kirk d

You nailed this one! The noise/grain is an image stripped down and here, it really conveys the stripped down essence of the tantrum. The angle of the curtain add to the topsy-turvy aura that goes with a tantrum - both from within and to the parent. At least with myself, my head used to spin when mine would go into this mode. This expresses anger and frustration perfectly.

Kirk

My daughters here were not coached, I caught them like this when I peered out of my ex-neighbor's second story window of her abandoned house. I didn't think much of it at the time I downloaded it but recently I decided to go through some stuff and play with some B&W conversions. When I saw this, I felt it was an image that was saying something about sadness over loss and that the structure of your house is only temporary - kind of like Bono's lyrics "a house doesn't make a home".

Pnina, you said I touched a nerve, I don't hear that often, it makes me feel like I suceeded with this image. When it comes to nerves, what I usually hear is "damn you get on my nerves!".

Fred, I was a little concerned those hot white spots would be to bright and contrasty, yet I felt they added to the extreme nature of what my girls were thinking - never thought of it in terms of searing but I like that.

Jeff, do you have a little hidden camera in my car? What you described is true and well put. Although I have sold this land to the state, I have "passed by" and visited (visited? that sounds strange but is what we say) that empty lot and flat slab and just stared, not knowing why I was there.

Thank yawl for the comments,

Kirk

Funny Jeff, I like the head off association. Those days seem to outnumber the days when I'm not holding my head.

You have yourself to blame for my B&W postings - it has kind of helped me to be more selective in going through my tens of thousands of images. Over the last few weeks, I have converted almost 200 images and wound up actually deleting some that when I saw them, I asked myself "why the hell did you keep this Kirk?".

Kirk

Pnina, it is certainly okay that you posted what you did - saves me the work of trying to duplicate what you would otherwise describe. Now, I'm torn, its not that I like the large amount of black so much as I like the window at the far end. I think it helps increase the size of the void that the black presents by allowing my mind to gaze and go through that small white spot. Of course that could just be me.

However, I do like the crop and concentrating the focus on the emotion that the statue itself posesses and conjures with its modification of the head off the shoulders.

Jeff, you wouldn't believe how I let all of that back then seperate my head from my body. It was weird, I functioned every day but for almost a year, I could not remember what I ate the day before without confering with others or thinking really hard and back tracking. I mean, it doesn't sound like much - at my age I usually have to think a second or two; this was like the short term memory loss people experience with brain anurisms.

Anyway, thanks for the comments.

Kirk

I think you have achieved an early image look. With the blur, it is part cinematic - like old black and white movies.

For that reason, it reminds me of when a producer shows you the character's world through the character's eyes. This one gives me two impressions - The view from a wolf, stalking through the black and white woods and the other is a Panicked escaped hostage running frantically through the woods of the captor with head spinning looking behind for danger and forward for freedom.

Hey, your tinkering amazes me. When I saw your tutorial image, I thought those lenses were those front door "peep hole" things that screw through your door and give you a fish eye view of the person on the other side.

Kirk

Pnina, this belongs amongst your best shots. The angle and moment of capture convey what you expressed your intention to be.

I like that there is no space to the left behind her like she is up against the preverbial wall. Then there is the opening in the ceiling that to me suggests a possible escape but like many routes of escape, it is out of reach.

Great use of that lens baby Jeff. You're one of the few I've seen that uses it effectively.

Kirk

Pnina, the things that gained a following 60 years ago and more recent continue to be followed today and back then for reasons not quite clear. However, I suspect it is from people wanting to belong to a larger group and not feeling comfortable with their individual feelings - granted most people wound up perpetuating hatred from things they pick up from their surroundings growing up. I think it is also due in large part to the fear of independent thought and standing alone in a crowd when the crowd is doing something that wrong.

While this election was monumental in several ways, the largest I believe is the statement people made clear that they are tired of the way things have been governed for a long time. The frustration with the warmongering Bush administration was so strong, that most people voted against McCain because of his ties to Bush and for Obama's promise of change more so than either candidate's platform.

This was revealed to me in listening to a series of street interviews where a reporter asked different people on the street who they were voting for and when they answered, he then asked if they supported that candidate for his platform (he then read the platform for the opposing candidate and the individual would agree). For instance and Obama supporter was asked if they supported Obama for his support for pro life and his plan to leave troops in Iraq for as long as it takes and his choice of Sara Palin as his vice presidential nominee - McCain supporters were asked if they were excited about McCain's plans to pull troops from Iraq as soon as he was in office and his pro-choice stance and for selecting Joe Biden as his running mate. It was funny but sad to hear these people agree enthusiastically that these were some of the main reasons they were voting for that candidate!

It's kind of like an election for governor we had here in Louisiana years ago; an ex-klu klux klan leader was running against a known white collar criminal. We didn't want to vote for the criminal but voting for him was better than voting for the Klan leader.

Racism is a nasty thing and what is worse is the people that use it for personal gain and perpetuate it. The media is famous for sensationalizing events when a black is victimized by a white perpetrator and interviewing blacks that exclaim racism was the root. Yet rarely report on a white person victimized by a black perpetrator and if/when it is reported, racism against whites is never emphasized. Then you have black leaders that raise claims of racism in order to capitalize and gain notoriety for themselves and perpetuate racism to further their careers. I grew up and live in a city where blacks and whites play and work together. Does hatred between these two races exist? Yes, but it is smaller groups on each side more than the stereotyping of each entire race that the media would have the populace believe.

