johncrosley

However strange it may seem to Westerners, this outsized petition to the judge who sentenced this woman's son to prison, has a long and storied history in the region that once was a part of the Soviet Union and before that the territory of Russia which was ruled over by the Czars, a word derived from Caesar, the Roman rulers. Under Czarist rule, peasants and all others who felt oppressed had one last recourse for any grievance, and that was direct appeal to the mercy of the Czar who ruled Russia. As noted, Ukraine was a former Republic of the Soviet Union, and before that it was part of Russia, and actually was the forbear of Russian society with the Kievan 'Rus' having preceded and branched into growth of what now is the center of Russian Society and the Russian nation -- Moscow. However poorly (or not) the Czars ruled, they had a sort of pressure valve for those who saw themselves gravely afflicted, and that was the direct appeal. In the United States or in Europe, one can hardly imagine challenging a court sentence to the President of the United States of to say, Angela Merkel, present German leader, because the courts and the executive leadership of both countries are co-legitimate and run separately along with the other co-legitimate branch of each - the court or judiciary branches and one can seldom influence the other except for granting of pardons, and pardons are dispersed relatively rarely in the United States. This woman is appealing with her giant sign to the judge, not the President of Ukraine or any political leader. In a sense, she is following the ancient tradition, however presently seen as hare-brained by Westerners, of petitioning the Czar for clemency for her son, first by gaining attention of media using her outsize sign/petition. That that there is no czar and at that moment no real functioning government or leader in Ukraine seemed to her of no moment, even though the Maidan revolution had just taken place. After all, she's a mother, and her son's a 'criminal' or at least found to have been a 'criminal', there's a new government in power, and she's playing her best card, which is not to pursue the matter through the oft-called-corrupt judiciary, as clearly she has no money to pay corruption, which would have to have been paid BEFORE or during trail, and now it's after trial and imprisonment, when even corruption would seemingly have little affect. But, she's a mother -- it's her son. It's her baby in prison. What's she gonna do? But love him and show support the best way she can fathom. If it takes the form of a contorted, outsize and long outmoded 'appeal to the Czar', then so be it. john John (Crosley)

Note that this, like many of my more close-up photos, involves not only you behind the mirror as the fifth wall, but I am in a hidden plane directly in front of this guy, and he's reacting to me, the photographer, just as so many of my more wide angle subjects are. He's either surprised by me, he's allowing me the space, or he's not going to the energy to get excited enough to drive me away, and in fact knows me enough to know if I'm an 'intruder', I'm no real threat so he expends no energy vamping for the camera or mock chasing me away. He just 'is', and I have a good enough shot. I play an important part in many of my photographs taken more up close, though you almost never will see me depicted. That's because I don't hide, except in plain view, nor do I seldom hide my equipment; I just walk around, camera(s) around my neck, one in my hand frequently enough that most ignore me eventually, and when action presents itself, I will just move into view regardless of the consequences if the view is good enough and there is no danger. The greater the view, the more I'm willing to expose myself and my photo-taking intentions. There you have it, probably the end of the addenda. john John (Crosley)

But to you, no fault at all. I actually feel an obligation, and further, I left something out of my supplementary self-critique above. Not only is there a sort of rhythm to the figures in this photo, but ALL the figures are a sort of rhythmic fugue in fatigue (try saying that four times in a row rapidly). Think of finding by chance two guys lined up hangdog tired, then a figure of a third (actually a reflection as noted) also completely of course hang dog tired too, equally spaced or rhythmically spaced enough almost so that one could form not only a visual composition but if transposed into music, a musical or keyboard composition. One can imagine playing the score of this photo, couldn't one, with its highs and lows and the clef being I suppose treble in the key of yogurt sauce and sliced, pickled onions accompanied by a touch of heartburn. There was this of something akin to this and more in the accidentally deleted (slip of the fingers) previously authored critique, that I felt a necessity to work it up again, because this is not an ordinary photo, though it may well appear 'ordinary' to the casual viewer. To me, it has special compositional values. john John (Crosley)

