Day 4 b.
by lunachicken

Comment:
from the pedagogy thread:

One of the possibilities for blur is to convert it to noise. This can give your photo the appearance of grainy film. It is similar to quiet_observation's strategy above -- make your photo look like something else -- though this is less elaborate. Personally, I love the film grain look. It gives a photo like this a documentary feeling, a spying, voyeuristic sort of feeling, that adds excitement to the shot. This works well with the closeup and the head protruding from some sort of enclosure/boundary. There's just a general feeling of confrontation, of the voyeur getting caught, that adds interest for the viewer.

Look at Me, I'm SandyP!
by Jutilda

Comment:
Lookin' good, Sandy! This isn't just cool, it's Cassavetes cool....

last hurrah
by krnodil

Comment:
from the pedagogical thread:

This photo illustrates another possibility for blur. Blur can give a feeling of motion. This is obvious when it comes to "motion blur," duh. But the blur here is not motion blur... and yet it still creates a feeling of motion. To be in tune with the understated title, I would suggest a motion towards death, a curving into oblivion. As you work with blur, I think it's helpful to catalogue as many of these potential effects as possible... as well as discovering new ones, of course!

into the woods
by krnodil

Comment:
from the pedagogical thread:

There's an art to blurring an entire setting and yet having it be completely recognizable. The strong geometrical shapes of the stairway and railing and boardwalk, combined with the infinitely recognizable shapes of light through leaves, makes this photo perfectly clear in all its fuzziness. But if we take the time to follow the pathway, it leads us into clarity, where we see a railing and a few stairs. Interestingly, the focused part is at a confusing angle, so is actually less "clear" than the unfocused part. I like the struggle here between clear and unclear.

At the Palace
by Melethia

Comment:
Oh, so here you are with a good friend AND a palace! and here I was all worried about you!

by JPR

Comment:
This looks like a struggle against eternity, perhaps that is where the suffering comes from.

The blur looks like camera motion blur, but also the layering of images. In the middle left, we see a rather mundane image. It looks like a man being waited on. But they are caught up in the vortex of the Man With The Blue Shirt.

I would say that blur is more than a technique here. Blur is the subject of your photo. Each viewer might come to his/her own interpretation of what the blur signifies, but it cannot be ignored.

The emotional content is complex and subjective. For example, the distortions on the blue man border on grotesque, but the dominating circular patterns are energetic, might steer someone toward positive emotion.

DSC_0056 Riposo Wine Glasses N.jpg
by pawdrix

Comment:
seeing the logo on the bottle takes this perilously close to being an advertisement, since it is an advertising cliche to show the bottle in focus with the glasses and drinkers oof behind it. This cliche almost overwhelms your artistic elements, the nice colors and composition, the spookily dark head.

but yes, if it were an advertisement, it would be a very nice one!

Tainted Glory (Dedicated to Barry Bonds)
by pawdrix

Comment:
the blur here is of course essential to the theme... something is being lost, obliterated. I like how you seem to have achieved it. not just with the lensbaby, but also with an odd angle and reflections.

An Eye For An Eye
by pawdrix

Comment:
The text turns it into a movie poster, but it's a very good movie poster. As to the whether the blur works, sure it does, because the text makes it "safe." The text is clear and legible, even though it is being absorbed by the blurry elements. I would say the blurry parts are so blurry that my mind doesn't even try to find a coherent subject or subjects. I just enjoy the abstract shapes.

Let me go further and say that not only could this be a movie poster, it could be a poetry book cover! It's just that crazy! ;)

Wandering Spirit
by jjusa

Comment:
Stunning. To think the only comment you got was a dnmc quibbling about the challenge topic. Sheesh.

I like that she is interrupting the flow of the photo (as represented by water). Her C-curved shape becomes integral to the composition in this way, as though by sheer act of will she divides the frame into two sections, top and bottom.