Marion-in-middle-age.jpg
by dragonlady

Comment:
Well Ed, I'm not and she looks OK to me too. The mattress has a nice gradient to it ... I must look for one of those. As well as the delightful candour of this self-portrait, there are some nice details. Especially the eye peeking out through the hair; gives the photograph a jaunty, slightly conspiritorial air! There's still a tiny hint of Roman Polanski there somewhere. I think it's the haircut.

Pit stop
by LevT

Comment:
I like the idea that she could stop off at her church on the way back from shopping, and line up her groceries right on the floor next to her. France is a largely Catholic country, and their practice of that faith must be more informal and unselfconscious than how I remember my own experience as a child, when a visit to the church was a formal occasion, demanding best clothes and (most importantly) safety in numbers. Taking the groceries would have been out of the question!

A chance encounter
by LevT

Comment:
Ah ... well I cannot agree with the comment that severs this at waist level. Although that hat in this setting is initially incongruous to the point of being alarming, it's the man's comfortable stance, a sort of slouch from the waist down, that gives this photograph its durability. The hat is a certainly a curiosity, but the stance is charming! Especially as it is juxtaposed with the rigidly geometric, formal "body" formed by the column supporting the bust at the right of frame. There's a certain whimsical interplay between these three characters: the man considers the painting, the subject of the painting stares back at him (sadly, I think), and the bust lady shyly averts her eyes.
And aside from all that, the photograph simply looks good ... the processing is terrific.

(edit for spelling)

Message edited by author 2006-02-11 17:22:37.

Oasis
by LevT

Comment:
Well, what an undiscovered gem this is! Been here over 4 months and had just 6 views before mine. And yet it deserves so much more.

I've just spent 15 minutes with this photograph. Me getting into it, and it getting into me. And it was worth the effort. It became more absorbing and rewarding the longer I looked. I'm still not sure I drained it of all its possibilities, but I gave it a good shot.

My first impression was that it is a theatrical kind of image. It has the look of one of those tiny worlds that are created on stage in the theatre out of just a few props and some artful lighting. Totally convincing, yet actually surrounded by a great black void of nothing. It's the lighting you've used, of course, but there's more than that ... because of the few well-chosen details you have judiciously revealed, the scene is actually more convincing than if you'd let us see everything. That's a technique right from the theatre. And also from strip-tease, of course.

It also recalls those beautiful Flemish and Dutch Masters, where the artist has included plenty of detail but has suppressed or muted most of it, and commanded our full initial attention for the intended point on the canvas. It was done partly with light and partly with meticulous compositional skill, just as has been achieved here.

The viewer is reminded, in looking at the restraint in the way you've put this image together, of the aphorism "Less is More", usually attribited to the architect Mies van der Rohe.

My next thoughts strayed to the location depicted. I have just such a small library; a couple of thousand books, two deep wing chairs, and a discrete LCD screen for the football. It's an oasis. This scene conveys the same feelings for me. Quiet, reassuring; sanctuary.

But the most absorbing aspect for the viewer is to speculate on what the image means. What's it about?

At first I thought it was about death, or more accurately about mortality. The empty chair and the book set aside with the spectacles marking the page is an obvious symbol of an unexpected departure. But is it a permanent departure (i.e. death)?

I think not. There are some clues supporting a happier, more optimistic interpretation. The book is open, not closed. Closed would have been much more symbolic of death. More final. And the pages are fresh - crisp white paper, and only recently fanned open (the book has not slumped into the flattened resignation of abandonment). There is definitely an "I'll be back, and soon" look to this scene.

Contrast it with this equally absorbing photograph:


On the face of it, these two images have a lot in common. But they actually have quite different meanings. JPR's photograph is unequivocally about mortality. Nobody is coming back to sit in his chair.

Your chair, however, is about something else entirely. I think it's about sanctuary and self-sufficiency. It's about understanding and preserving the values that truly matter in life, and regularly returning to those things as necessary. Those values are represented here by the comfortable, lovingly-worn chair; the books; the honest simplicity of the floor; even by the fact that the spectacles worn here are not those used outside this place. This place even has its own costume.