I'll mark you down as a negative at least on the quality evaluation. That's what happens when you take a quickie in the bowels of the metro/ noise (grain) intrudes. Ah, well, you can't please all the people all the time, and I do have high regard for your opinion(s). But our opinions are not required to coincide; at least you didn't beat around the bush and were forthright. Thanks for letting me know. john John (Crosley)

I should have edited myself because i know better and written instead 'young women seeking beauty and/or acceptance maybe in an alternate and attention getting world' (or way) . . . . and just dropped the initial, careless use of beautiful as a modifier for 'girls or women rather than what they may aspire to.  Good edit.   Thanks for keeping me truthful and honest.   john   John (Crosley)

I posted this not because it 'tells a story' but because it's a moment frozen in time that is merely suggestive, and one is able to reflect and make up one's own story. You hit it right on the money. Thanks for an able reflection. john John (Crosley)

Fashions, attitudes, and 'looks' in vogue change from time to time. One year Gothic darkness prevails and beautiful young women are clad in darkness, but when the first ventures forth in her dark costume she is met with hisses of disapproval by many because it breaks the norm. Now, this photo shows the look of heavy, dark lipstick and an attitude of insousiance . . . . is this the new attitude or just a rare moment caught in passing? Your ratings, critiques and observations are invited and most welcome. If you rate harshly or wish to be heard, please submit a helpful and constructive comment; please share your photographic knowledge to help improve my photography. Thanks! Enjoy! john

In my previous and deleted comment, I also remarked on the rhythm or cadence of the figures, up, down, up, down, etc. and the same with the condiments for Middle Eastern Fare behind the sneeze guard. john John (Crosley)

I wrote you previously that I wrote a long evaluation of this photo and it got lost in the ether,, and possibly I'd try again, but it was long and the job took hours, so here's another try. Look at how many subjects there are in this photo. How many do you count? Three? Look again. There are two indiivduals, but three subjects, with the mirror (zircola) on the wall reflecting Picassoesque two sides of one individual, the far one, so you can see him from two views. In a two dimensional world, withoujt more, you and other viewers might easily assume he's a separate individual, and for photo purposes of spacing, perhaps he is a separate individual. That's the magic of photogrraphy. Not only is spacing important for the 'three' individuals (actually two), but look at the trays of condiments for the felafel in the window -- evenly spaced out, for a stab at parallelism with a vanishing point, and so there are two vanishing points -- the men (two or three) and the condiments too, And the arrangements of heads and arms bear a close look: First man, fatigued, supports his head with his right arm up and left arm folded. Second distinct man uses his left arm to pinch his nose in a classic fatigue position with a folded right arm also indicating fatigue. But his mirror assumes another, hunchback pose, where the arms do not play such an important role - they are in his 'front' -- it's the same guy, but to the casual viewer, it's really the third indivudual. So, there's an up down, up down quality to the heads and arms of the individuals in this photos which further emphasize their droopiness and fatigue which i find fascinating and tried my best in a split second to capture. I'm in the photo too, as the subject of the leftmost man's weary gaze, as in 'who are you and why are you bothering me?' but it's really a friendly gaze, as he's not at his most chipper trying to sell me a felafel as the guidebook would dictate, but 'oh, you, I know you, and we're friendly enough that I don't have to assume a company stance of false chipperness and can 'be myself' for you since we've seen each other so many times' and this is the real me. And this is what you see, the real 'me' of two and then 'three' individuals, but composed of two men, almost chain linked together. It's not just two (or three men) but it's a design, that's a little complicated or complex, but for me it works and I think on reflection, for you maybe also. I'm happy with this work, and it's made better by the weary face of the leftmost subject. This is a not a 'hit you over the top of your head it's so clear' composition, but as you noted, it seems to work, and I'm proud of it. Thanks for having the patience to await anther try at my evaluation, however deficient. john John (Crosley)

