The Dance

Shadows, Lights and motion. Teenagers dancing and playing around. I found that they are always going and having a camera while they are at paly is good. I was lucky. The light plays with them as they play while I watch with the camera. My daughter is on the right and her best friend is on the left. A treasured picture for both of us.


Comment or critique please, let me know what you think about the shadow and the light.

I like what you're going for here. There's a lot of movement and expression. It feels like counterpoint. I love the way the arms are so suggestive in coming together like that. My favorite part is the open eye. That seems like the most Japanese part to me. Very bold and expressive. While I do see this as high contrast, and I think you chose a really great composition and subject to do that way, I don't see that much similarity to the style I'm working on or talking about. And that's not meant as a put down of what you're doing, just as a distinction worth talking about, I think. Notice how Hosoe seems to paint with light. Look at the incredible detail in the arms (with the veins). Not just the way the veins pop, but the way light and dark are kind of brushed up against each other, back and forth, creating depth and texture, detail right there in the skin. You can almost feel the lighting as being embedded in the skin. Something I worked very hard on, because it seemed like a type of approach he was taking also, was keeping the highlights from glistening (as they often do in high contrast work). The way the highlights in your hair shine strike me as digital.

Just...wow.

I didn't notice it till you said that.

 

I didn't (on purpose) tone down her hair on the left. I did however make it darker because it was a bit to light. The highlights are all exactly as it was taken. All the lights are from the kitchen. We, none of us can figure out why this picture came out dark.

 

I didn't really think about how shiny her hair was till you said something. hmmm I don't know if I would want to change it since it is almost like a YING YANG affect.

 

My favorite part is also that EYE!

Nice work Micki... See you and that Nikon are getting along fine....

YES, and my daughter will now let me take pictures of her. :)

Micky, I like the high contrast, light and the position of both in the frame, I like the eye looking to the camera. Somehow I think that the upper hand does not add to the composition even you have called it dance. Their two faces expression is strong enough.I hope you don't mind showing my way of thinking here, and you don't have to agree of course...

Each way of seeing this image has its own validity and interestingly, for me, makes it two very different images. Pnina's is more direct, more static, more confrontational. Including the arms, I think, makes it softer and provides more motion. I tend to prefer Micki's but that's just a matter of taste. The important thing to me is how much impact a change like that has.

BUT, however, I have to remember that they are 14 AND that I think that picture makes it a bit suggestive. Not that it is bad to do. I just thought that keeping the arms up kept it in the contexed of the dance. My daughter, however, liked it better without the arm. So, we were at a struggle.

 

I liked the lines of the arm and yet I liked it without so you hit me with something I knew someone would probably bring up.

 

It was a hard decision.

 

I did also crop both girls seperate and they make a wonderful picture alone by themselves but AUDREY on the left is a great alone picture much more than my daughter on the right.

 

Thank you so much for both you and FRED for your opinions on this. It was a struggle on this decision.

The fun and the friendship definatley shining through!

Well here we have started the CG.... Micky, it does not have to be a struggle... it is a different approach, more a portrait like( well it needs a new name too...;-)). For me their faces are strong enough, for Fred it is softer with the hand. I think that even a professional critique, is at the end a personal " cup of tea....( I have experienced that too). So it is good to be open to different points of view, thats all what critique is. You can choose one that you like, or say I like both versions, each has its own merit..

I see the ALMOST Yin & Yang effect here Micki. Not exactly that because they are not opposites per se, but two sides of dance none the less. Audrey is lost in the passion of the dance and Torrey is projecting the joy of it directly to the viewer. This week, I've seen several wonderful photos and this is no exception! LOVE IT! (Saw yours, Fred. Just haven't had time to really take it in!)

 

Pninas edit is great but is far to suggestive, in my opinion, for two young ladies this age. However, I think it would be first class, had they been older.

 

I'm of the opinion that one of the things that makes SOME great photos great, is that there are so many ways you could edit it and it changes but still looks great with each edit. I feel that this is one of thoes. Some may not agree with me but in my mind I saw another version of this, so I attached it. (I know...you never thought you'd see the day!)

 

Bottom line here, Micki...I truly think that this is one of your best photos. It will stay in my mind and I hope that some day I produce something in a similar style!

 

~Anthony

Micki, this has come out really well. For me, the composition should stay a it is - the arm works well and the "story" comes through well. I'd be interested know how the image came out like this from point of view of the way the light falls off so quickly - it works well, a bit like when I used a small halogen reading lamp for that picture I took when we were going on about PNET ratings a few weeks ago.

