'Ukrainian-Russian War: Desperate Mother Begs for Her Nursing Child'

War wages in Ukraine's East with the Russians either crossing the

border with fighting men and equipment or not depending on whom you

believe, but no matter whom you believe the victims of war are real. A

mother nurses her child and simultaneously holds out her hand hoping

for a few kopecks to help buy herself food and maybe shelter. Your

ratings, critiques and observations are invited and most welcome. If you

rate harshly, very critically, or wish to make a remark,please submit a

helpful and constructive comment; please share your photographic

knowledge to help improve my photography. Thanks! Enjoy or at least

advance your understanding. john

This was taken at 240 mm at f 7.1

Exposure time was hand held at 1/8 of a second.  

Sensor was a dx sensor, with a far greater FX (film) equivalent -- well in excess of 300 mm.

I'm a very steady holder, but the lens did have VR.

I was not braced and did not have a particularly 'braced' stance; I tend to avoid 'squaring off and planting firmly' when on the street, as it gives little chance to move quickly if subjects begin to spy a surreptitious capture -- in fact that stance is a dead giveaway, and so I just raise my lens and fire whenever it's convenient, no matter the shutter speed.  (I do brace sometimes, and I do 'square away' from time to time, especially if it's an 'event' or something where there's nothing to be gained by shooting surreptitiously.) 

ISO was 1000.  Minimal sharpening.

john

John (Crosley)

A emotional image, well composed and well post-processed.

In what context was this photo taken? I mean: were you there for your work?

Best regards,

Alain

War is a very tragic situation ...

Thank you for the fine compliment.

My position is somewhat tenuous AND amorphous as well -- a sort of tricky thing, and to make statements about my status at this point would be to make choices that I'd rather not state publicly at this time --  or perhaps even make such choices.

However, work or not, I take such photos for love of photography, not for remuneration, and also to 'tell the story' in pictures.  I've won prizes before (long ago) with my photography, without even seeking any such thing, and it's the same today.  

Raters rate, and that's fine -- I post for ratings, but regardless I'd still be taking the photos.  Ratings are just one way to get my photos seen.  I have other ways as well, and I'm working on those, but I just cannot state what they are at this point-- I hope you won't take that as a personal affront.

It's dangerous getting anywhere near the fighting and/or the separatists, as some of my good friends who know me have learned based on my personal experiences as I've recounted to them.  Very, very dangerous.  

I know this is like the shoe dropping, and you know there's a story there, but I just can't tell it.  Please don't be offended.

Best to you, and thanks again for a great compliment.

john

John (Crosley)

I wholeheartedly agree.

I firmly take a stand against the suffering caused by war, no matter how justified (or not), and no matter how necessary (or not).

I focus on the children and mommas like these, who suffer --  it keeps my photography honest and keeps me free from bias.

For now the infant's well fed; that's good enough for me.

Best wishes, Svetlana.

john

John (Crosley)

John, at first glance I did mis the upper part of the mother. It's far out of balanced proportions now. In what kind of oil did they fall..?! Yes, I think it time for a smile on yours side now. War and begging has nothing to with it. Olaf ;)

The mother was a relatively pretty, thin woman, somewhat strained but with an Audrey Hepburn neck that detracted.

I felt this was about begging and nursing in public, so I made it a photo about begging and nursing in public.

As for balance, please see the comment next below yours -- it seems reasonable minds may differ.

I made what I think was a very good choice at balance -- look at the baby's body and legs then look at momma's arms and upraised hand (they're the opposite corollary of each other for a sort of reverse mirroring).  That sort of 'balance' or 'reverse balance' is something that is rare, and would be lost if momma's face were allowed to detract, as it just didn't fit in.  

Sometimes we agree greatly; sometimes not; maybe this time we can agree that I make photographer's choices and live with them and respect highly your critiques but don't always accept their points but ALWAYS listen to what you say and write to me.

