rsalguero

I really enjoy the "color sense" exhibited in your photos. Not quite "true" and yet not "hyper-realistic" either. You are in some sort of netherland. Enjoyed your posts.

No, this shot wasn't staged - at least not in the sense that I directed the pose. I spent time in a small village in Portugal and the villagers became accustomed to my presence enough that I gained some invisibility. Obiously the fellow in this picture "sees" me while he is drinking his wine. I think the eye contact is what

gives the photo strength. Thanks very much for your comments.

Have you noticed how museums have recently evolved into artful architectual statements? I

loved the design of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Comments and ratings

appreciated.

Pat, nice capture. Some snowfall you get out your way! Like the high contrast "grit." I can't help but wonder if a stronger composition could be realized with a slight rotation and a stronger crop. I'm thinking about at .5 clockwise rotation to level the shed roofline, minimize the tilt on the left side snow horizon and straighten the cross upright member. Then, a crop off the top to about midway between the "snow pillows" on the cross's horizontal member. What I think would result is a reinforcement of the angel's face with some nice leading directionals. Things always look different when you don't have a print to compare to the online image. Give it a thought. Very nice.

Latest in an old Mexico series. All responses welcomed.

Like Laura N., I would say that the approach taken yield this image creates an interesting "control" ambiguity. When I saw the thumbnail my first thought was that this was a shot of someone launching one of those rip-cord powered toy whirlybirds. Although I was mistaken, the same dynamics are at work. Men and their toys.

This negative gave me some trouble since it was quite dense. Without a digital darkroom it

would have been difficult for me to get the result posted. How does appeal?

The compositions in your portfolio are very bold and innovative. I enjoyed my self tour.

 

This image is captivating and I particularly like the use of "negative space" as I can read a world into it. Your solitary and camera direct eye is the steady and frank gaze of the world of "adults" and is nicely counterpointed by the innocent demeanor of your daughter's downcast gaze. The arrangement of each person's hair (pulled back and styled; natural and carefree) reinforces the adult/child difference. The "halo" effect should perhaps be toned down as you have effectively told your story without the need of the added spotlight. Very impressive.

This boy's "blankie" seems softer than mine ever was. Thoughts and comments always

appreciated.

Thanks Vickie. I envy your chance to photograph Cuba. What a dream destination. I wanted to go last year but the restrictions and licensing requirements were a pain. I'd only want to go with absolute freedom instead of being tied a "cultural group" or something. Now, even cultural groups are problematic.

 

Vishal: You may be right about the image being a bit dark. I'm having a problem with a brightness shift when I post to PN. It looks great on my Photoshop image and after uploading I find I have to make an adjustment. I think I had to reduce the brightness by 20% to get something similar on PN this time. I'm working on the issue. I think it's related to using PS 5 in "classic mode" on a Mac with an OS Panther operating system. Thanks for your comments.

Here's a little girl from a struggling family in Mexico whose lopsided grin captivated

me some time back. In my experience, it's not the sort of image that elicits much

comment on PN, but here goes anyway. Is the wary smile enough to give the image

"soul?"

Awesome image. The color choice and contrast are superb. Wonderful composition.

Thanks for the comments guys... I am working hard at ignoring the tongue. The fact is that few would likely focus on it. As my brother told me, "it's fine but now that you see it you'll always be aware of it."

 

I guess it's like the well known young woman/hag optical illusion. You see it only one way until the alternative is pointed out - then it's hard to miss.

Thanks for your cautionary note Larry. I haven't looked at this image in awhile, and you know what? The dapples don't really bother me anymore. My brain gets dappled sometimes. Rick

Any comments welcomed.

Fabrice, thanks for your comments on my posting in the last few minutes. Funny enough, I saw this image come up at the same time and found it very arresting. The tonal range accolades are all yours. Nice approach to lighting the subject. While I wasn't confused for a moment on the subject, viewed with a certain removal, it could almost be a glowing bicuspid! Rick

OK, here's my dilemma. I like this shot but there's one thing troubling me. The image

is faithful to what I witnessed but I am now wondering if the water highlight at the

end of the pig's snout is too districting. It seems unfortunate to me because it gives

him an anteater tongue - accentuated by the line of his watermark. Am I over

analysing this? I am usually reluctant to "clone out" elements but....

Without seeing the subject's face it would be difficult to realize that the shoe shiner is

a boy. My guess is he was eleven when this shot was taken. Like his shoe shine box,

the shoe shiner's feet are well traveled. His hands are scrubed by toil. I was drawn to

the lines in his foot as well as his nails which seem as tough as oyster shells. I have

an untoned version up as well but thought the print benefited from an "aged" look.

Comments vey welcomed.

I've been posting some older images that haven't seen the light of day and would

appreciate any comments.

Very nice. You don't deserve the low ratings received. I like the effect of the fogged lens very much.

Free-wheeling critiques welcome. Likes? Dislikes?

I couldn't resist taking a page from 19th century travel writers with their convoluted

yet descriptive turn of phrase. I'm probably a score of words short. Sorry. My question

is how effective is this image in evoking an era?

I met this gentleman in a small Portuguese village during the 70's. He was my faithful

guide and interpreter. This was a little unusual in iteself since Henri was French and

we had to converse in broken Spanish. I later printed this photograph for Henri as a

thank-you and gave it to my mother who wanted to visit the village with my

grandparents. My mother showed the photograph to the first people she met, trying

to locate Henri. This caused quite a stir. My mother and grandparents were ushered

to Henri's parent's house for an emotional encounter. Henri had passed away

suddenly and this was the last picture taken of him.

Thanks for the comments and encouragement. Bob, I think I see what you mean, perhaps the extra pop to the bark shifts the viewer's attention a little too much away from the descansero. I liked the dream quality of the bark and may have over-burned it a tad. I'll try backing off a bit. That's for the observation, I really appreciate it. Rick

The gorgeously rendered sheet really makes this shot. Incredibly dimensioned.