andy e

Way too blue as well...

Man, you take that little Olympus everywhere, huh? Excellent timing on this shot. But I don't know which side of the curtain is more appealing, the one with the hand or the one with the booze bottle. I must say, that camera handles low light extremely well.

You gotta love guys wearing sandwich boards. This is a real nice one Jenna. Any quibbles about the space aside, I think the lines created by the curbs to a great job in framing the guy. Good management of the harsh midday light, too. This is excellent.

Well, welcome back. I hope the holiday was a restful one. Very nice first posting since your return. Like an impressionist painting, this one is. I think the layered colors are wonderful and just at the right levels. Good to see you back.

Maybe if you took the time to understand what a Holga is, it might provide you with a way to provide some truly instructive criticism. As for your insights on ratings, what do you do when the 4s (or worse) are from you and are based on a complete lack of understanding about the art form you're looking at? And why do you also feel the need to dole out your ratings on photos which someone has posted simply for the purpose of showing them to others? That ain't instruction, its annoyance, plain and simple. Hell, you and your merry band of ratings clowns have done such a good job of "instructing" me, that I've pulled my images off the site just to be rid of your annoying numbers and comments. But thanks for your efforts to make us all better photographers...

 

Natasha, its an excellent image and you used the Holga to full effect. Well done.

I think you've done an excellent analysis of your own photo so I needn't re-hash the things you've already discussed. Suffice it to say, though, that these pictures from the 60s are OUTSTANDING. To me, they are in the best vein of good street photography. Each one is a real gem that I hope you will treasure and keep safe for a long time. In addition, I think you have a duty to find a wider audience outside the Photo.net fishbowl for these pics.

 

Absurdity is one of those things that most people don't process when looking at street photos on here, hence the often low ratings on pics such as these. I guess its often due to the fact that they themselves are so overwhelmed by the day-to-day absurdity, they have no idea that they are looking at the absurd and, with it, the great humor in it all. Yet absurdity is a keynote of some of the greatest street work of the last 40 years: Winogrand, Erwitt, Levitt...they all had a keen sense of the absurd and it shines through in their brilliant photography, as it shines through in yours.

 

I should practice what I preach (hell, I pulled all my images because of horseshit annoyance of Photo.net ratings sheep), but don't sweat the ratings. You have great work here and I think you know it. As will many who can see it. Thanks for sharing it. Its a great honor to see it.

I think this will make an absolutely ass-kicking print. The tones are magnificent. Good idea keeping the space. There's no sane reason to crop this so give the bird the room he/she needs to fly and be a bird.

If you haven't, you should check out the series that Aaron Siskind did of the same subject. Very good photography indeed. Nice work here, though. Rated too low, but no surprises given the fickle nature of the Photo.net peanut gallery.

Then excellent work using the viewfinder to compose the shot.

I frankly dunno if I'd have handled it differently not knowing the lay of the land immediately surrounding the shot. However, I can say this much. Its an absolutely brilliant shot. Compositionally its great, but the rendering is almost perfect in my opinion. Is this a scan of the negative or a print? Either way, well done.

Outstanding abstract. The hues you captured on the building are wonderful. There's a strong three-dimensional quality to it. Really nice work.

Well, getting in close is the way to go in my opinion. As you can see from my stuff, I rarely use more than a 35mm on my camera. My next big investment is going to be in a 28mm so I can get close and get some extra space around the subjects.

 

Keep at it, Jenna, you have a great eye.

Indeed, this is an ass-kicker of an image, and caught superbly. Well done.

Excellent image. I confess I'm not sure about the "desperation" connection, but I do like the photo a lot. Is this cropped at all?

I like it. The lines created by the powerlines and the building in the distance draw the eye naturally to the bear. Did you shoot this one closer to the 18mm end of your zoom lens? I think compositions like this scream out for some treatment with a real wide angle shot, such as is offered by 21mm lens or smaller. I'll be on the lookout for more of these images as this series evolves. I hope you will be considering some shots with some people interactions as well. Good work.

 

Oh, by the way, did you get the title for the image from the song of the same name by the Damned? If so, good taste on your part...

Do you know Walker Evans' work well? If not, you ought to get familiar with it. There are interesting things in his work I think you'd really dig. Keep up the shooting. You have an excellent eye for some interesting compositions. Great work.

Looks to me as if you handled the expsosure very well. Looks as if the light, though diffused, was angled down to create a semi-backlit situation. Very nice range of tones and good detail on the faces. My only small (very small) quibble would be that lack of detail in the sky, but that's an almost negligible flaw. Compositionally, its wonderful.

 

Was this Speakers Corner? I ask only because I was there a mere two weeks ago. Quite an apocalyptic little place!

 

 

Goddamn, Ward, every single one of these portraits in this folder is absolutely brilliant. This is not flattery when I tell you that this is some of the best candid portraiture I've ever seen. Every single image has depth and creates a unique sense of the subject's personality. It has to be done this way, doesn't it? If you approach it as you would a studio portrait it might create an arguably more aesthetically-pleasing image (though I really doubt it), but at the expense of obliterating the personality and character of each of the individuals being photographed.

 

Its so very good to see your work again, Ward. Hope you're well and I hope our paths cross again soon.

 

Again, brilliant work.

Its an intensely disturbing shot, but I like it a lot. The harsh contrast, particularly with the background, really enhances the edgy quality of this image. I'm definitely liking what I see here and I hope you'll be posting more. I'd be curious if you have some shots involving the guy in the wheelchair. Nice work.

Oh my, that is nice. Strong shapes in the composition and I think the silhouettes are perfect. Did you process this film yourself, or did you get it done at a lab? Either way, looks like it came out very nice.

Its wonderful to see this one again. The more I look at it, the more I truly love the lightness and the whispy contrast, particularly in the buildings. The balance of the composition is superb.

Nice one, Phil. The primary interest obviously falls on the three denizens of the bench to the left, but the icing on the cake is found with the inquisitive person at the far right who serves to tie up the whole image and to balance out the composition. There's something about these Underground platforms that always feels like purely distilled London to me. For that reason, I truly love the shot.

 

Have yourself a safe and restful holiday. Lemme know when you're back and I'll get that package sent to you.

Indeed, what slope? I'm sure that's something to do with natural distortion in that lens, but I definitely think it works. I agree with Balaji about wanting more detail in his face. But alternatively a straight silhouette might work too. I'm still extremely impressed with your technique in this place. That little Olympus and your pint glass tripod worked wonders. Nice job.

PHEEEENOMINAL! Man, that little camera combined with the Delta is a killer combination. I'm still rummaging through the big bag of exposed rolls to find my stuff from our voyage. I'll definitely look forward to seeing the Tri-X rendering of this scene. An excellent image. How tall would you say she was? I'm 6'3" and she was at least half a head taller than me.

Brilliant shot, Hugh. The decision to go B&W was definitely the right one in my opinion. The composition has nothing wrong with it in my estimation. Its an image that's got a lot to say. Excellent piece of work.