| Author | Thread |
|
|
05/20/2002 12:28:03 AM · #1 |
OK, I didn't intend to take the results for my photo, "Halasana" very seriously when I entered, but I had no idea that it would make people go "ewww". Nor did I think anyone would react to it as though it was a photo of a naked man. I definitely didn't think it was going to make people think of auto-fellatio!
It's just a guy's back, from an odd angle. My boyfriend and I do yoga. I love the way it feels almost as much as I love just watching people do it! Human bodies are incredible things, capable of making wonderful shapes. My favourite part of my photo is the shoulders and upper arms. Were people really, seriously offended by it? Does the sight of any bare flesh make people uncomfortable if it's not a naked chick? What am I missing here? |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 01:28:09 AM · #2 |
Originally posted by lisae:
Does the sight of any bare flesh make people uncomfortable if it's not a naked chick?
Yes. |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 05:33:57 AM · #3 |
| Lisae, there is just no way to satisfy some people. There was nothing wrong with the photo and you sholuld not have gotten the type of remarks you got. |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 06:51:21 AM · #4 |
| After thinking about it a little bit more, I really want to make sure I don't sound angry here, because it was only a few comments that were like this. Most were either favourable, or used the word "ouch". It was the fact that the very first comment I received, on my first entry on this site, said "eww" that threw me off :). It was not what I expected at all. I don't mind being ranked 68th since most of the photos I've rated highly, even some of my 10s, in other challenges have come pretty low in the final results. |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 06:55:24 AM · #5 |
| I actually thought it was an interesting picture myself. I voted it rather highly I believe. |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 07:13:25 AM · #6 |
no offense, but between the hairy arms, the spare tires, and the quality of the skin, it wasn't really all that photogenic.
not trying to be mean, just honestly answering your question.
sorry! : P |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 08:51:25 AM · #7 |
Originally posted by magnetic9999:
no offense, but between the hairy arms, the spare tires, and the quality of the skin, it wasn't really all that photogenic.
not trying to be mean, just honestly answering your question.
sorry! : P
Well, I don't know about spare tires... he's a fairly thin guy, it's just that in that position everything gets a bit squished. I personally find it hard to breathe with a breast up each nostril.
But, I much prefer photos of normal people to photos of people who are supposed to be "attractive". I like real skin with real texture, I like faces with creases, I like body hair (on men I *love* body hair). It's all a matter of opinion.
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:06:54 AM · #8 |
Originally posted by lisae:
It's all a matter of opinion.
I think you've answered your own questions, here. Unfortunately, it IS all a matter of opinion. If there's one thing I've learned from this site, it's to be happy with your own work. Because when it comes down to it, your opinion of your work is all that really matters.
- mike
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:13:29 AM · #9 |
Lisae, i scored your photo a 6 and left the following comment:
I don't think I understand the title but this is definitely an interesting interpretation of 'upside down'.. good job!
I didn't really understand the photo at all until I read your comments in this thread. I think that a vertical representation of the image showing more of the subject may have offered better interpretations by the viewers/voters possibly. When I am voting on a photo that I don't understand, it makes it difficult sometimes. The title of your shot didn't help me understand it either, since i don't know yoga terminology. If the title said 'yoga' in it somewhere, I may have had a better understanding of the image.
Originally posted by lisae:
OK, I didn't intend to take the results for my photo, "Halasana" very seriously when I entered, but I had no idea that it would make people go "ewww". Nor did I think anyone would react to it as though it was a photo of a naked man. I definitely didn't think it was going to make people think of auto-fellatio!
It's just a guy's back, from an odd angle. My boyfriend and I do yoga. I love the way it feels almost as much as I love just watching people do it! Human bodies are incredible things, capable of making wonderful shapes. My favourite part of my photo is the shoulders and upper arms. Were people really, seriously offended by it? Does the sight of any bare flesh make people uncomfortable if it's not a naked chick? What am I missing here?
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:17:03 AM · #10 |
lisae...I think you are a bit of a victim of a lower end camera but my 2 cents.
I like the brickwork. A nice element that could have used to great effect.
The pose. Great Idea. I Don't do yoga but I can appreciate the forms created.
It seems there are a lot of elements there that make a great shot meaning you know where you want to go but it's just not connecting.
My shot this week was the same way. I think it had some interesting elememts and in some ways resembled the idea of the winning photo this week.
I seemed to miss the simplicity of the shot. I had a couple of other angles ...
Upside Down outakes
and I thought the elements were good but I just missed the connection to move up higher.
