bens

Attractive image, interesting discussion. I want to chime in on the photoshopping points.

 

Daniel, I often manipulate tones and contrast in photoshop on digital images, for better or for worse. After examining works by people like Ansel Adams, I realized such manipulations have gone on for a long time -- the fact that I do it in photoshop rather than a darkroom seems irrelevant to me. I'm surprised that you would not consider manipulating light in a photograph via photoshop, and imply that to do so would be to "fake it." Would you feel the same way dodging and burning in the darkroom?

 

Having said this, sometimes one can push the issue too far, whether in a darkroom or photoshop, so as to "fake" it, I agree with that, and have done it myself at times, deliberately and not. Also, whether or not its effective to manipulate is a different story.

 

I don't agree, however, that pulling detail out of dark areas necessarily flattens out a picture. I don't think there's any question that some DSLRs (for example, mine, a Canon 10D) have somewhat limited dynamic range. I can distinctly recall taking certain photos and noticing that detail that was apparent to my naked eye was not apparent in the digital image and needed to be "pulled out" in photoshop to achieve the representation of the "reality" I was seeking to display.

 

Having said all this, I like your image as is, and don't particularly feel a need to see detail in the shadow areas. My only minor issue was to at first want his face brightened slightly to better balance the brightness of the wall on the upper right, which is where my eye was pulled almost immediately. But after looking for a time, I'm not so sure it would do very much, and might negatively affect the mood. Its the kind of thing I would attempt in photoshop and as likely as not reject in the end.

 

Also, hats off to you, Daniel, for your participation in this discussion. Thanks for speaking candidly about your work and approach. I offer you these thoughts in the same vein.

Hi Marco,

 

If I were asked to select one photo that stands for the work you have posted here, I would pick this one. It brings together your love of reflections, Mel, and black and white photography, with a wink to each, and displays your ample playfulness (such as framing Mel at least 4X, within the lens frame, the store window frame, the bench frame, and the cell phone users' frame). And there is a great deal that guides our eyes to Mel -- the reflected stairs, the filling of the frame on the right, the framing of her between cell phone users. There's the cheerful social atmosphere, with Mel, with the people enjoying a meal in the background. And there's the intriguing torso and hands of someone close to the window --

 

It is great fun to sit in front of it and reflect on these things, it deepens the photo's meaning significantly.

 

Hope you are well. Yes, I am not around that much, but I don't intend to disappear altogether. Its too enjoyable to share such thoughts with you.

 

Take care,

 

Ben

Jacqueline, thanks for your kind words on my photos. I've gone through some of the same journey re trying to figure out black and white tones and settled some on an approach that works for me (being the only person I need to please as a hobbyist). If you look at a photo in the people folder of my portfolio called "cigar break" (hand holding cigar in front of a mouth), there's a long summary of the approaches I use in photoshop. Don't know if I am "right" or "wrong", just some ideas you might find interesting, given that digital images from your camera have a limited tonal range (as with most digital slrs) and need sometimes to be enhanced in post-rocessing. Thanks again for your visit.

Roger, the check is in the mail . . . thanks for the extraordinary compliment. Please give my best to Linda. Go Red Sox!

Don't you dare delete this! Its my favorite internet love story . . . its my only internet love story . . . one of a kind met one of a kind and became one of a kind . . . kind of won(one?)-derful, I think.

the wonderful, light-hearted, soulful feeling of your and Marco's photos remind me of why i picked up a camera. hope you are well, i'm not around much these days, but wanted to say hi. glad to see your vibrant portfolio again. best to you, ben

i enjoy this very much, like the clarity, the mix of tones, the light in her eyes, the peaceful resolute expression, the off centered place where my eyes meet hers. the lines created by the perspective are a little dizzying; there are pluses and minuses to that. i'm not around much marco, but its a delight to stop by and see this. Hope all is well.

The "eyes" have it -- very fine capture, her eyes so well lit make this special. I also like that she's looking off somewhere intently, allowing us to speculate more vividly about what she is looking at. The right background looks a little rough in spots to me, you might consider smoothing it out a little bit.

Makes me proud to own a camera. Excellent portrait of a mature man. Your skill at lighting, your isolation of the subject, the poignant expression he has provided, have resulted in a portrait that gives the man his dignity without concealing the signs of age that we all ultimately must carry.

Hi Bill, I think the composition is well done and the moment a nice candid moment, the clarity is very good -- but the highlights are a little hot. its the kind of shot that I would suggest trying in some version of black and white. the color doesn't add anything special, and black and white will enable you to play a bit more with the tones, both light and dark.

this is made for color, just as you have it here. its a well done, fun shot -- the clarity, isolation of the subject matter and use of the horizon are very nicely done, and the lines (particularly the sweep of the rust from out of the frame to the right and up, leading to the red tailight, which is nicely off centered) and varied colors (including the red white and blue theme for an old american car) make it very entertaining. that an old car is actually good looking in its decline adds a dimension also that speaks to guys like me who still walk straight, but with our middle-aged aches and pains. right on Barry.

great catch. just another look to think about . . .

Prefer the black and white because the focus for me is the expression of the woman on the right. Its a well-executed candid with a lovely spirit memorialized.

very evocative scene mel, glad you shared this one. the composition and crop works beautifully to tell a story, and the placement of the teacher and his hand writing across the paper that means so much to the boys is terrific -- nicely off centered. I agree that the colors are a little flat, but also, this is just the kind of image I like to play with in other tones. By going grayscale, you can subtedly shade and manipulate tones more than in color to emphasize what's important in the scene (here, i think the teacher and boy to his right are the emotional center) and, given the old world feel of this, I also suggest considering some sort of tint that suggests an older photo. I took a shot at it to give you some ideas. I also sharpened the people some.

attractive mood, similar to a renaissance painting, and a sweet, animated expression well captured. appears to be a bit of a halo around the head, suggesting some photoshopping, might want to work on that a bit.

hi dusan, i think this is a very clever candid, and like very much that you have something interesting in the foreground and background - I wish the horse's head were a little more to the right of the man, but you take what you can get in these moments. I like that the head is turned toward the man, establishing a relationship between the two.

just sent an email to you with the subject line of "test". let me know if you got it.

p., i just got your last email message, which made me realize there's something wrong with your email address or email cuz i have answered all your emails and your latest message indicates that you have not gotten any of them! i'll try to send one again, but that's what's been the problem i think.

this is really lovely, elegant, lonely, cold -- mission accomplished!

really great colors and an attractive composition that draws the eye to the center.

beautiful, really a transendant shot, congratulations.

just doesn't do anything for me, don't like the point of view, can't see anyone's face or body to get a sense of some emotion, sorry to say.

joza! like this a lot, a real person, unadorned by any fake smile, seen close up but not too close. looks like you added a guassian blur to the shirt, etc., perhaps a little less would not be as obvious?

focus seems a little off, better on the jacket than on the face, when i'd prefer the opposite.

very enjoyable candid, the expressions are warm and entertaining.