Lou_Meluso

I feel the complete opposite. I believe any information "outside" the image itself. No only muddies the waters of personal interpretation and clear critique but the sends the discussion in a direction away from the image itself.

I know I'm in the minority here, but it's the picture and it's impact on viewers is the topic here. It's my/our interpretation of the image that is important to this discussion. The photographer has had his opportunity to speak in the creation process. Let the picture do the talking! As the viewer, we are partners in completing the creative circle through viewing deeply and making a effort to make a connection to the image as filtered through our hearts and minds. Discovering and discussing why an image does or does not make that connection with us, on an emotional, spiritual, intellectual or technical level is the real focus of this exercise. For that to happen, only the image is needed. Critiquing takes real effort. Sure, getting lot's of outside information is easier in assisting one to triangulate and support an opinion. It's lot harder to stay neutral and just deal with the picture directly and work within the boundaries of your own independent interpretation.

I think it is precisely that concept that makes the POW so compelling. The opportunity to have a large viewership, at all levels of experience, give honest, personal feedback on a picture. I can't think of anything more valuable to a photographer and a generous gift from those willing to provide it.

I think the issue I have is the word "appreciating". I'm not looking to appreciate pictures beyond the actual image and even if I were, finding out about the creation process, the artists mood at the time or goals they wanted to achieve, other images they may have made or various techniques they used does not enhance my feelings of appreciation. Those qualities must come forth from the image itself.

Replace the word "appreciating" with "experiencing" and you'll get a sense of why I feel that focusing on the picture only is the best way to proceed. Some photographers love to chat about making the picture, it's circumstances, difficulty of doing, the process, yada, yada. In another forum, on another picture thread, that info might be fun to share and chat about. Just not on this forum where the entire discussion is devoted to the discussion of a singular image and it's interpretation from the forum group. The only words I want to hear from the photographer is a heartfelt...thank you.

I like this picture. The Elves comments on last week's picture would be more appropriate here as this is indeed a simple, uncluttered portrait. The dog has a nice alert, dignified look on his face and the low key rendering looks good with a dark colored subject. While not super sharp, the image has plenty of depth of sharpness to bring the entire head into focus, a quality I really like in a pet portrait.

Suggestions for improvement would include to adjust the contrast as I think the subject, while lit well, appears a bit flat. I see what looks like some processing errors (healing brush?) on the top of the dog's head. While I like the subject to fill the frame, here the subject feels just a hair too tight in the frame and I would back off about 10% or so. Those are all small, easy fixes.
Overall a nice looking portrait, Paul!

I do not like this picture as a portrait. It has all the hallmarks of a well lit stage with an actress playing a role. A bit over staged, perhaps, it's a matter of taste. I don't get sense this a portrait of this woman so much as some theatrical rendering. Which, as that, has as Steve describes, a very high level of production value.
Everybody has a right to a style. I prefer a different approach but this is a look some might like. Like wax museums.

On a second look, I have to agree. The diagonal thrust of the subject seems to add energy that resonates well with his dynamic expression. The low camera angle not only helps isolate but lends a sense of monumentality and power to the figure.

Nice to see POTW back!
I like this picture. The man, and his expression, is such a dominant force in the triangular composition there is no question as to what this picture is about. That simple directness is amplified by the black and white rendering with the man's head cleanly defined by it's juxtaposition to the sky.
I'd like a bit less car clutter but on the street you take life as it comes. And what an interesting slice of life this is. Well done, Steve.

I like this image. Nice hi-key study and subtle tones. Well seen.

Yes a nice picture, the scarf is a common enough device to accentuate the eyes but used to good effect here. A bit heavily processed on post, perhaps, but acceptable. If you are going to process the image strongly for illustrative reasons, take the next step and even up the right and left eye size. It would add to the symmetry of the face since the eyes are the subject here.

Frankly, I don't get the " my terrorist' comment. Is it because she is wearing a scarf covering her head and face as many Muslim women commonly do? If so, that stereotyping could be taken as offensive.