I think your shot may be the same. A lot of good elements but maybe needing a different light, angle or composition.
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:18:10 AM · #11 |
Hokie,
Your photo was one of my 10s last week.. i loved your concept... great shot!
Originally posted by hokie:
lisae...I think you are a bit of a victim of a lower end camera but my 2 cents.
I like the brickwork. A nice element that could have used to great effect.
The pose. Great Idea. I Don't do yoga but I can appreciate the forms created.
It seems there are a lot of elements there that make a great shot meaning you know where you want to go but it's just not connecting.
My shot this week was the same way. I think it had some interesting elememts and in some ways resembled the idea of the winning photo this week.
I seemed to miss the simplicity of the shot. I had a couple of other angles ...
Upside Down outakes
and I thought the elements were good but I just missed the connection to move up higher.
I think your shot may be the same. A lot of good elements but maybe needing a different light, angle or composition.
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:30:46 AM · #12 |
mine too, dude. i shoulda known that was you! : )
Originally posted by jmsetzler:
Hokie,
Your photo was one of my 10s last week.. i loved your concept... great shot!
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:33:19 AM · #13 |
i understand that viewpoint. i think , tho, when the subject is someone to which we already have an emotional attachment, it is difficult to view it subjectively. i think that's why parents of a baby have endless apetite for looking at pictures of the tyke, or why i never get bored taking pictures of and looking at pictures of my kitty cat : )
p.s. looked at your pic again, saw only one 'ew'.
Originally posted by lisae:
Originally posted by magnetic9999:
But, I much prefer photos of normal people to photos of people who are supposed to be "attractive". I like real skin with real texture, I like faces with creases, I like body hair (on men I *love* body hair). It's all a matter of opinion.
* This message has been edited by the author on 5/20/2002 10:00:17 AM. |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:20:31 PM · #14 |
Thanks for all the comments. You definitely get much better analysis when you discuss your photo in the forums :).
Magnetic - there are two "ewww"s :P, plus an "unappealing" (as you know), a "thank you for saying no to crack" and a "self-sucking" comment. Those were the ones that confused me a bit, but I wasn't offended. I just wanted more explanation.
I definitely think a better title would have helped me now, and I'll pay more attention to that in the future. This photo pretty much appeared in my mind the way I ended up taking it, although the brick steps were an element that happened when we were looking for a location for the shot. I like the way it turned out. I don't think I can really change the things I want to photograph to make people happy, because I can't read the audience here at all. I was convinced that "Child Pose" would place last week, for example, but it was nowhere near that in the final ranking :/. So, I'll just keep amusing myself with my little Polaroid camera and see what people make of it :). |
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:51:59 PM · #15 |
"I don't think I can really change the things I want to photograph to make people happy, because I can't read the audience here at all."
Amen. I thought I had a chance to be a contender, just possibly, this week. I'm honest enough with myself and my work to know when something is good or just mediocre. A couple of my entries have been in the bland category (or at least "I don't get it") and their lower scores didn't bother me. But this one is different. I very obviously met the challenge, technically it's very good (as much so as I can get with my camera), I've had a number of positive comments, etc. etc. etc. But unless everybody else's scores are equally low this week, I think I'll be somewhere in the middle of the heap. Even if I don't deserve to win, I deserve to be further up then I'm guessing I'll place.
But then again, it's my photo and I guess everybody feels that way about their own photos, right? :-) Besides, as we all keep saying to ourselves, like some kind of mantra we're trying to believe, "It doesn't matter what THEY think as long as YOU'RE happy with your work."
*grin*
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 09:55:25 PM · #16 |
I couldn't agree more.... the photos i post here are great in my own eyes and that's about it... I like getting feedback though... even though 95% of the feedback is not very useful :)
Originally posted by Patella:
[i}
But then again, it's my photo and I guess everybody feels that way about their own photos, right? :-) Besides, as we all keep saying to ourselves, like some kind of mantra we're trying to believe, "It doesn't matter what THEY think as long as YOU'RE happy with your work."
*grin*
[/i]
|
|
|
|
05/20/2002 11:05:34 PM · #17 |
Gotta apologize for the "saying no to crack" crack. I just meant that I was happy the top of the frame wasn't any higher. I scored the photo higher than average, as it did have impact, but my eyes just kept getting drawn to the top (base) of his spine and then down to the forearms. I'm with you on having texture in skin - wrinkles, freckles, moles, warts, etc., but blotchiness is one thing I try to avoid. B/W takes care of this when I can't get it right in color. Good luck this week!