Best wishes.

john

John (Crosley)

Thank you for remarking on the composition -- I prided myself on that, both in composing in the frame (this composition was in the frame as much as the aspect ratio would allow), and others did not fill the frame so much, but I preferred this one.  I also worked up that showed one of mother's skirt and lower legs more that I also liked and it was a tossup.  I think at sometime you'll be able to see the other version and make up your own mind if you think I made the better decision.

I very much appreciate your remark.

It's always a pleasure to have one's work understood.

Best wishes.

john

John (Crosley)

John, I love you in the healthy meaning of that word. I could have expressed myself in ten different ways. Of course there was a reason in 'cutting' the image in this way, I was aware of that. However the child, the head etc.  is a kind of monstrous, more a young elephant. Has also to do with the tele effect. The total is just too big, heavy. Different comments don't bother me in such a case, I don't want to hit that obviously tree, so react..! Why I do love you ?! You are a real born photographer and got the hint by deleting the submission. But I did already love you before and will continue doing that. :)    

I'm delighted by your expression of (healthy) love; there's sometimes far too little of it going around.

Yes, the child has a very large head.  If it has hydrocephalous, (a medical condition) that may be one explanation, another may be that it just it very healthy and well hydrated.  More explanations may lie in that I caught the angle of exposure just right, and of course you mention the 'tele effect' but the laws of physics prevent the use of a telephoto lens from making the head appear larger than it actually is in reality, though taken from a great distance as here, it can avoid being seen in diminished proportions as we so often see body parts in normal perspective.

Frankly, I just presume the head is very big, but so is the rest of this child which is not a newborn infant.  I had a sister, by the way, who gave birth to a child nearly 12 pounds (You can convert that on the Internet to metrics, for comparison).  The baby was a giant and throughout its early years was a very large child.

And I've already told you, momma is thin (and pretty, but strained looking) with a log, thin (Audrey Hepburn comparison) neck, which detracted.

Thank you for sending me such kind expressions my way.  By the way, I didn't 'delete' anything . . . not through cropping (except in the camera here) or by way of comments above.

I'm not sure what your 'deletion' reference is to, but that often is the way in reading your comments -- half are pure prose and half are cryptography which makes them both fun and a challenge to read.

My best to you my kind friend.

john

John (Crosley)

P.S.  Let's hope that the large head is not due to hycrocephalus, as that is a huge problem in child development.  Momma already has shown her willingness to go to great lengths and even to the border of humiliation to ensure her boy child is properly fed, and to add a life threatening and horrific condition to that would be unthinkable.

jc

Haha, I'm getting older, nearly seventy now, in January. After my first comment, yes a bit harsh, I wanted to react another time. However the image didn't show up on the catwalk anymore. 'John wisely did delete him', I thought, not realising that the different route and the finding did mean baby and mother weren't deleted at all. :)

John, you are one of a kind and there are Crosleys and Crosleys, and the most of them I do like, or can accept an image in having an extra 'typical' personal demention, approach or view.

However, already by the 'selling' via the title (!) and at first glance, I thought this clearly a miner one, friendly said. And friendlier said: it's still the same. Cropping 3mm at the top will improve the meal, however it only isn't my taste, I even wouldn't recommend this meal to anybody. And John, as the photographer being joined in these moments and this result, it's sometimes not easy in understanding, seeing and tasting that. It's in fact YOUR child.

Fantastic shots dont need any explanation, neighther do the miner ones. Yes, hearing the adventures, the moments before, the settings, I do like that very much. However the sec reacting on an image has to be possible open and free, I mean at least on our age. Praising is great & fine, decent spitting sometimes needed. :)         

I respect your point of view.  Not every photo will resonate with every viewer, and if this does not resonate with you, that is why I put such photos up for critique -- to hear your truthful, unvarnished opinion, rather than 'great shot' and 'fantastic', or some such.

In other words, I respect your honesty, and would do nothing to denigrate or impair it.

