Ternate Islander

I think the expression and the color are very good. He engages me and seems like a natural. There's a very authentic feel to this. In general (not a rule, of course), I think close-ups like this work well when there's not much going on in the background. My feeling here is that the background, especially because it's so colorful, would provide a nice bit of story in which this man's tale could be told. By framing or cropping so closely, the background actually becomes a distraction to me. It feels like there was an attempt to just frame or crop it away, but it's too strong for that. Had you gone a little wider with the shot, I think the background would actually have added quite a bit here without taking away from what's a very solid and engaging portrait.

I like this portrait. You have captured the simple joy this gentleman with the glint in his eyes and smile on his face.

I agree with Amal - sometimes the background are so busy, they draw away from the expression on the person's face. He seems very joyful  - I hope he has a good life.  Nice work Jim.

Dear Fred, Amal, & Gail,

Thanks for your comments on this portrait. I went back and checked the original. There was virtually no cropping on this image. I now have this image in a folder with other images that I shot that day. As you will see, my street shots of people typically include more of the surroundings than this image does. My decision to zoom in on this one, as best as I recall, related to the images on his cap (I forget the proper Islamic name for such caps). I thought the figures on the front of the cap almost made it appear that he had a second set of eyes and that by zooming in, I would emphasize that element of what I was seeing. However, the snippets of rather undefined background, in retrospect, probably distract from the face and cap. Thus, to the extent that I was consciously thinking anything when I zoomed in, this is the only explanation I have to offer.  Thanks for giving me something to ponder more consciously when I engage in future street photography. 

Jim

Perhaps I did not word my critique right. I agreed with Amal - but I found that the background you did include, did not distract - and in fact - I totally understand why you zoomed in on this young man. I would have done the same. I think the designs on his 'cap' and the 'joyful expression' on his face and for me, reflected in his eyes were really all I was paying attention to when viewing.  I think it must be difficult at times when you  are visiting such busy locations to really hone in and fully concentrate on what attracted you to the individual in the first place. I think there is just enough background to reflect what kind of location he was in - but the 'up close and personal' view - is what I really appreciated in this portrait Jim :)