What gets me is the amount of attention the United States gets for having "racism" between whites and blacks. Yet the extreme racism and religious differences that exists in countries that actually have lived in civil war and strife for decades is seldom touted as the horrible thing that it is. It's funny/odd how people just say "oh, that is how it is in (insert country), they have been fighting since the beginning of time..."

It is an unbelievably amazing time of opportunity and enlightenment yet at the same time, it is also and unbelievably crazy and sad state of affairs that also exist.

Kirk

Who says you can't get blood from a stone?

Kirk

This is a serious portrait and extremely creative and well done. It looks like a sign on a door that reads "Enter at own risk, but you are welcome".

It does make me smile too thinking of you putting on this face and getting the reaction of a solicitor or unwanted visitor at your door - kind of doing this to freak them out.

Kirk

I thought I commented on this the other day Jeff, I must not have hit "confirm".

I really like the way the highlights between the shadows of the plant stems and leaves form a new leaf. Really kool - I'd make sure the mouths of those voices stay happy.

It's kind of like a pinwheel too.

Kirk

Man, the colors, lighting and patterns are amazing. Its kind of a cross between a sun dial and Faberge' Egg. Great abtract of what is likely a often photographed place.

Kirk

Thanks Fred and Joseph, I do like the blue color, I have something I want to try that may include the blue but have it be smoother and look less like accidental camera shake. I hope to get back there and try it.

Thanks for the comments.

Kirk

Great image Jeff, makes me think it was done long ago by a sailor on deck of his boat and saw a boat passing in the distance and made a sketch with a piece of charcoal.

Cautious Optimism is a good phrase and a wise view. This conveys that well.

Great job.

Kirk-

Jeff, you're just an elitist, but you, I would follow out of a forest any day.

Kirk

I am not Republican so please don't misconscrew my cautious optimism of Obama for blind love of McCain and Bush. Also, don't mistake me for the masses of starry eyed blind that are gulping down JimJones ObamaCain Kool-aid.

Speaking of the masses, a majority does not make something right - a majority can just as easily indicate ignorance or stupidity or desperation. Just look at the state of California, talk about a big freakin HUH?; they unanimously elect a man opposed to banning same sex marriage, yet they unanimously vote themselves to ban same sex marriage - talk about huh?

You can change the color of the politician and even the party line in office but you can't change selfish corruption and paybacks which most all of them are a part of. The elite group of backroom dealers is whom I'm referring - education does not make a man elite - perfecting what he does is closer to my definition and these guys have perfected scamming the public and making themselves and their friends rich on our taxes.

Cautiously Optimistic,

Kirk

Change has been the hope of this country for a long time, let's just hope the change that occurs doesn't make us a hopeless nation. Historic rewriting of how things have been done is long overdue. I just hope the rumors of having the constitution re-written are not true at least the parts that would change freedoms we enjoy now such as free speech, which would impact our basic rights to speak out against the governement the other amendment about arms that would restrict or eliminate the posession of firearms.

This new chief riegns with the elite and spent a lot of money to accomplish what he did, which means he owes a lot of big businesses and other countries some big favors - that makes me think that this redistribution of wealth may have more impact on the middle class; remember, the plan originally called for anyone making over $250k, then it was reduced to $200k.

I'm glad that it seems the world has embraced this event and is beginning to change their view of the United States. I just hope we don't have to do the will of other countries to stay in their good graces. Reportedly, Russia began moving short range nuclear missiles within hours after the election results into areas that they just retracted them from.

I'm optimistic and do hope for some true change that will benefit the entire country.

This has always been one of my favorites of yours.

Kirk

Thanks Adrea and Sheryl. It has a scruffiness about it that I like but I'm not sure about the blue on the left - the color is okay but I think it shows the trail of the camera to distinctly.

Kirk

Gordon, you are right, Frucose is spelled Fructose. Its not that we dropped the letter in spelling, we drop the t in pronunciation, which is how I was spelling it.

Kirk

Thanks Gordon, the color combination is appealing. Yes, that is milkweed - another whacky colored milkweed.

I'd still like to get some seeds from the pink ya'll have up there. I'd be glad to send you some of the seeds I have from our redorange and yellow.

Kirk

Tero, thank you for the comments. This is looking up into a Live Oak tree, the grey hanging down is Spanish Moss and the light blue is the overexposed cloudless morning sky. I thought it looked like a water reflection as well but it is harder for me to see that knowing what it is.

I added some contrast and vibrance in Photoshop with some layer adjustments.

Thanks,

Kirk

Excellent double exposure, very tastefully done. The translucent flower coming from the side really magnifies the delicacy of the blooms.

Kirk

Sorry bout that, wasn't implying that at all. Is abstract thinking a prerequisite for neurosis or an impressionist of a neurotic?

I think your conscious thought about where you want to be or wish to be/do in the future disqualifies you from being neurotic - I think neurotics don't see a future; of course, with your background, you would know that better than me.

Kirk