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09/16/2002 08:19:05 AM · #1 |
Well, let me say that I'm not quite satisfied with my placement of "Renaissance" :-/ Personally I think this photo is better than what the score reflects. I'm not sure if everybody was aware of what I tried to convey. Some seemed to get it (hey Gene, hey Grayce :-)), some not.
There was an art epoche called Renaissance (hence the title) and a typical painting from that epoche is a still life with grapes, a lobster and other things. I thougt that this is such a typical and well known painting that everybody knows it. My idea was to try to make a photo in the same "style" like this. I guess I failed.
Despite it took me a lot of time to do it like it is now, I know it has flaws which I can see now thanks to your comments. E.g. the cut off candlestick on the left side. I think I should have removed it and put the clown on the left side. Especially because he looks to the right side.
But I don't really agree with some of the other critics:
Too dark? No. Not every photo has to be with bright and with vivid colours. The darkness was intended. It shouldn't be "serene" but more like "gloomy", "melancholy" and "death" (which was a common reference in Renaissance). It seems I failed miserably.
Too busy? I don't think so. It has more than the standard 1-3 items to look at but I don't think that's "busy". And yes, the sea shell was there on purpose, too. One of the other elements in Renaissance (apart from the death reference) was "geometric repetition" (don't know if that's the correct term in English). E.g. the golden mean was used very often and one can find the golden mean in the spirals of a sea shell.
Now I see that in a "fruits and vegetables" people would like to see excatly that and not a experiment photo which just happens to include them. So maybe I misused the challenge a bit for my trial and maybe that's why so many people voted so low on it?
I don't say the photo is perfect or anything. I know it has flaws, but honestly is it really that bad? Or is it just boring?
It discourages a bit to see that people don't get what one wanted to conevy. I know that only my photo is to blame for that, but maybe now that I explained it a bit more some of you have a suggestion what I could do better to express my intention in the photo. I would be glad to hear them, because I want to reshoot the photo. Thanks in advance.
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09/16/2002 08:30:18 AM · #2 |
Stephan, I liked the mood of this image, as I indicated in my comment. As for understanding the merit of what you were trying to accomplish, I would have been lost. I'm no student of art.
I also don't mind the cropy of the object on the left of the frame. It didn't bother me that it was cut off, but it is a VERY easy item do draw a critique.
I have stopped critiquing things like that. I thought it was insignificant to the rest of the image...
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09/16/2002 08:35:16 AM · #3 |
| I am an art student and saw the reference imediately. LOved it. |
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09/16/2002 08:37:34 AM · #4 |
Up-front let me say that I gave this a 6 because I thought it was fine technically, but not that interesting.
I also think your historical/art periods are incorrect. The "standard" Renaissance picture includes realistic human beings (a Renaissance key re-discovery) and good perspective and generally has a religious tone. Your pic looks a lot more like a much later period of Dutch still lifes. |
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09/16/2002 09:06:32 AM · #5 |
Stephan, I understood what you were attempting straight away, and if it had worked I would have loved it. But it didn't work for me, firstly because the composition was very loose, and secondly because the items in the photo look too modern (especially the square candle). Renaissance composition is very tight and structured, particularly in triangular arrangements, and the objects in still life paintings were usually very rich, lavish, ornate things. Did you have a painting you based this on? Perhaps if you had used one as a guide it would have helped you.
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09/16/2002 09:38:18 AM · #6 |
No, I'm not an art student, jmsetzler. I'm a sysadmin like you and photography or art in general is something I'm not very used to. I just recently explore things a bit more.
It seems that jakking is right. I did a mistake. That what I wanted to do really is not Renaissance.
This is an example of Renaissance still life, but that's only very loosely the kind of paintings I meant.
The week where we were called to take photos of fruits and vegetabales, I one day surfed the web about Renaissance and art/history periods in gerenal. I found this introduction and from there I got the reference about the golden mean and the use of proportions.
During my search I also stumbled upon the paintings of Jan Davidsz. de Heem. I immediately remembered a painting of that kind which I saw in my childhood very often. That's what I wanted to "copy".
Oh, well... I can only wonder now, how I got the connection between de Heem and "Renaissance" because it's not there. Seems that I mixed up some things I surfed on the web that day. Sorry about that and many thanks to you for your clarification and honest opinions. I feel much better now, because I know why I failed.
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09/16/2002 10:10:16 AM · #7 |
Stephan , please continue .. your disapointment is probably related as well to the VERY good score you did the week before for candid and the work and thinking you did put in it.
I gave yours a 5 only, I apreciated the light ( dimmed) and the colors but to me it looked more lilke a juxtapôsition of objects.
And remember that even if you worked a lot for it , it does not show and, in my opinion, shound not count or 'not a lot' at least. It's more the result that matters.
I guess everybody got the Magritte, the painting is more known.
I have to admit as well that I do not like what I see there //www.renaissance-gallery.net/page2.html ....
I liked your sony center A LOT, but have to admit I did not give you a good grade last week for the candid because, in my opinion, it was not meeting the challenge. But you got a good score and other people really liked it.
Please continue
Lionel
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09/16/2002 10:41:55 AM · #8 |
I gave your photo a 5. Why? It didn't seem to focus on the fruit. When I look at your photo the first thing I seen is the little guy. And then the candle, then the thing on the side of the statue and then the seashell. And finally I spotted the fruit. It has good lighting and a nice feel to it. but maybe not the right challenge. You did a good job. Keep shooting!
Sonja |
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09/16/2002 11:25:21 AM · #9 |
Lionel, thank you for your kind words. Of course I will continue to submit photos (you know the addiction ;-)). May disappointment was not based on the big drop of my score compared to last week. In fact I was surprised that I scored that high. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time. I didn't put that much effort into it. Same with my photo of the sony center. It's basically just an image of someone elses art.
And that's what's a bit discouraging (only a bit, not really). Photos where I try to think about something and put more effort into, score much lower than photos where I more or less point and shoot. This basically tells me that I'm not on the right track with my own development of photography.
But I agree that a photo shouldn't be scored extra high just because it contains more effort. It's really the result that counts. And while it's much harder to create something of your own it will be much more rewarding to me when someday one of my own ideas will do well in a challenge. I'll continue to work on that.
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