together' in which the use of color vs. black and white, is discussed and illustrated (two women are depicted in Kyiv, both with pained looks on their faces and with identical outstretched hands as they beg). 

Conclusion in that photo was, although colorful, the colors 'fought' the message, so it was presented in black and white.

Here it's a tossup, except I'm a sucker for great colors, so I chose color.

Thanks again Ruud.

And thanks also for mentioning the 'title' (caption).  I put a lot of thought into them, and in some they 'define' the photo - give a message to viewers of what to look for (how else do we know it's 'lost alms'?).  We might just have a confused viewership without the caption here, right?

john

John (Crosley)

Obviously with a crown, that's Christ.

The others?

Joseph and Mary (hardly looks very female to me)?

A representation of 'Father, Son and Holy Ghost?  I doubt, but I'm not 'up' because it just to me doesn't look like the 'Virgin Mother', right?

Not apostles - why only two?

Enlighten me,  someone please.

I feel stupid about this, but I didn't inspect up close.

john

John (Crosley)

Great eye, John, as usual ... a fantastic moment captured !! I´m agree with your decision of posting it in colors ... the colors enhance the details in this shot. Although I neither know who are the figures, I´m sure they don´t represent the 'Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost". Their swords confuse me ...

I go out, sometimes daily, and just walk about and bring home whatever it is I see.  If I can 'see' it I can shoot it, usually, and most often I can predict in advance what subjects will do, so long  as I observe them awhile.

I just 'get near' likely subjects and wait, sometimes.  It is enormously productive of good (or at least interesting) photographs.

This is not a Lucie Award winner, or even a prize winner, but is a workmanlike photo from yesterday's shooting, when I went out at 5:00 p.m., with sunset at then or shortly thereafter.

Sometimes the returns amaze me, other times I do well without knowing how; occasionally I am stumped, but often when that happens I come home later in the day or the next day with a GREAT shot.'

National Geographic advertises their photographers took 1 million photos last year (1,000,000). 

They announce they published 1,000 of them.

'Street' is a pretty strict disciplinarian.  You quickly learn what others think 'stinks' even though in your own mind it might be quite good -- even potentially great.

Other times viewers will see 'greatness' in captures I feel are mediocre.

Go figure.

That's part of why I keep contributing; I am not the final word on 'popular taste' even after tens of millions of clicks here on the Internet on this site and other venues.

I am very thankful for your viewpoint.

Thanks so much for sharing.

john

John (Crosley)

John, the kind of image which I enjoy. These pictures unfortunatly aren't well rating, but some of us know the difficulty this represent because we need to be patients.

This picture is outstanding, the composition is very deep, I can find advices to improve this sensational work. I just want to comment that by photos like this I have attempted to be a photographer.

Thanks for sharing and my best regards. 7

As long as I am over here commenting on Vlad. Here we go on this one. They come "armed to the hilt". The islamists of their time. The one in the middle looks a lot like ben laden.  I wonder if the pope carries a hand gun.

I think a 'not' got dropped from your text; however, I get the meaning entirely, and thank you for it.

I also thank you for the part that says 'because of you (me), you are trying this style of photography.

That gladdens my heart.

Bless you, my son. ;~))

A special benediction for you.

john

John (Crosley)

I don't exactly agree with your statement in the request for critique John! The ways of God are out of our mind's reach!

PDE

You have a very good and  very sly point about being 'armed to the hilt'.

However, arms shown here, without protective armor, really are ceremonial and 'for show' rather than for use.

But your point is made, and small wonder.

Remember, one Pope died quite mysteriously I think before John Paul II, so anything's possible, and the Crusades are a horrible blight on the history of Christianity (for which I do NOT speak).

Interesting and skillful notation.

john

John (Crosley)

I am not sure what 'statement' in my request for critique you disagree with -- that she is getting a benediction for her lost alms?  Of course that is word play, and a sly look at the situation, as they have no relationship to the woman other than what I saw as a visual joke.

Other than that, your comment perplexes me about 'God's Ways'  in relation to this capture and would invite enlightenment.