When I promised this man I'd be in his shop only a few short minutes, that was a promise I intended to keep. Often in street shooting I get one chance to take a shot, and that shot must count. I took one the other day: I spied the shot, turned away to ensure my camera was set properly, wheeled about, raised camera to eye level, framed and shot in one motion and got the shot, all in less than a second. It was beautiful - a keeper in both color and black and white. I'll post it as among my best. Street shooting is great discipline for the ability to deliver. One has to know one's capabilities, and one's equipment and what one can do with the two together in very limited circumstances. Sure there are a huge number of misses in street, but it translates into ability to take photos (and adjustments) on the fly, as here, where I had to make complex setting adjustments to accommodate the adverse lighting, chimp early shots, and then shoot away, both with a short/tele lens on one camera then a medium -- long tele on another to get close up. Street shooting is great training, and no one knows if you fllubbed one or a hundred because no one sees except the very best. Then, when one comes on an old fashioned setting like this (now it's old fashioned, then when I was a youth it was 'just the way things were'), one can make a promise, of shooting in a few short minutes 'then I'll be out of here' and know you can keep that promise. Street shooting is great training, and I"d recommend it even for the studio shooter, since you have to deal with light from all sources, even conflicting sources instead of creating light and moving it around. Voila, if you can shoot 'street', I feel except for things that require extensive Photoshopping, you can shoot almost anything. My theory at least. john John (Crosley)

I just write what I please and take the photos that please me. I'm just now going through photos (again) from the years 2004-5 and also sets from 2006-7 and finding that I was a much better photographer then than I ever gave myself credit for -- I was shooting a style then that was 'street', 'color' and also things that work well for 'stock agencies' which I had worked for at one small time in my life, and I do mean a very short period. That is to say, I waltzed into a New York office of an agency that represented some famous name pros, but they also solicited amateurs (and I was one), they had a list of subjects they were interested in, and if you had color transparencies, they wanted those only. They went through my transparencies I deemed worthy of showing and picked a great number which frankly was less than 60, but over the years they sold almost every one, and as my career skyrocketed, I never shot for them again but at earthshattering prices from the middle hundreds to the thousands of dollars. Later this mom and pop shop was acquired by an outfit that went microstock, then it went bankrupt, it returned my photos, but they turned out to be someone else's and some clerk should have been fired, but liquidating photos to their original photographers in a bankruptcy action has got to be the lowest of the low jobs and attract the least motivated, least talented bodies, who could care less. So, I got in a packet with some photos of Philadelphia -- just a few -- which I had never shot, and someone got some treasures of mine which I had. They'll never be seen again, though the transparency frames had my name on them. I learned a lesson then about backing up and that has turned into an obsession. Nothing gets uploaded without three sets of backups then two sets fo the cloud within two weeks on two different services for 'worked up' photos. I've heard too many stories of GREAT photographers and angry girlfriends throwing priceless prints out upstairs windows in rainstorm onto lawns, a member here lost precious photos (and I do mean he was a top member)when his household moved and business prevented his supervising - the negs were never seen again, he lamented, and so forth. And who'd ever have dreamed that G and V Sava double clicked on everything I post unless they told me so. That's a complete and welcome surprise. I'll have to be much more careful on my 'selecting' before Photoshopping now that I know my work is getting such close inspection! Lots of what I produce goes onto my approx 45 hard drives never to be seen again, but I'm reviewing those frame by frame and finding wonderful stuff -- some so sophisticated I now wonder how I ever 'saw' those photos, but they were just part of the mix. I then did not crop or even understand the magic of some of my frames, or some frames could be 'saved' by judicious photoshopping especially when in NEF but I didn't then have the skills. Now I do. Those old photos are interspersed in my present output here. When I first came to Photo.net, nobody would write about their secret little techniques for producing their work; it was all a secret that could not be revealed lest someone 'steal' the magic of their work. I believe just the opposite. I think NOBODY can steal the essence of the way I SEE, and I'm happy to share any so-called 'secrets' I have. In other words, my snoot is not in the air about 'how I do it' -- and for that matter, I don't comment on lesser work because who am I to say that today's lousy photo commented on derisively might discourage some great artist in his first post. Who am I to judge? I've also made a career here of NOT commenting or rating, as I came here at a time of 'mate-rating' and by not rating, no one could accuse me of mate-rating, either for or against, as that once was rampant. I got well know here for being honest, and also for some pretty long posts on 'how' to do this or that -- especially how to approach subjects -- there's a great book in here on the 'how to' of street shooting or just normal every day outdoor shooting and 'how to get along with a camera in a photo environment'. All I need to do it excise, cut, and paste, then rewrite to re-author that book, and I think I will do just that, with photo examples. I think that's part of the reason you read these things to find out the 'how and where' of the photos, and I'd like to write a book for others who do not want to read these 18,500 comments to find out. I'll bet it would be a 'trade book' (bookstore) or online good seller and required reading in journalism, street shooting and other photo classes or at least recommended reading. A friend of mine (a colleague at least) long ago when he was a hippie lawyer) wrote 'Finding and Buying Your Place in the Country'. A quick Google.com search says Les Scher's perennial, written with his now wife, has sold 200,000 copies to date, many before e-books were ever a thought in man's mind and sold then for big, bookstore prices, year in, year out. I'm sure the copyright has been valuable to him. I take trouble especially for what I write here that's essential to 'street shooting' to put the copyright mark after my most trenchant words (and all photos), so nobody can purloin my words (or photos) and claim authorship or public domain. © 2016, John Crosley/Crosley Trust, all rights reserved, No reproduction or other use without express prior written permission from copyright holder. People may think I'm crazy or stingy as that appears under each of my photos everywhere, but I practiced law, and I know the power of claiming what already is there automatically and worry aboutproposed legislation that would put 'orphaned' works (photos for whom it's claimed the authorship can not be determined) would be in the 'Public domain'. I guard against that, though that's not present law and you owncopyright from the moment you press the shutter, but you can file for additional copyright protection as well that gives you fearsome leverage over those who would steal your work. At any one time at least 38 blogs have 'stolen' my work, but they always spell my name right, and it's too expensive and hard to sue them all! If I'm ever sidelined, that's a book already written, just due for a cut, paste and rewrite job. And maybe a lifetime annuity? ;~)) Thanks for kind words. john John (Crosley)