I like this picture. Beautiful lighting and composition. Nicely executed technically. I'm not sure of the piano reference but I'm guessing it's sort of a tone poem thing. I'll accept there is some artistic premise there. Anyway, I appreciate the search for something unique.

The only suggestions I would make would be to give the knee a very slight bit more air next to the edge. I realize sometimes it's impossible to change but having very bright element in the corners, like the window and the foreground piano keys, do tug somewhat at my eye for attention.

I like this picture. The extremely limited DOF, brings the "points" forward giving a 3-D feel against a creamy warm-against-cool field of color. The random direction of the in focus points are visually interesting. The entire image has a splendid impressionistic feel. Nicely done, Art!

I do not like this picture. Although technically very good there is a forced feeling to the subjects as if the were asked repeatedly to parade up and down the ramp until the photographer got his shot. Notice how both are holding out their, similar, dresses. This looks over coached and decidedly not spontaneous.
I think of the wonderful iconic photograph of Eugene Smith- Walk Through the Paradise Garden (LINK). Although Smith saw the unique setting and had the subjects walk though a couple of times, he allowed them to act naturally as well as timed the step perfectly. I wished this photographer had done the same. My sense is Smith was making a personal image about his own children. This photograph looks like portrait-for-hire work with no sense of the real personalities of the children. As such it misses the mark with me.

Although I don't like it, I'm sure the parents of the children will find it adorable. The framing, composition, location and technical qualities are very good. It's a fine commercial product but nothing more.

I like this picture. This image has a lot going for it. For starters the birds-eye view is immediately eye catching. If it were just capturing a day-in the-life of this city it would be successful but it goes deeper. The composition is an interesting arrangement of shape and line that is like ordered chaos. The snow is at once an abstracting element and a unifying one. The lone figure adds a touch of humanity and scale. A delightful street scene all around.

I like this picture. This is a very simple picture and, as such, it's concept is clear and immediate. The trees in a burned out forest after a snow fall. The foreground tree, with it's limbs intact, is a strong center of interest with it's icing like coating. It stands in stark contrast to the other limbless trees which strengthens it's focus. The cool gradation of the background makes me feel the chill of the day. The stream and progressive fog give a nice sense of depth to the scene.
While I like the stream meandering in to the distance, I would have stepped a couple of steps to the right so to see more of it, perhaps from a higher angle. Or lower my viewpoint and diminish it's effect while putting more of the subject tree against a more contrasting field. The eye-level camera angle could be improved I think.

I like this picture. This dramatic scene has great mood and atmosphere. The traditional subject and approach are well suited to the B&W rending. A well balanced composition is enhanced by the foreground leading you on a rocky path to the center of interest. Judicious use of burning and dodging help lead the eye around and into the scene. I can't tell if it's really raining or an added effect but it does not detract.

I am not a fan of digital frames or edges but this one, though thicker than I like, doesn't bother me too much. Nice work, Anthony!

Fred, to this point, there certainly are. But my experience is there are just as many if not more that struggle with that concept particularly in the amateur and novice ranks. I can't say I've felt that way but the fact I come across it regularly is undeniable. The very act to call oneself an artist, and mean it, takes a huge leap faith and confidence. Whether someone experimenting with images and struggling to find their artistic voice wants to risk screaming a bit I think is OK. Scream! Go Overboard! Go Crazy! Eventually one finds their way to an approach that works for them. Nothing is set in stone. If this image goes too far, the lessons learned will show better results on the next. Better to take the risk. IMHO, it's fear that is the enemy. Fear of looking foolish, fear of not being accepted, fear of recrimination from respected and accomplished elders that constrains many photographers I have known from using the word, artist, in relation to themselves.

Fred, I don't don't see the image representative of "antics". I see risk taking in moving an image out of acceptable norms to a heightened reality. Sometimes these attempts fail sometimes they are successful. I think here is a good attempt if some more thoughtful application and finesse were used. There is a line between crude and heavy handed application of processing tools, which look clearly over cooked, and the the creative use of them to push the envelope if used with skill and artistic thought. It's a matter of degree, taste and creative intent. I don't dismiss their use out of hand in this case and it was my thinking that if used in a more selective manner this picture would be viewed as more interesting although many would still see any "processed looking" image as unacceptable. That's perfectly OK but then again, as I said. I do like the picture. I see the use of processing tools like filters as just that...tools.

