TH-(2)
by primabarbara

Comment by rooum:
This is an excellent documentary essay which. i enjoyed immensly. Such a fascinating subject - i love these sorts of markets, myself - and you've documented it pefectly. The black and white was a great choice which really focuses each image down to its essentials of person and thing. There are some superb single images amongst the very strong whole essay. I particularly liked the ones with furtive glances to the camera. There's a real atmosphere captured. Thanks. Very enjoyable indeed

DSCF0209
by primabarbara

Comment by mariuca:
I completely agree with Henry's comment. You have here a serie of photos that will become within a year part of the changing history of Cuba.

TH-(2)
by primabarbara

Comment by mariuca:
I love the subject of your collection, the choice of B&W and the restraint processing.

If you were to publish a booklet you could rearrange them the way you like and size them accordingly. For the purpose of an essay I would first separate them in two collections: one that are vertical so for the portrait orientation I would select # 4, 5, 10, 12, 18, 19, 25, 26, 29, and 33 (I eliminated some) and the other collection in the landscape orientation. Pictures #7 and 26 could be good for first and last image in this second collection.

Very interesting "cast of characters".

DSCF0209
by primabarbara

Comment by mitalapo:
Nice (and of course colorful) collection. For me, the non-candid ones (the ones with eye contact) were more impactful (in general).

p.s. you rightfully chose this great lady to lead the pack. I like how she is about to say something significant and funny using her authoritative fingernail.

TH-(2)
by primabarbara

Comment by mitalapo:
Your choice of b/w reinforces the attention on the human aspects by muting down colorful objects. Nice to see how you hunt the hunters (if you are looking for a sub-theme to cut down the number of images in the essay, then maybe hunt-the-hunters could be it).

TH-(10)
by primabarbara

Comment by mitalapo:
nice analogy

A day in April never came so sweet
by primabarbara

Comment by tnun:
and it IS so sweet. glad you entered.

DSCF5136
by primabarbara

Comment by insteps:
My favorite image in your essay.

DSCF0209
by primabarbara

Comment by insteps:
27 views and no comments?

The first cruise ship in nearly 40 years, bringing American tourists, has just arrived in Cuba. Tourism is going to be huge business and I’m afraid things will never be the same. You are lucky to have visited Cuba before these impending changes happen.

You’ve captured some lovely candids and portraits of the Cuban people . That being said, as a collection, I don’t feel relationships from one image to the next. The sum of the parts isn’t significantly stronger than the individual pieces. I believe concentrating on something more specific would make this a stronger essay.

TH-(2)
by primabarbara

Comment by primabarbara:
Thank you very much Henry for this detailed view.
I relish your approval on subject and quality and I agree about the number of pictures in an essay. You're right: it's hard to sort out... but it's necessary to get a stronger collection.
(Thats why I enjoyed DPL so much - there were my teammates who I could ask about their opinions before submitting)