Just to get the fabulous detail in this man's shop clutter. You may use that stainless steel bowl for salads, but he has an 'original' use for it, but they're both equal in my mind as the bowl is absolutely multi-functional. This man, extremely hard of hearing, was a man after my own heart. Reluctant at first to my intrusion, I told him I would exit in five to seven minutes and maybe take some fabulous shots, which I am not sure he heard . . . . just he wondered, where could he see them . . . . and I said the 'Internet' and he lost interest in talking since he could barely hear even with devices on his good ear or both ears and went back to his task with this a standard/tele shot, then others with a standard/tele and standard super tele shot all at super low shutter speeds, but he was moving slowly, and I had latest equipment with very high ISO capability so I just jacked up the ISO and got what I think is quite good quality. I stopped to ask directions and walked out with what I hope are some great photos -- it pays to be a little 'lost' and to stop at the most 'old-looking' place that appears habited around, when you have a camera and as always a dual intent (find your direction (a little gas) and always, always, always be prepared for great photos. Whether this is 'great or passable is up to judges to decide, but it passes my test -- when I grew up most 'service stations' actually had younger mechanics who worked like this man -- no computers, and in fact, no vise grips (they weren't invented so far as I know). (great devices!) I'm glad you looked at my portfolio, just some 1,200 of 12,000 images on that site. john John (Crosley)

Here is a link to another version of this photo and 1,200 other Crosley photos available for licensing or general enjoyment and/or analysis. It's my home page link and my ImageBrief portfolio: http://www.imagebrief.com/photographers/john-271#/portfolio This is my ImageBrief.com portfolio link. Many of the 1,200 photos on that page have never been seen by anybody before. john John (Crosley)

Dry, windswept grasses, just barely with a touch of Spring's green lead the eye from the foreground past the pole, wire and fence in the near foreground past the meadow and trees in the middle ground to the slopes of giant,volcanic Mt. Shasta, in Northern California, snow covered completely some years and in drought years stripped nearly clean of snow and its usual glaciated ice by summer's end. This view from near Interstate -5 at end of Shasta Airport. Your ratings, critiques and observations are invited and most welcome. If you rate harshly, very critically, or wish to make a remark, please submit a helpful and constructive comment; please share your photographic knowledge to help improve my photography. Thanks! Enjoy! john