That's right Stephen. I rather like the processed look of the image. It's more illustrative than real. My thinking is by leaving the eye more natural it would be a nice counter to the heavy processing of the whole and add a bit of "zing" or whatever you want to call it, to the picture. Otherwise, it looks like just an overall filter effect applied.

I like this picture. Note I always use the term "picture" when discussing images. It's simply a more inclusive term, I think. This appears to be a heavily processed photo illustration based on a photograph. Since the processing is so obvious and so uniform across the image, I accept it as a creative choice by the artist. While some photographers have difficulty accepting themselves as artists, clearly Emanuel has no problem. It takes boldness and creative risk to leave the safe haven of the traditional. The long horizontal cropping with the child peaking through is a beautiful study with unusual, painterly skin tone and color. The sensation of hyper reality is engaging.

The only place were the image falls down for me is the child's eye. The overall processing used is so extreme that the delicacy of tone that comprise the eye has been crushed into a disconcerting "Shark Eye" appearance that even a well placed highlight cannot remedy . Being the center of interest, this deflates the quality of the image for me. If the processing were pulled back, just in this area, to a more naturalistic rendering it would make this image really sing for me. Like all processing efforts, a judicious, well-controlled hand is often best.

This crop I think focuses more on the Kiss. Is one "better" than the other. Not really. Just an exercise.

This crop works better for me better as an documentary, environmental style image. All the original elements are there but with better balance (I think)

Sure Arthur, it would shift the emphasis away from the surround which is why I suggested two potential crops. Really, it's a matter of preference here. For me the power of the image is in the expressions. The surround, to me, is not adding much to the theme - the kiss, maternal love. Not that it doesn't have some interesting textures and perhaps indications of the economic conditions. Simply tightening up the right side border would also improve the scenes strength to my eye a great deal.

The question I ask myself is "does the environment add anything significant to the idea expressed?" Do the door, steps, woman's feet, or baby bottle really say much about the center of interest. It might for some viewers. It might for a more overall documentary application. But the photographer has left us a clue, via the title, of the true point of interest. And I agree.

I like this picture. The theme of motherly love is communicated clearly through a well seen and captured moment in time. The soft lighting, the textural components of cloth and stone and beautiful black & white rendition add a timeless element to the scene. Well done, Umair.

There is no doubt in my mind that this composition could be improved through tighter cropping. If the whole figure were to be retained a slight cropping in from the right would eliminate some of the space on the right edge that adds nothing to the picture.

To my own taste, I would make a more extreme crop focusing in on the upper left quadrant where all the real action is. This would not only give greater focus to the overall theme but take a graphical advantage of the wonderful head tilt of the woman and position of the baby and zero in on the expressions of both, which to me, make this picture successful.

I'll take none, Thanks

And yet you still feel compelled to to voice your completely off topic, self involved, soapbox rant in a forum specifically devoted to the helpful understanding and discussion of photographs. Old age is not an excuse for poor manners.

I like this picture. The child appears to be playing peek-a-boo with the photographer. Her beautiful custom knit attire, hand position and wonderful expression is so endearing, this is bound to be a treasured family photo for generations. Kudos to the photographer for the vision and precise timing of the exposure to catch all these elements.

The edges are burned down a bit too much for my taste. I had to look closely to see that the structure she is standing behind is actually a tree. As such, it darkens the mood of this light-hearted scene somewhat. I like to burn the edges to give focus to the subject but I think a lighter touch could have been used here. The composition is fine but a slightly tighter crop would still give plenty of air to the subject and added the emphasis that I think was trying to be achieved with the heavy edge burn. Otherwise, this is a charming portrait of this adorable child.

Clearly the different angle and overall treatment in the new image shifts the dominance to the light source and I feel more comfortable seeing the light source as the subject of the picture.

Whether or not it's "better" will have to wait for another time since that image is not the one under review here.