YOU'RE BEING WATCHED

Wonderfully creative shot, David, just an absolute stunner in my book. The mundane clapboard house and window frame stand in sharp contrast to the fantastic reflected image that looks like something out of "The Day the Earth Stood Still". This tickles me so much I'm going to tuck it in my favorites.

 

Just out of curiousity I took a look at how many times this was viewed - 24 times. Twenty-four times and no one was moved enough to leave a comment? We have become a jaded bunch, haven't we. Either I'm way off base in what I think is worthy of notice or this site has lost a good deal of its dynamism along with that which brought me the pleasure of discourse and creative stimulation in the past..

Thanks. Yes, there are times when I get so pissed off that I think of just erasing the whole damn thing and taking up tiddly winks. It's a ridiculous and childish reaction and I know it. That doesn't make it any less powerful. There are basically only four people that ever comment on my images. Some of that is deserved as I've cut way back on my comments and have generally stuck to viewing just those who seem interested in my work. That gets to be pretty self-limiting I suppose, but I've always tried to respond to anyone who comments by returning the favor. Is that cronyism? Hell, I don't know. And, if it is, is it bad?

Admittedly, my stuff is hardly mainstream. Mainstream doesn't interest me much these days. Beauty is still something I can appreciate and relate to, but not something I want to imprison in garish pixels and view from every conceivable angle ad infinitum. To me (and this is the most bullshit sounding statement I've made in quite some time) there is much more beauty to be found under the skin of truth.  That's where I try to go. 

 

Those blinds look like they are alive. I see the face of a teenage mutant ninja turtle. I'm not drinking. Really, I'm not! Maybe I should start

I'm not sure what that mutant thing is. I thought it resembled an eye. But it's fair to compare to about anything. Thanks

It is so bizarre, that it has triggered my interest. The window frame looks like a double eye...;-))Looking inside and outside.... Very much you!

quite an eyeful! only "dave decripit" could have marked it...

Now we're up to 45 times.  It takes a fertile mind with perhaps a whisper of paranoia (no criticism intended) to see this as a peering eye.  I like how the off-white adds to the creep factor.

Very interesting image with excellent title. Well seen indeed.

the caption really brings the photo to life.  In a way it's funny and in a way it's kinda sad, as the state of the window doesn't seem to suggest a "nice" person. Well, whoever that is, certainly not trained by the see eye ay.  Cheers, Micheal

War of the worlds also comes to mind.  Great catch.  I hope no one was standing there when the death ray deformed the window blinds.  Looks really good.

An intriguing capture, and perfectly framed and presented by you, David. I  like the very subdued color tones as well (with just the tiny hint of greens, on the right, under the A), as they really seem to emphasize the bizarre mood and overall scene here. I definitely feel that you were being watched, as well as the viewer is, viewing this now :-)   Great details of textures and light too (just enough to peek inside the window); it really enhances the photo. I like this one very much.

In some circles ( mine included ) that particular brand of bullshit is considered poetry.

Likewise the photo itself has a fractal elegance and simplicity/complexity of form which carries a poetic vibe. I like the way in which the micro slats of the blind reiterate the macro slats of the siding. The effect of such a radical shift of scale, while maintaining the same pattern,  gives rise to the feeling that zooming out from the window would reveal the wooden siding also giving a sly wink and a watchful eye to the viewer.

Hello David the Inquisitive:

I'm not sure we "know" each other on Pnet but I'm a Jack, Pnina and Gordon groupie and in all honesty, that's how I got here.

That said, this photo immediately caught my eye. Or maybe the eye in this photo caught me.

After thoroughly inspecting the photo, I diligently read all the comments, all the while trying to maintain objectivity so that I could form and express MY opinion and not rehash what's already been covered. That's hard to do. Four years of Photo.net has at times clouded my photographic sensibility or intimidated me to the point that I could not express myself.

So, back to your photo.

I LOVE the eye in the blinds. 

BUT - here comes the cliché - if this were my photo (and I'm ingnoring - with great difficulty - what 13 of Pnet's most brilliant photographers have previously posted) 

* I would have used straight-up B&W or maybe a tinge of alien green. The yellow looks like Grandma's aging ramshackle house to me.