Use the link to my home page or this link, which is an alpha numeric link which may change into another sort of link (not under my control) to my portfolio on ImageBrief.com, which shows several views in color of this guy, which are licensable; and maybe compare the color with the black and white versions, and maybe compare color with black and white. http://www.imagebrief.com/photographers/john-271#/portfolio john John (Crosley)

This aging mechanic is hard at work on an auto mechanical problem with two vises grips and a broken mechanical part clamped in a vise, high energy lamp overhead. He seems oblivious to his cluttered mechanic shop surroundings in his service station repair shop in a what may be one of the last of the old fashioned gas stations -- this situated high on the edges of one of the Western US's tallest mountains, in northern California. Your ratings, critiques and observations are invited and most welcome. If you rate harshly, very critically or wish to make a remark, please submit a helpful and constructive comment. Please share your photographic knowledge to help improve my photography. Thanks! Enjoy! john

Thanks for having a look at the 'main portfolio' but in reality it's new and for licensing purposes only, but licensors prefer color, so I've given them primarily color versions of shots, many of which have been posted already on Photo.net and others which have no or little photographic merit, but hopefully have commercial value. The two linked photos, for instance, were posted in B&W on Photo.net as part of my huge portfolio here. Thanks for the kind words; enjoy your trip through the land of great photos and some that could easily be passed over if they didn't depict things that buyers/licensors may want photos of and are willing to pay good money for, sometimes for an image/any image (other times it's photographer vs. photographer with hundreds of shots competing for the same 'brief' and in fact that's the rule at that site, but the main attraction is its generous fee structure. I'm glad you hit the link. Thanks. john John (Crosley)

I have to admit that I might have lightened the darker trees in the center a little; those are the things you really cannot know until often after you've posted in cases where distinctions in tones are minor. As to cloning the sky, right, that's something I just don't do in a landscape, or at least if it might become known . . . heh heh heh. Let's leave it at that. I think it would be apparent, and thus a 'fault' to some, and to me and my sensibilities. I like so much that you shared your thoughts, and of course the idea that the whole scene is highly symmetrical; which falls apart somewhat if you lighten it a little more, including those dark trees in the center you'd like to lighten (there are reasons for many seemingly inexplicable actions . . . . ) Thank you for a fine and helpful critique. john John (Crosley) P.S., it looks different and quite stunning in color; why not visit my home page link and view it in color there along with about 1,200 other photos; they keep getting added to daily many times. jc

A 'street' view of fruit trees in full blossom against a background of mixed other trees including eucalyptus, near the banks of the Kalama River, Cowlitz County, Washington State's western part, just near where the Kalama River joins with the mighty Columbia. Your ratings, observations and views are invited and most welcome. If you rate harshly, very critically, or wish to make a remark, please submit a helpful and constructive comment; please share your photographic knowledge to help improve my photography (B&W version). Thanks! Enjoy. john

When I first joined Photo.net, I thought the term 'capture' was more than a little hifalutin to describe any old photo, and should (as you note), describe a certain subset of photos, such as this, in which something ephemeral and evanescent was caught for a moment which otherwise would disappear forever,, as opposed to most landscape, studio,, product, portrait, etc., shots, so you make a good point, in my view. This also makes a pretty darn good photo in color, but since I tend on this service to emphasize my black and white work, I presented it here in classic black and white; it can be found in my portfolio on ImageBrief.com in color. Just go to my home page and click the link into my portfolio with over 1,200 photos, mostly color, many never before seen, and all part of 12,000 photos available there for commercial license (which vastly prefers color). Many of those (maybe most) are not viewable anywhere else, and some just because they just depict subjects that may have commercial interest done often well, but not because of great photo merit - though there are some stunners. I recommend a trip, and also to my Flickr.com slection of less than 200, for a full view of my strengths (and weaknesses) and to view the breadth of my work for the last 11 years. Best to you; thanks for astute observations. john John (Crosley)

I've read many times that the true test of a good photo is whether it engages the eye and causes the viewer to ponder the scene and maybe its elements.   For me, not every photo meets that test, but this one certainly has what I look for; and it's completely different from my other work.   Thanks for the compliment.   john   John (Crosley)