So, it's a deceptively simple scene constructed from just a few visible elements (and some invisible elements), and yet it is filled with buried allegorical treasure. I'm happy to have been the first pirate to have dug it up.

Calm
by Tej

Comment:
Beautiful. This looks so simple, but it is actually quite demanding of any viewer prepared to make the effort.

It first raises questions of scale; what could initially be taken for small seedlings are actually seen to be full-grown trees! Careful examination reveals many fine details, including the very strange shapes of the foliage in these apparently alpine trees. Which in turn leads to speculation about the location and altitude of the scene. And the drifting bank of cloud allows just a small and tantalising glimpse of a serious-looking background slope. The inevitable conclusion is that this must be one of the worlds wild and remote places.

The photograph works on two levels. First it is physically very beautiful, comprising just a few simple elements combined with harmony and confidence. And second, it is a pleasing mental exercise, because it triggers an absorbing chain of thought in the mind of the enquiring viewer.

So it has both beauty and purpose; a rare combination!

Complimenting Blue.
by Tej

Comment:
Hi Tej, & greetings from the Critique Club. Sat siri akal.

It's good to be able to do this for such a keen member of the Critique Club. I'm afraid I'm not such a good member - my critiques are less frequent than yours. Also less structured, which I hope you won't mind.

This type of photograph demands a high level of technical competence. In fact, it could really be said to be about technical skill as much as anything else. So the execution must be good, and yours is. It looks flawless to me. Beautiful focus, lighting, exposure and processing. And of course, from a challenge point of view, you have been very clever - in three ways:
1. You avoided the revolting strident blue colouring chosen by most people.
2. You used the blue to emphasise your subject, rather than as the subject (the gradient is an especially subtle touch).
3. You chose a subject in a colour complementary to the blue.

And of course the use of the water droplets is a further irresistible bonus for the ever-thirsty DPC voters.

So, although this is not my kind of photograph, I must acknowledge that it is a very fine entry in this challenge, and deserved its high placing. In fact, I'd have been happy to see it place even higher, because it was more subtle and thoughtful than most.

Now, because I really have nothing more to say about this photograph, other than it's beautifully executed but not my cup of tea, I'll close by showing one of your images that most certainly is my cup of tea.

That is a brilliant photograph. Filled with interest, and beauty of a quite different and more ambitious kind. While the Blue image that is the subject of this critique can be seen and appreciated in a couple of seconds, this "Calm" photograph is a much more demanding and absorbing proposition for the viewer. It is deceptively simple, but rewards the viewer prepared to invest a minute or two with hidden details and potential meanings. That you can produce two such worthy but totally different works is a great testament to your ability, and I hope that anyone browsing this critique will be encouraged to spend a few minutes enjoying your excellent portfolio. I did.
Cheers,
Paul

Mentoring -- Snapshot by Anonymous
by Germaine

Comment:
Germaine takes the "road less travelled by" again. It's a wonderful tribute, although yours is really a much better shot than the many celebrated works produced by your Inspiration. But I'll forgive you for sneaking some quality in there; at 160/188 you probably got away with it. Bravo!

speedo
by Skip

Comment:
What a striking photograph. The swimmer's expressionless face, the reflective goggles, and of course the trail of air bubbles combine to create a slightly alien feel. The composition/crop is terrific as well. I can't work out why the pattern visible between her arms is not seen in the general background. But I don't particularly care about that. 9.

Lines
by sigrun_th

Comment:
Beautiful, soaring semi-abstract image. The structure may have provided the lines and the inspiration, but the photographer's composition and processing did full justice to the opportunity. You've found a very organic point-of-view of this mathematically interesting curve. The effect is to equally suggest both design in nature, and nature in design. 10.

Fraser Floodplains
by zeuszen

Comment:
Beautifully structured image. Nice composition, excellent exposure and really fine processing. The result is, to my admittedly non-expert eye, perfect tonal control. 9.