* I would have cropped it down to the window frame around the blinds. Sorry, Gordon, but I don't share your vision of the horizontal siding adding to the blinds speaking out. Instead, without the siding, the vertical lines (now much more visible) provide an almost out of this world sensuality. And you've got great resolution here to do that.

* And even if you kept the tonality and didn't crop tighter, I would never have framed it. Frames (especially with text) are to me nothing but distracting.

Yours truly, probably the most mediocre photographer in St. Pete Florida with the biggest mouth :)

Alberta

While I do not agree with all you say, I certainly respect your thoughts and welcome them. And thanks for being critical. I too often refrain from doing enough of that myself.  This image would work for me in a number of different configurations. Pure black and white would be fine, and without a frame, or possibly even cropped differently.  I almost always frame my work, tittle it, sign it and date it. For better or worse, it is my standard practice. If it were framed on a wall, it would look much like this except, of course, the writing would be by hand. But it could just be a useless affectation. 

I use Nic Silver Effects software with my PS4, and it's an easy thing to convert to a nice black and white with fine adjustments. It does look good as a contrasty black and white, and perhaps equally as good as what I posted. My reasoning (such as it is/was) ran along the lines of making this look kind of seedy and unpleasant. Thus the faded yellowish tint, which I believe was somewhat realistic to the scene as I found it. That yellowish color gives it more of the appearance of a cockroach motel, which I suspect it was. But I did not have to maintain the original feel and look of the place, as I'm not bound to do that unless I'm doing photojournalism. 

Your crop suggestion is valid, but to my taste, not as likable. Each of us has an individual aesthetic, so we shall probably leave it at that.

Thanks you for your comments. And, BTW, you are hardly the mediocre photographer you claim to be.  As for the biggest mouth, I can't address that, but if you are referring to your penchant to speak honestly, then that, too, is not so. 

Thanks ever so much for your reply. It helps me to understand your choices and gives me courage to continue to speak out about other ones I would have made.

Phono.net is a hard place to be. I don't think too many of us really know why we continue to come here (and so often), what we expect from it and what we think we're contributing. It's frustrating, confusing, rewarding - a true love/hate relationship. For me, at least.

I'm glad that you're here. You make Photo.net a great place to be. 

Cheers ~
Alberta 

I certainly agree with you about the love/hate thing.

I am incline to look upon PN as an addiction.... withdrawal is painful yet liberating.

 

Alberta, setting aside your self deprecation as it is unfounded, I must tell you that over the time I have spent at PN you have consistently offered well considered and helpful opinions.  I count you among a small contingent of friends whose visits, opinions and photos keep me coming back to PN. Honest well considered reaction is the well spring of what makes PN worthwhile. ... keep it up.

Excellent shot.  Ugly, old motel have seen a lot :).  I particularly like the look of the "eye" :) great personification :).

Regards!

It seems to have taken some time, but your photo has generated a very interesting discussion. You've cultivated a small but significant corner of PN (as have many of us here) and that's more important than number of views, top-rated photos, and a lot of the rest of the claptrap that passes here for photograph appreciation.

I like the color here, creamy bungalow off white. For me, the color grounds this and you haven't (as you usually don't) tried to make more of this than it is. While I think black and white could work here, I also think it would bring out the graphic elements and perhaps leave some of the simple humanity you've captured here behind. The color says to me, "I've left this as I found it." And the content of the photo kind of says that to me as well.

The blinds have a "slinky" quality. The light has a spring/summer quality. The wave of the shadow, which echoes the wave of the blinds themselves, has a harmonizing effect and plays nicely off the horizontal lines of the wooden slats.

If I were to make a foray into interpretation, which I only do with tongue planted firmly in cheek, I'd say the blinds were telling you not to look any deeper into this. Just enjoy it for the lark it is.

Keep posting, you're keeping the ratio of bullshit to quality tilted in a good direction. 

I keep coming back to this photo and each time it deepens my appreciation of just how good it is. If you do a book, this MUST be included.