For me, I like it, and there is more than one way to present the scene I saw.  A glance at Flickr.com will show another, slightly different view that I had wrestled with and might have been well to post because it shows more skirt.

But the critique forum is for learning, and critiques from learned members such as you are why I post, not to get encomiums or quarrels and quibbles, but to get honest critiques.  Your personal feelings are exactly what I look for.

Now as to the other verbiage, I have written extensively that for the top viewers and old time members here, the verbiage may be dispensed with.

Just don't read it.

You, in fact, don't have to be SOLD on a photo. You're a big boy and know what resonates with you.  I don't have to make suggestions or nudge y0u one way or the other, or help you uncover parts that you might overlook.

However, this service has a huge number of newbies -- new members who join to learn and appreciate what I spell out in these comments by feedback 9 or 10 to 1 by comments, e-mail and other feedback.

And those few who object, of course, just don't read!

Back stories are interesting for some; and for some some times, and not all times.  It may depend on the person, the photo, the time of day, how hungry one is, whether there is company around and a whole host of other factors . . . and the best I can say is the feedback is positive so I keep writing them, and it seems to help.  I'm now No. 25 (or so) in the most interesting list, surely not based on my photography alone -- for sure not on the photography skills alone as the company that high on the list is very rarified and my photography is far from the best for such a ranking.  It then must be the photos AND the words.

My objective, stated from almost day one, is to make my photos and commentary INTERESTING.  

If it  just gets boring, then I might as well do something else.

I am enthusiastic even now more than ten years later, even more so, I think, and I hope to convey that.

I think viewers can sense that in the way I approach my subjects, and also in the way and the gusto with which I approach my photography and commentaries.

Best to you, Olaf.

Read the commentaries or not; like the photos or not.

There's a permanent place for you here.

john

John (Crosley)

The ranking tells more about viewers than a still 'photographing' die hard..! I just partially know of the conditions you are facing while experiencing the reality of shooting people in streets, however I can imagine the impact it has. Together with the written testimonies it's your hard, but honourable way of being alive..! Yes, and cap off for that, and the results..!

Sometimes keeping silence is wise or just seeming the easiest, however, without an honest 'confrontation', if thought needed, one in fact devaluates the pleasant moments of great enthousiasm..! And, as always being honest :) when I discovered PN and started with 'street' they had to tell me where 'HCB' stood for. Months ago I coincidently did read the story of the blurred biker in the left upper corner on one of his famous thrillers: the poor biker had to pass twenty three times in finally getting caught on that spot. (All those negatives got found.) Haha, at the end many is/seems relative. For me, here, I'm pleased with JC, often followed by 'JC'. My very 'highest' ranker. :) 

Thank you for the kind compliments . . . . I have chosen this life, and I enjoy it thoroughly  . . . . the thrill of a good capture, not just a 'snapshot' but trying to make something that more approaches mastery no matter how many shots it takes if the subject is static.  

Nobody counts the attempts -- only the finished and final product.

Oh, please excuse my tardy reply.

I am most interested in your story about Henri Cartier-Bresson, for it is well known that he cut up his pre-war negatives, trimmed the blank celluloid from them, leaving the image only and stored them during World War II.

It seems unlikely that the Hyeres photo to which you refer, being I think pre-war, would have multiple negatives saved and 'found', so the story sounds like apocryphy, but I don't dismiss it just because it sounds doubtful.

I'd like a complete reference so I can check it out myself.  There is much legend about Henri Cartier-Bresson, especially about the jumper in the railway yard from the ladder in the puddle, some of it started by HCB himself (notice I first spell out his name before resorting to initials as I assume nothing on this service -- a favor to newbies).

So, please forward me however, in comments or e-mail, a reference to your 'story' as it flies in the face of all that I know.

Frankly it sounds believable.

