Zt 94

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In some circles cigarettes have taken on a connotation of self destruction. They have been removed from advertising in many countries(watch Formula 1 racing?). Tobacco companies now advertize in the cinema. I find them to be a detraction from an otherwise wonderful photo.

Hy Steve. That's an interesting comment, but does it mean that we should never photograph something that we don't like or find its presence distracting? I saw a house burning down the other day, fire engines ... the whole bazaar, I hate that, but what a wonderful photo opportunity nevertheless. Unfortunately I did not have my camera .... thanks for pasing by .. and I don't smoke by the way .. :-)

Longing for a cigarette... And a logo in left-top corner. Good work.

Interesting shot overall as usual, but I can't believe YOU didn't have your camera with you at the fire (LOL)...

Subtle and clever bw composition, she is in the middle of the diffuse light spot, beyond her sexy figure... the darkness, even a common, bit disordered place. She at the beginning of the bar, she and her champagne cup (classic Peri...), a "negligee" body language, and her cigarette (btw, this is a photography community, not a Health Care branch, so, never mind). Captivating, made of significant details and a refined tachnique.

Very good pose reminiscent of a Bogart movie.

Stronger image than other one (with the blue/purple tint).

Nice lighting and focus on the model.

I wish more of the left leg was inside of frame and more negative space on the left side.

 

Cheers

 

Wolf

I think this beats the 'blue tint' variation hands down; what makes this one work for me is the extra contrast. I I'd have preferred to cut that leg off near the boot top or (my preference close the shot with the complete boot within the frame. That said, I'm no expert and your portfolio speaks for itself. Cheers

I haven't commented on much of your work lately, but I'll comment on this one.

There are a couple of things I like about this. I like it that the kitchen area isn't as brightly lighted here as in some of your other shots made in this area. That contributes to the somewhat noir feeling. I also like her seeming ambivalence to the camera, distancing herself from you, the camera, and the viewer.

The cigarette. It doesn't bother me one bit. People smoke. And in this instance, it's another contributing factor of mood/atmosphere.

I like her outfit, and wouldn't mind seeing you bring up the contrast a bit between it and the counter behind her...bump up the midtones/whites of the counter just a bit...the outfit's fine as it is.

I have to agree with Clive about cropping to the top of the left boot. I know you're fairly laissez-faire about whether or not you get all of a foot or hand in a shot, but in this case, I want to see all of the boot or none at all.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that I see your tradmark champagne flute on the counter, and the pack of cigarettes is a nice touch.

Overall, I like it,think it's a strong image, and it's one of your better recent black and whites.

Hey, I'm glad to receive this response. Strangely, I have just been contacted again this morning by the model who says she wants to fly over and do some more ... she's such a gorgeous personality.

 

 

Many thanks for the very interesting and detailed comments above. I really appreciate that, it's why I post my photos. There will always be some one that comes along and says that one does not like this or that remark of his because he feels that his comment is not appreciated, but that is nonsense. Maybe one should not waste any time replying to these and just let it ride. I have noticed also that it is nearly always those critiques that are the most severe in their analysis that do not accept any answer to their comments. Paradoxical, no?

 

With regards to the photo above, I agree with all the remarks made above one by one, but I am still not convinced that a photo must balance perfectly, be symmetrical and all the rest, in order to have the required impact. I often wonder in fact, rather like a young lady with an imperfect nose, if it is not this special feature or two that give an image it's personality. So often I look at the work of one of the really great artists and ask myself, why did he leave this or that, is it intention or neglect? I wonder very often if they could answer. Frankly, I'm not certain that they can or would even want to.

 

I did have more space to the left and would probably favour just a little more myself, but I got rid of it because of a door and a rather obnoxious door handle sticking out. As for the left boot, yes I saw that, and certainly I agree with Jim that it may improve the image if I clipped it a little just there. But why did I leave it then? Maybe I'm stubborn or maybe I just like something that sometimes looks a little raw.

 

Oh, just one thing more Jim, my photos sometimes are more of an essay that an attempt at portraiture, which is why I very often like to leave the background in evidence. If you remove it or render it unimportant, then you are are left with the model devoid of the context in which she is taken. It works brilliantly with your style of photo, unique in its genre, but it's not really what I am always after. Many thanks again, I love being forced to question myself. Thank you.

 

Perfect B&W, model, composition and pose,I love it.

 

Alberto

this one is great . I love the perspective and the gradient of light and the two small lights at the background . The low angel of shooting is very good so is her posing

John,

 

Been offline for a while, and what an incredibly wonderful surprise to see your new postings; a few comments:

This is a very strong, very candid, film noire moment, from the hip, and the so-called flaws (ie, the not-too-perp right side of the counter; the unbalanced composition, the off-handed cropping, etc.) re-enforce the power of the effect. Sexy, languorous, reflective, this image is the antithesis of the dispassionate, staged portrait. The casual nudity, the way her right heel digs into her thigh, the soft concave bend of her right wrist: Remarkable chapters in the unwinding story of the interaction between the artist and his model. She is totally relaxed and trusting, and if another shot is needed, well then...

 

Bravo. A 7/7 from me.

 

Glenwood

Thank you Glenwood, as I already said, you bring new light to my pictures and give them added charm. This is of course a wonderful model, unique in her genre. Is she acting, is she herself, I think it's probably a little of the two.

 

Excellent pose, light and grey tones. I feel like I am in the the opposite chair drinking my wine.

Thanks Michael, that's where I was!

This is one of your best B&W in my opinion...

I love women smoking a cigarette, specially in high level photographs.

 

It's also a zillion times more attractive than the millions of smoking trucks and cars on the highways and in our cities.