mediumformat

Finally, a POW I can really rave about! Not the others were bad, just this speaks to me more. Classic look, and dress of subjects makes it really hard to tell how old this photo is. I don't mind the PS blurring at all - I agree it really pops the subjects. I also respect the fact that this image was taken with a heavy Mamiya C3 -- bravo!

I took this last Summer (prior to 9/11) in front of the FBI

Headquarters in DC looking straight up. It was a sunny, nice day and

I liked the way the flag was being blown by the wind with the clouds.

After looking at the original I decided it was potentially very good

in B&W with some dodging and burning. Hopefully the anxiety caused by

the current political environment comes through a bit. Critiques

welcomed.

This image is part of series taken inside the Reagan International

Trade Building in Washington DC. The stunning architecture is pierced

by neon tubes of light. Comments welcome.

From inside the National Building Museum, the largest indoor space in

Washington. I know the windows are a bit blown out at the top, but I

had to get enough exposure in dark areas. Would a neutral density

filter help in this situation?

Any feedback appreciated for image series documenting my view of

fanous DC sites and buildings.

Imagine that, honest-to-god film and large format to boot! I like it very much. The print is probably beautiful.

Superb compostion and lighting! Love to see the actual print. Thank God for LF and the people who use it.

Exposure is right-on and in this case I think the centered composition works well. Either the scan is too soft (print is probably better), but at this distance it's hard to see any kind of detail in the man's face.

Also, without any contextual evidence, it could very well be nothing more than a peace sign to a tourist. It doesn't detract though -- this is a nice photo.

Bottom of frame is too black overall, and the digital layering is just a bit too obvious. It's dramatic, but not my favorite.

I like the poses and arrangements, but I agree that if this were shot on a pure white backdrop the girls would pop right off the page. Very nice!

Great shot - you obviously took the time and care to get what you wanted. Really outstanding forms and color. I like the birds - I think if we saw a large print the birds would look great.

I guess I'm really missing something on this image, or is everyone playing a big inside joke on us? Is it a good photo -- sure. But it absolutely fails to move me in any way, even if it is "technically perfect," which is irrelevant if the photo has no impact.

 

I think Clifford the dog is too centered in the frame; the big dashboard does not add anything, and I think it would be better with the service truck on the far left taken out -- it's distracting to my eye.

 

I never meant to imply that a reinterpretation of previous art is wrong. Quite the contrary, art history is a continual reinterpretation. However, there's a big difference between creativity and imitating.

 

For "traditional" photography, it's silly for me or anyone to try and imitate Adams' style; what we should be doing is reacting to that style and creating our own new vision, however that occurs.

 

Would it not seem absolutely absurd for someone to scan an Adams' print, then proceed to modify it digitally (Let's put a McDonald's in Hernandez!), then present that image as your own work of art?

 

There's been plenty of debate and discussion (much of it very useful) on Photo.net about appropriating other people's art, regardless of media. DaVinci needs to be more than a reference for this image -- DaVinci's work in fact provides all the "meaning" to this image, as nearly everyone recognizes its origin, even with the superimposed woman who is posed exactly as the original.

 

A clever use of PS, yes, and well executed. But it seems to be getting a free ride on the back of a famous work of art. Can DaVinci be considered public domain?

Taken in June 2001 at the Reagan International Trade Building Atrium.

PS cleanup and mirror.

I'll be the first party pooper on this one. Yes, I agree that there are many outstanding images in Rene's portfolio, and I prefer many others to this image. This seems way too soft - was it meant to be a soft focus, or is the scan just soft? Not a lot of detail in anything that is visible. Also, the composition is very uninteresting.

 

Lastly, there are just too many images out there of the "lone tree" -- it is cliche at this point for my taste. Nonetheless, Rene deserves POW for an extensive and impressive portfolio.

Very nice shot of a subject that gets pictured millions of times per year. Add a small black border to your image and it will be perfect.

Just pops out, and the viewer knows exactly what is going on. I think this is great.

This is a better print from a series of images I took at the National

Archives. This is XP2, but I'm currently experimenting at the same

location with Tri-X to look at the differences. Any comments

appreciated.

Congrats on POW.

 

I like the compositional elements and the mood, and it is a very nice impromptu shot that works well in the wide angle format. However, I agree with Kevin Finerty about the sloping horizon. Either this image was scanned at very low resolution, or not cleaned up, but the image seems very soft to me. I think it would be much more effective if we could see the smaller details.

I love "simple" portraits like this one -- they are deceptively hard to do well, and with a TLR (noting beats them for impromptu images like this). Great expressions that feel completely unposed and genuine, which is portraiture at its best. My only small criticism, which isn't really criticism, is that it's too bad you didn't have a good flash for this shot to really illuminate the faces and bring them out from the background. Thanks for posting!

The glass art installation is by renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly. These installations are usually strongly lit from behind, as this one looks to be. BTW, Chihuly is the only American artist to ever have his own exhibit at the Louvre. His paintings and other sculptural installations are always extraordinary.

 

I think this photo would be better if you could show more of the glass, or conversely a macro shot. While colorful and fun, this image is more like a snapshot.

Love this shot. Wish you had a bit more breathing room on the top portion of the image.

If you have something critical of a personal nature to say to the photographer, have the guts and the courtesy to do it offline directly to that person.

 

I agree with previous comments that this forum was intended for *constructive criticism* on the photos, not lengthy BS diatribes by people who like to argue and hear themselves talk. I think some people would rather this forum be about literary exercises rather than photography. Plese spare the rest of us who are interested in photography.

 

Congrats on POW. My main criticisms of the photo is that the upper left portion is very bright and distracting compared to the rest of the image, and the photo would really benefit from some basic PS cleanup -- remove all the dust and particles, and maybe rework the contrast a bit. As for the subject matter, it has already been said that it's very hard to create strong images of this subject that aren't cliche by themselves.

Please have a look at this -- one of my favorites. I have some

interesting E100VS slides of this that I'm trying to get scanned.