However, Cartier-Bresson was known for waiting, and he might have just simply waited in a likely place for something, anything to pass by, as he did on the Greek Island with the little girl running between buildings (he noted that the other capture there was a Greek priest with a cylinder hat, just not so good).

But HCB had his puckish side and was not averse to creating his own legend (or falsehood?)

Let me share your source, please.

Thanks and thanks for the complements.

john

John (Crosley)

John, I did read that half a year ago, here on PN, when I did read a forum, I seldomly do. One or more photos of him got shown, and there was serious talk about it. Yes, in depth. :) Searching his name must deliver the thread. The source of the biker-story was a commenter. I do believe it, getting the biker on that spot was a hell of a job..!

I'm completely mystified by your comment Olaf,

Perhaps you can provide me some more clues, or write in your native Dutch and I can use Google Translate, as I cannot fathom the meaning of your comment with its references to this mysterious 'he'  and 'him'.

I need more to go on, my cyberfriend.

john

John (Crosley)

I was referring to the story about the 23 negatives with at the end the blurred biker on the right spot. I did find that on PN. Haha, if we Dutch would have kept New Amsterdam, even you was speaking Dutch now. Can you still find your camera knobs ?! 

Until I read that story myself and source the poster, I would tend to disbelieve it.

I have read nearly everything on Henri Cartier-Bresson's life that's been published and never run across any such story.  One Photo.net member even went wandering through his original negatives in Paris archives before he died and didn't report on any such thing.  He wrote the obituary when HCB died and we regarded this member as a sort of PN HCB authority.

If such evidence existed it would be widely reported.  Many such stories get started by people posting 'stories' inspired by 'what if' or just posting 'wishes' or acting like fact 'hackers' trying to start stories.

I'd be very careful before repeating that story without further verification -- attributing it to PN is a very bad source -- it's like saying 'I saw it on the Internet' as any one can become a PN member, not just those who pay dues.

Including a number who joined just to hack the site not too many years ago, and they were successful in hacking the site for quite some time, until there were new computer controls put in place.

So, beware in repeating or believing that story.  If you have a true source and can refer me to it, please do so so I can authenticate it independently. 

I do my research personally.

Thanks my friend.

john

John (Crosley)

John, I do like your attitute in preventing misinformation. I repeat your 'beware in repeating and believing that story'. However, the commenter did ad more, about assistents? Worth for further inspectation I would say. For me HCB keeps the same, in pratice I haven't any kind of 'idol' and besides, I hardly do know the lives of him and pioniers.

A few days ago I did see two magnificant B&W photos on TV. These from an old Jewish collection out of the former region from Odessa until the Northern coast of Lithuania. The Jews had to live there in the woods until 1920/30. Many years later, in an abandoned farmhouse, hidden under the seats of an old bench, the collection of 325 images got found. What a treasure John, in fact they did show a glimse of it.

For only seconds I saw the nicest blacks and whites, the suits, hads and beards of those men in their honest and sober dignity. Phoe, what a moment, so beautyfull, I even nearly started crying, no I never do. Phoe..!       

You might think that my great emphasis on carefulness and accuracy comes from some affinity to the site that is  borne from long association since I have been here 10+ years, but in fact, although I hardly contributed at all for six or eight months, I have been virtually unchanged in my attitudes since I first joined and started contributing.

That was a time of 'mate-rating' and 'cliques' - people inviting others to join then in 'uprating' their photo and 'downrating' competitors' photos to increase their scores.

I refused to play the game, announced as much, and as a consequence just didn't rate so no one could accuse me of rating or mate-rating.  It has worked, and my integrity has mostly gone unchallenged.  My word and the integrity of the site on which I place my photos is of great worth to me -- and PN has a good reputation, now the the Leica Forum (once a model of wrangling) is under control and their are computer software controls in place to reign in hackers.

I appreciate your personal stories and am most touched that you have decided to entrust me as recipient.  Most touched.

Thank you so much.

john

John (Crosley)