Thanks for your kind comment about the quality; I work hard to get something good nearly every day . . . . and this is a workmanlike shot, taken without more than a moment's reflection.

john

John (Crosley)

A very touching moment!

Westerners who can afford good cameras, cannot know the true value of money -- any amount of money.

Today and for the last year, the Ukrainian Hryvnia (grivna) = about 8 to the dollar or 12.5 cents apiece.

Kopeck are one-one hundredth of a hryvnia.

The more affluent at stores leave the very small Kopeck coins and favor keeping 5 kopeck and especially 50 kopeck coins, sometimes not bothering to pick up the 1 kopeck coins.

To this woman, EVERY KOPECK IS IMPORTANT!

A hryvnia or several is a Godsend.

A kilo (2.2 pounds) of high quality Slavayanska potatoes (kartoshkij) is 6 Hryvnia at the farmers' bazaars right now (Slavayanska are known in Europe as the yellow flesh potato, so often prized -- an extremely good potato.  (In fact its tastiness may be what keeps those Ukrainians who almost eat nothing but potatoes -- especially not in the growing/harvest season -- from going crazy with their diet.  I've met many models I've 'shot' who only eat potatoes 3 meals a day/meat then was for holidays for student types and younger people.

A meal at McDonald's often can cost as much or more than the same meal in America, and it's quite a luxury for some -- even an acceptable place to take a date, but at the same time, food quality is MUCH BETTER there than the same chain in the United States where the food is 'undesirable' and service the worst.  In Ukraine it's passable, sometimes even tasty, and service can be quite good (McDonald's has two standards -- one the US standard with poor service, poor food,  and trying to undercut tastier competition -- e.g. In-N-Out Burger, which dominates Southern California and now Northern California and Nevada too.

If Ukrainians could ever taste an In-N-Out Burger they'd understand, even their better McDonald's is not so wonderful, but the toilets are CLEAN which is a prime motivator in a country (like neighboring Russia) where public toilets in the recent past have been a national disgrace).  A bus might stop beside the road and expect people to go in the bushes' or if it finds a latrine made of stone, it might have a 'hole' in the center, and one just stands over it (or squats).

For this woman, you mentioned it's a touching scene. 

That's a Ukrainian perspective.  To most Westerners she'd be considered almost mentally defective to look for a small coin which such value as a Kopeck or even kopecks.  To her, she may live on such small money, collected coin by coin at the entrance to this church where she begs.

It is indeed touching; Ukraine's old people have a pension, but it's inadequate for living unless one has savings (and banks failed 2 or 3 time in the last 15 or so years).

A saving grace is that some own their own flats . . . and those have great worth, but to move out is crazy since they'd have no place to go, and their profit would be gone shortly since rental flats are very high priced and not in abundant supply - the city has well over 2 million and is a Mecca for Ukrainians from the rest of the country so there's no extra supply of housing (plus no one built housing outside of the South, for a long time, and 'crisis' bank failures helped slow housing growth).

Thanks Svetlana, (as a Kyiv resident, please correct me if I'm wrong anywhere).

john

John (Crosley)

This was what made me think that irony was implied into your words: "Christ and company..." By the way, they are all some saints! The Св. means exactly as St. (Saint).

PDE

In churches, Christ is most often depicted with a crown.

If you see a crowned man in a church in the center of two others, automatically I think it's going to be Christ, but if it's outside a church, it might be some present or historic ruler -- perhaps from a Bible story.

But here I immediately thought 'Christ' even though he's dressed up in more Medieval style, and has a sword, though no armor, so he's not really dressed up for battle, but to be a ceremonial leader with sword -- indicating power and potential, but not dressed for battle.

And of course from early times to maybe the last or penultimate century, Christ often was depicted as a contemporary -- with contemporary dress, not with the clothes he often is depicted with in Roman Catholic Church rites and illustrations, but this is the Russian Orthodox Church, and who knows?

I did not really know who is depicted, though it appeared to be Christ, rather than some then contemporary ruler, and if that were so, one would expect Joseph and Mary to accompany him, and that may be, but the person, right (our view) is not very female or matriarchal looking.

