Two by Two

Twos is the theme of this photo 'Two by Two' taken in Dnipropetrovsk,

Ukraine at its boksal (train station) recently. Your ratings and critiques

are invited and most welcome. If you rate harshly or very critically,

please submit a helpful and constructive comment; please share your

superior photographic knowledge to help improve my photography.

Thanks! Enjoy! John

Interesting shot - doesn't immediately grab you, but once you study it a bit, it becomes very compelling.

This is a suble, not a 'hit-you-over-the-head' photo, for the reasons you enumerated.

 

For that reason, I didn't think it would do well in critique, but it deserved to be seen (I haven't looked at the results, but fear for the worst).

 

Thanks for the encouraging comment.

 

John (Crosley)

maybe this one is a bit difficult to read but - surprise - it's another good quotation of a famous double head shot, as you are probably aware of. So let me thank you for having shared it, ciao, Giuseppe

Please enlighten me:

 

'another good quotation of a famous double head shot, as you are probably aware'

 

I am not aware . . I haven't an inkling.

 

Can you enlighten me?

 

I know it is hard to read -- does it remind of a famous shot, or something I've posted previously? (that should show you my ignorance.)

 

I just couldn't get over these two women crossing heads (one dark haired and one white haired in front of the dark/white poster with two hands (dark/white) in diagonals to each other (women are in diagonals to each other,but they go one better and are 'crossed'.

 

This is one of my more 'subtle' ones -- hardly one that one would expect to do well on 'critique forum', is it?

 

So, let me know, OK? 'Quotation' seems to imply I am taking from a 'source' (but am not consciously).

 

Thanks ever so.

 

(with respect to a fellow 'street' shooter of high caliber)

 

(note the designation -- it's earned)

 

John (Crosley)

this shot of yours reminded me of the photo named "Washington 1958" by HCB. In this photo (that I can't upload for obvious reasons) you see two young colored workers in front of an iron rail by the river. The heads of the workers are pointing in opposite directions, as do their hands, so forming a sort of St Andrew's Cross [remember the chiasmus :-)))]. There is another shot of Mr. Bresson that I'd like to point out to you, but unfortunately I don't remember its name. Anyway I think that "quoting" is part of that unconscious process that is natural and welcome in those photographers (and artists in general) who know well their discipline. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and works, regards, Giuseppe

I don't recognize the image from the description. If, in coming days or months, you heppen to see it on the web and see its URL, could you kindly forward the URL to me, or post it here? I'd be most apreciative, but do NOT go to any trouble.

 

I'm very interested, as somehow, this photo, when I took it, seemed unconsciously very familiar -- like it was made to be taken by me. (They had other attitudes of their heads and shoulders but when they crossed like this, I knew I had it.)

 

Thanks for your astute observance.

 

And your extensive courtesies.

 

Are you a walking encyclopedia of H C-B photographs (I thought I was, but apparently not, and I'm separated from my volumes right now)?

 

John (Crosley)

let's say that during the years I have cumulated a certain visual/photographic bargain that is integrating part of my cultural bckgrnd. Well, I found the second photo reference: "HCB Scrapebook, n° 21 - La Halle aux Vins, view from La Gare d'Austerlitz, Paris 1932". In this interesting, funny photo, you will see a man with two heads. The idea behind these shots is always the same: one body, two heads. Thank you, rgds Giuseppe

I went looking in Google for the reference to the H C-B photo you mentioned, but all I found was YOUR MENTION TO ME IN THIS THREAD !!!!.

 

No photo, just your mention of it, less than 12 hours after you made it.

 

Beware, Big Brother is not the Bush Administration, it is Google, watching and listening to everything you do, and hope it remains a benevolent organization.

 

If not, it could be a fearful thing.

 

;~))

 

John (Crosley)

Original address. http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=Mod_ViewBox.ViewBoxZoom_VPage&VBID=2K1HZO4LGIGIG&IT=ImageZoom01&PN=2&STM=T&DTTM=Image&SP=Album&IID=2S5RYDWRJ8TW&SAKL=T&SGBT=T&DT=ImageImage ReferencePAR44917(HCB1932001 W0066AC)

Copyright Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum Photos

FRANCE. 1932 - MAGNUM/Henri Cartier-Bresson

 

It's incredible: 12 hours, and we are more popular than the old Magnum and all. Take care, Giuseppe

Thanks for the link.

 

I know the photo well, but it's not my favorite.

 

I guess I also missed the 'two-headed man' idea of the photo. Some things my mind just filters out. It did with that part of that photo.

 

I know such places in Paris but I cannot take successful photos and I think I do not appreciate Henri C-B's take so much, but i do get the idea of how it relates to my photo (and my photo suffers by comparison--too tightly cropped.

 

I just watched a U-Tube video of Charlie Rose interviewing Le Maitre for an hour -- wonderful, both how inarticulate H C-B was about his photography and intuitive.

 

'I'm an anarchist' he said (and a modest one, at least for television. For more explanation, he said, he'd only talk to the police about it. . . . .

 

Charlie Rose does interviews for 'public television' here in America (read that 'intellectual television' or at least 'semi-intellectual television' and is a pretty good interviewer with good respect and a high degree of general and highly specific knowledge to draw from.

 

Cartier-Bresson's take on Rose was also interesting -- they seemed to 'get along' and Cartier-Bresson many times made references to how he'd frame Rose 'if' he were taking Rose's portrait.

 

It's worth watching on U-Tube.com and easy to find as are a number of other C-B videos I haven't seen.

 

Thanks for the link.

 

(Much of what Cartier-Bresson said I was familiar with -- 'street photographers seem to have shared experience.

 

(There was one revelation --a photo of slain Gandhi's crowds taken from on high of the crowd including a crowded tree was NOT taken by Cartier-Bresson -- he gave his camera to someone else in another tree, passed it up by pole, and the other, anonymous person took the shot (never revealed before so far as I can tell,and it's a famous shot.

 

(Cartier-Bresson for the ''idea' and as 'director' but someone else as 'cameraman' -- a rarity, possibly never before or since. C-B skirted the subject.)

 

Thanks again.

 

Google didn't get into the site because it has passwords, I think. Wanna bet? But not open to the public also, unlike Photo.net.

 

John (Crosley)