R.

i am not so very sure but it seems to me as if the left eye, the right one on the photo, is out of focus.

to top it off there is this huge massive hand.

in combination with this crop it reminds me of some random floating head looking grumpy.

maybe one of those old renesaince paintings beheaded bad guys.

if you like a crop like this, i would definitely try to bring both eyes or the left one into focus.

you view images from left to right, wetsern culture, and you will drift off once you reach the left eye as it seems not to be in focus. bouncing back between the hand and the right eye gets you confused and you are not concerned by this person's look or whatsoever.

so i would like to see the other eye in focus, or if possible both.

if you like tight crops like this

get rid of the hand there.

and give him a bit more room to his shoulders.

for more information try to get your hands on some literature about "headroom" in films

really will help you
 understand when to put something in a way most ppl will get it. well, some will :)

This is a great portrait! I love the tight crop and choice of black and white. The expression on his face is priceless too. 7/7. This is perfect!

if you do not want to hear the opinion of others, or cannot stand it without lashing out at them, why ask for it in the first place.

jeez dude, at least explain yourself.

Hi Norbert, hi Benjamin! Thanks for stopping and commenting.

Norbert: I've been uploading and submitting photos on P.N. since 2003.

I guess I've uploaded more than 500 pics.

I know, more or less, what I'm going after when I submit a photo for critiques and for ratings.

I know that P.N. has all kind photographers between its subscribers, with their skills, culture, sensitivity, intelligence and that I will randomly meet them when I ask for critiques and opinions.

Everybody is entitled to write what she/he thinks when asked in the critique forum. Obviously. That's true for you, but also for me. I hope.

Coming to your critiques to my pic they don't make too much sense to me. But I admit its a very personal point of view. No harm anyway.

Speaking about your suggestions I don't even consider to start a culture discussion on portraiture photography on these basis. It isn't even the place.

That's it.

hi there

i too started uploading to pn in 2003. and yeah i am a bit younger than you..i am old now too..since then i have published in several magazines like nat.geo. and others, ranging from art to news.

i do not claim to be perfect and my opinion is always valid, but it is honest. the only thing that counts, as far as i am concerned.

so when i am writing something to an image i am telling what i think, nothing more and nothing less.

i then tell people, in this case you, what i think and what i would have done differently and why.

i am not going to tell you, hey that is an awesome or shitty image, because that is not critique..thats just some random comment noone needs.

it is totally fine with me, if you do not agree with my input or it does not make sense to you, as you said.

the only thing where you got me wrong, and that may be my fault as i am not very good with words..i make pictures for a living..is the culture thing.

i was reffering to the way one reads an image, not the cultural background on portrait photography which totally is a diferent thing.

still, i am very curious why you would think that the path of a professional photographer is something you do not think is the right way to go, well at least for you, in your opinion, judging from your comment on my selfportait showing me in my dayjob..and yeah..long term journalistic work does not pay the bills right away when you dive into it..

have a good one

cheers