J'Ai Quatre-vingt Sept Ans (I am 87 Years Old)

This French woman, captured on the street, proudly announces 'j'ai

soixante dix-sept ans' (I am eighty-seven years old). This is a

crop from a slightly larger photo, solely for compositional

purposes. Please let me know what you think. Your ratings and

critiques are invited and most welcome. (If you rate harshly and/or

very critically, please submit a helpful and constructive

comment/Please share your superior knowledge to help improve my

photography). Thanks! Enjoy! John

Lovely lady. I wish her profile was in focus. My eyes travel to the right to see her facial features and then I get disappointed by the softness of the edge.

Might improve by desaturating.

I had a problem with the 70~200 V.R. E.D. lens knowing when to use maximum aperture at 200 mm max focal length on my D2X Nikon or not and this was max aperture -- here used to throw the background completely out of focus, as it was very distracting.

 

But the depth of field was extremely narrow as you can see. This is a snap judgment which one never gets to repeat, and I've decided that for future 'street' portraits I'll be using f 3.5 max and more like f4.5 and f 5.6 to avoid problems just like you pointed out. Even a 'street portrait' at 200 mm with a 1-1/2 'crop factor' of a digital Nikon D2X requires a larger depth of field from a larger aperture, I think, unless the light is veeery low.

 

Your comment was right on and to the point.

(I accept it whole-heartedly)

 

;~))

 

John

I disagree, with her delicate skin about a choice of 'desaturating' as it would have washed out her skin to nothingness and that is the heart of this photo. This is exactly as my camera recorded it, and it shows her age and her wrinkles, but desaturation would have shown none of that. I don't believe in de-aging old people. New science shows their bones shrink slightly (head bones included) accounting in part for excess facial flesh, and hence wrinkles.

 

I could have selectively desaturated, but I don't think that's what you're driving at. In fact, I used the heavy colors to offset using a triangle to emphasize her face, for what to me was an appealing effect, better for a little cropping.

 

I do appreciate your point of view, as I did try it, but I rejected it when I saw the result. Keep on making suggestions, please.

 

John ;~))

 

 

Errata: due to a problem with my notes -- and perhaps my head -- this woman told me (in a soft voice) 'J'ai quatre-vingts sept ans': I am eighty-seven years old, not the age indicated above. I'm surprised no French speaker has caught me on that.

 

Apologies to the membership for the error.

 

John

About the issue of 'sharpness' in this photo: Many 'portrait' lenses are noted for their 'lack of sharpness' -- because it's deemed to be more flattering that they not be sharp in all respects.

 

Portrait photographers often 'soften' images to suit their customers. I once sat for a portrait and the photographer used a 'sharp' lens on a larger format and I saw all the bags under my eyes and even spotted a blackhead (quelle horreure!!!!) It needed to be a little less 'sharp' -- hence the convention in portraits is to use less sharpness.

 

Nevertheless, this is a 'street' portrait, and as such different expectations might govern.

 

And, the weave in her hat and the wrinkles in her face might make a different expectation. I may fiddle around with 'edge sharpness" command in PhotoShop to see if I can get a more pleasing rendition. Thanks for your help.

 

John (Crosley)

I am flattered that you took my humble opinion seriously. I completely understand how uncalculated the street photography is by its nature. If I were to try sharpen this image, I would select only the soft area excluding the eye and cheek, and apply edge sharpening without touching the rest.

 

On your second comment: I have been working on formal portraits lately. Usually I find myself in a hard position especially when working with older people. While I try to capture their true charasterictics with all the wrinkles and imperfections, at the same time, I find myself in a position to please them by downplaying these features. I wonder if there is a happy medium that satisfies both parties. It is not often that my model and I agree on which image is the best.

You're obviously a professional, and I'm only a rank amateur, (with serious aspirations), so anything you write, I do take seriously.

 

I was having trouble that day with low light and focusing problems and this one was the only one of five that was in acceptable focus. The 70~200 advertises closer close-up focus than I am able to achieve. I may take it up with Nikon or re-read the literature (always a good idea, since it will be in metric, or course, but I did make allowances).

 

She's a pretty good looking old broad, ain't she?

 

John

I seriously hope that your last comment wasn't sarcastic, because I am still a student at a local community college and far from being a professional yet. I enjoy your work and study your images often. Street photography is something I enjoy very much but cannot go close because of my shyness. Regards.

One cannot know from correspondence what level of professionalism (or not) a photographer has, but your comments show great intelligence. (no sarcasm).

 

As to shyness and 'street photography' just get a longer lens or start with a parade or political demonstration and wade in, photographing the parde from the front, walking in and out of the participants and they'll think you're from a newspaper (and so will you by the time you're done). Same for a political demonstration/gathering. Those are two good places to 'cut your teeth' for shyness about taking photographs. Take as many as you can with friends in groups so they take your presence for granted as 'the guy who takes photographs' and understand that you'll take photographs and you'll lose your self-consciousness (if it's in your blood).

 

Hope that helps.

 

Kind regards,

 

John

Nice photo John, I like the expression on her face. I hadnt seen this photo yet, its one of my favourite portraits.

What a nice compliment.

 

I actually cropped this from a larger photo to get the geometry of the framing the way I wanted it, but the larger photo had the same geometry with more 'air' around it as I had the idea but just wasn't close enough.

 

Other photos were good and interesting, but I had difficulty making a 'focus point' on her face and so had 'focus' problems that ruined the other photos -- tant pis (so much the worse in French).

 

Thanks for the nice comment.

 

John

Somehow this photo does something to me, you just took it at the right moment.

(Even if focus wasnt that good, to me its more

the expression on someone's face. I have seen here on PN the most perfect portraits, that doesnt say much to me. But than again i am an amateur :)

I take some care to post photos that 'appeal' to me as a one-time long-ago photo editor (for Associated Press). It was my job then (and I was chosen for that job) to choose photos that would be published and to know what was 'interesting' to others, as well as what 'illustrated' stories.

 

I was singularly 'unqualified' in that I had no training, but I was a photographer and hired as such by AP, though they changed me immediately into a writer as there was then no photographer's slot -- though I had first pick when one opened. But I was successful as a writer/editor and a photographer who's disabled is out of work, but a writer can write and be blind or lame and still make a living (sometimes), so I made a practical choice. Also, I hated sports photography and much of AP photography was going to 'games' every summer night and fall weekend day -- baseball and football, then weekdays and weekends during basketball season -- how many baketball 'jam' shots can you take photos of?

 

I discontinued my photography soon after the AP, as I married and it didn't fit into married life -- being married to the woman I married and photography didn't 'work' together, plus I needed glasses and didn't know how to use 'diopter' lenses, or even that they existed.

 

And, Henri Cartier-Bresson's work was exhibited, I saw it, and it took the wind out of my sails (but he was showing it to finance his retirement, which I DID NOT KNOW or I might have reconsidered.)

 

I found some others of hers that are in focus last night that also are endearing -- she's just an endearing woman, I think and the photo just 'captured' her.

 

I'm glad this photo 'captured' your heart.

 

Ellen: I'm an amateur, too (with aspirations).

 

John (Crosley)

Thanks for your reply John; I always thought

you have a talent in writing! (wish i had that too, but i can talk well, or is it chat?)

Keep writing and taking photo's......use your talents well as we say here :)

Greetings Ellen.