 

I understand where Fred is coming from when he refers to the hair highlights looking "digital" - also the highlights on the faces seem a little sharp. I've certainly no problem with the highlights and I would probably keep as they are, but I can imagine that if the edges of them were smoothed slightly it would give a slightly less harsh feel while still maintaining the high contrast. They could be maybe smoothed a bit - blended in, smudged, or whatever, almost like in a charcoal drawing.

 

Top stuff - night night for now - it's even later now than it was when I posted on Fred's photograph!

 

Pete

Anythony, I am posting this origional without ANY sharpness for you. I forgot how smooth her hair was because after seeing what YOU did your's rocks. YEP! I'm just glad you didn't add more fingers (almost didn't want to look~lol).

 

I loved what you did. I loved the soft look! LOVED it totally. I was trying to go for a more SHARP look and then I saw how beautiful the softness was.

 

Pete, This was all taken by a LIGHT above. THe light was two kitchen lights. It was very weird how it came out and if you want I can send you the color version. This one I just attached is the B&W version with a bit more contrast and that is it. No sharpening.

Mickey , I do like this one very much. On an emotional level it is tender and speaks volumes about the friendship of the two girls. They look happy but in a serene rather than exuberant fashion. Like ballet as apposed to disco. The expression on your daughters face is well captured here eye is looking straight into the camera, something I often do not like in a portrait, but it works well here. The arms are integral to the composition for me, the natural flow from the left hand girls shoulder carrying through and out of the frame at top defines her personal space in the frame. The single source light from above give good definition and adds a sense of drama. The high contrast treatment enforces what the lighting sets out to accomplish. I do feel this has gone a bit farther than was needed to get the effect. As Fred mentioned the highlights in the hair are a bit over the top and to me give a feeling that the image has clearly been manipulated. I also have a problem with the blown highlight on the left hand girls forehead. In another instance I may have found it to be OK, although I do have an aversion to skin tones, particularly on the face, being blown this much. The contrast and skin tone on your daughters face looks perfect , if the other face could be rendered closer to this ideal I feel the image would benefit. I realize that being closer to the light source caused the extra exposure. Micki you have much more expertise with post production than I and you have the original file ( was this shot in RAW? )so would know how much more detail was there in the highlight to start with. I would also give some consideration to cloning out the stray hairs on the shoulder of the upper figure. Of course completely disagreeing with my above comments and changing nothing about this image, would still leave you with a powerful and well executed shot. One I am sure you, your daughter and her friend will cherish in the years to come.

 

Until next time your friend

 

Gord

Hi Micki, you posted while I was typing the above. I would have to say I like your daughter more in the first rendition and her friend better in the second one.

I can easily leave Audrey on the left like she is and make Torrey mmy daughter like she is. Rather SPLIT the two as to say and keep them yet the same. Making the the happy medium which is the way I will probably do them in the end for my REAL portfolio. MY BIG size (as you say). I will work on doing one that has Audrew (left) not so harsh and Torrey a bit moresoft to but still sharper so her eye will stand out and yes, get those silly hairs away. That would be easy.

 

The more I work and look at this picture it is not the post processing that makes this picture it is the light and the picture itself. I just have to get it right.

 

The "GIRLS" just love it regardless. the love the color version right out of the camera. We all went "COOOOL" WOW! That is my favorite.

 

 

Serious and playful at the same time. Very effective.

Beautiful Micki. I too like your version better... again, matter of taste. I am torn between yours and Anthony's though. I really like what he did with it.

A fine and dynamic and delightful shot! Regards...

Well done Micky my friend.

Micki, a stunning image beautifully composed and handled. For me the strong points are the bright eye on the right and light on their skin and her hair. I love the poses and the dynamic feel to this. I wonder if the contrast is just a smidge too strong - matter of taste. Superb!

I too like the less sharpened version but I like the sharpness of your daughter's eye. I would have to keep it slightly more sharp than the soft version.

 

I was fascinated reading the critiques. I usually try not to read other's critiques before I form my own thoughts. I feel reading them tends to spoil my own original thoughts. However, knowing that the lighting is from two kitchen lights makes this even more special. The lights create real interest in their faces & arms. I particularly like the little bits of light on their necks & the shoulder of your daughter's friend.

 

The title is wonderful & is all the explanation one really needs to see that this is 2 young girls having fun :) Well captured :)

 

Micki,

 

I agree this is one of your best. It reminds me, in a way, of those actor's masks. The contrast, tones, deep shadows are just perfect.

 

The composition is outstanding; the strong diagonals, and the perpendicular aspect of their faces (relative to each other), the difference in their expressions... they blend together in a very powerful way. The emotional impact is very strong and difficult to put into words.

 

 

 

 

Micki this is wonderful. The feeling from the hair, the sparkle in the eyes and the different facial tones from the high contrast light...