Father, son and Holy Ghost?

Hard to depict, especially the Holy Ghost?

Christ and apostles?  Only two are shown with the crowned figure I feel might be Christ, so what apostles? 

There were 12 - did he favor two?

It's still a mystery.  I chose 'and company' to indicate my uncertainty and to use 'weasel words' (a term used by  attorneys a lot describing words which describe mysterious ideas when one lacks precision).

So, pardon my 'weasel words' but I really didn't know, and still don't.

Anybody care to contribute on this subject who has some knowledge?

Thanks for your reply, Pierre.  Your comments are always appreciated, and if I don't understand something, I ASK, which is better than going off 'half cocked' with a misunderstanding.

Bless you!

john

John (Crosley)

...while I was adding something in my comment you already wrote a novel, ha! As you can see I explained that the three persons are certainly some saints! And the one in the middle, with the crown is some кнез (бел.Кн.), which is most likely some Belorussian prince! That is if бел. stands for Belorussian and кн. for кнез which can be translated as prince or duke!  I don't use Russian here because I don't have writing support for Russian, but all the Slavic languages are very similar and no doubt that кн could be for књаз as Serbian and Macedonian would pronounce and write the Russian word for it transcribed in their languages.

My point was on the word "company" (Christ and company), looked to me inappropriate, for certainly that for example the Holy Trinity we can't call company or Christ and disciples neither, so I concluded there was irony in that expression, especially in the context of the term benediction and beggar and the whole story! With my first comment I wanted to emphasize that the situation depicted on this photo doesn't have to be in contradiction with the Christian beliefs, blessed are those who suffer...etc!

PDE

That word, written in a precursor to Cyrillic, I think, surely means or refers to Kyiv (Kiev).

I'm most thankful for your continuing responses.

I don't ridicule or misstate religions and their figures on purpose, or if I am going to so do, I will make it clear, not hide it in some irony somewhere for eagle-eyed viewers to ferret out.

Now it makes perfect sense.

And of course the meaning of the photo remains unchanged, even if the figures are not Christ.  I've been in many cathedrals throughout Europe, and often Christ is depicted in a contemporary manner, and always in  the center, or center most, almost always crowned, hence the confusion

Thank you SO MUCH!

john

John (Crosley)

I was in a below-grade very main and center street supermarket in the absolute center of Kyiv.

I saw ahead of me two people a young woman with bundled baby.  I recognized her as a beggar on the main street, who sits in front of stores and asks for coins.

She paid for her purchases, yogurt and other healthy stuff, with a handful of Ukraine's very smallest coins.

Her baby, a friend and mother had remarked to me, looked very healthy for the baby of a woman who begs, obviously quite healthy despite being bundled up with a begging momma.

The questions are obvious:  did her parents kick her out in Kyiv or perhaps far away?  Is she stranded and doesn't know to do what American beggars do, make a sign?

If she's a druggie or alcohol abuser it didn't show.

Just her and her baby in lap (still an infant, but growing), sit on the sidewalk with a cup in her hand or sitting on the sidewalk.

I have decided if others can give her small coins, I can do better, as a coin may be worth a nickel or dime, American, but a paper bill (a hryvnia (grivna)) is worth about 12 cents, and Metro fare is 25 cents US anywhere in Kyiv the Metro goes (no transfers to buses though).

From now on, she gets some money -- she spent what she had very wisely considering all, and has put her obviously healthy child first.

Another woman, previously seen over months begging with a very large belly, I determined is using a prosthetic to appear pregnant.  Within months after appearing just about to deliver, she returned again looking 'about to deliver'. 

A fraud.

Not the other, diminutive young woman with chubby-faced, healthy looking baby I write about here.

Fat is essential in babies for brain growth - it is 'child abuse' I am told, to put an infant or small child on a no-fat or low-fat diet, as it will restrict brain development and ultimately maybe intelligence and emotional development.

Live and learn. 

We didn't know that when I was young.

Perhaps all those Jewish (and other) mothers know more than a thing or two when they try to 'fatten up' their children. (Of course that is a stereotype, but one I've observed personally).

john

John (Crosley)