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 03:37:25 PM · #18 |
Originally posted by Patella:
"I don't think I can really change the things I want to photograph to make people happy, because I can't read the audience here at all."
Amen. I thought I had a chance to be a contender, just possibly, this week. I'm honest enough with myself and my work to know when something is good or just mediocre. A couple of my entries have been in the bland category (or at least "I don't get it") and their lower scores didn't bother me. But this one is different. I very obviously met the challenge, technically it's very good (as much so as I can get with my camera), I've had a number of positive comments, etc. etc. etc. But unless everybody else's scores are equally low this week, I think I'll be somewhere in the middle of the heap. Even if I don't deserve to win, I deserve to be further up then I'm guessing I'll place.
But then again, it's my photo and I guess everybody feels that way about their own photos, right? :-) Besides, as we all keep saying to ourselves, like some kind of mantra we're trying to believe, "It doesn't matter what THEY think as long as YOU'RE happy with your work."
*grin*
Wow, I certainly didn't look closely enough. I was fairly certain there was an unsidedown aspect to this shot, but I'm just not imaginative enough to pick it up.
I gave you a 5 initially, but you deserve a 10 ++ for this one. I'm the brick against the side of the head type. Sorry!
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 04:03:16 PM · #19 |
Swashbuckler -- By no means should you feel bad -- I didn't expect my upside down "Orange Cream Soda" pic to do that well because I intentionally made it hard to decode.
The comment you quoted referred to my current "games" entry that looks as if it will garner a score somewhere between 5 and 6 -- even though I expected that it would do better.
But thanks for the belated "10++" score anyway. *grin*
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 06:09:26 PM · #20 |
Patella...I think your upside down photo felt a lot like mine.
It had technical merit but failed to generate enough emotion to get over the hump of being in the middle.
I liked my idea myself or I would not have submitted it but my emotional attachment to it went away more quickly than I would have liked.
My main goal in my first month or two of owning my first digital camera was to try and get used to the technical aspects of the camera. To try to get a comfort level I used to have with film.
I am getting there and now my eyes can concentrate more on the image and less on the tech.
As far as what makes a great photo? Pffft! If it were that easy to distill into a single comment or two we would all be working in the big time :-)
But I think you can submit interesting and unique photos here AND do well in the voting. THAT is the ultimate test of a good photographer. |
|
|
|
05/23/2002 06:43:09 PM · #21 |
Hokie -- it was a lot like yours -- I think I mentioned that I'd considered the upside down class of ice filled soda as part of the shot I eventually created.
As for the emotional level of the shot being the problem -- possibly. Extrapolating from the comments I received though, and applying that to the larger voting population, I just think people either saw it as a misplaced ad shot from the week before and/or couldn't see that it was upside down at all. Thus, I didn't "meet the challenge" and thus I got lower scores. A low score was actually my goal though -- I was only disappointed I didn't score even lower than I did, believe it or not. *grin*
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 07:01:35 PM · #22 |
yeah, patella. i knew you were referring to this week's entry, but honestly, as you obviously know, the 'upsidedownness' in your soda pic was not really obvious. i also thought that the colors were quite a bit too overexposed and sort of 'old filmstrip looking'. kind of reminded me of those faded ads for the popcorn at the old movie theater. the colors and lighting were probably what were the least appealing part of that picture, because i'm not a really huge stickler for meeting the challenge if the image is great and has some relationship. i hope you don't mind that i'm being honest; i feel you can take it, and i'm not helping you by sugar coating.
and as far as scoring lower, i almost won the bet i made that my pic would get last place ! ;)
oh yeah: re halasana - i think it's a creative concept, the execution didn't hit me as much as some of your other pics, what can i say? : )
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 07:05:52 PM · #23 |
Originally posted by Patella:
"I don't think I can really change the things I want to photograph to make people happy, because I can't read the audience here at all."
Amen.
in fact, i got into this weird creative block place beause i *was* trying to read the audience. so finally i force myself to stop trying.
that's another part of what my turning in my snapshot of my cat's legs this last week was about: breaking free ! : )P
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 07:13:40 PM · #24 |
I like every type of photographic technique/subject known to mankind.
Pubes...bring it. Green snot flying out your anus..cool. Red flowers in the morning sunlight..I can get into that. Even a black and white shot of a test pattern can get me misty :-)
I mean...just take a photo ..you might actually catch something interesting..maybe not.
|
|
|
|
05/23/2002 07:17:19 PM · #25 |
Magnetic -- heck no -- bring on the critiques, as long as you're being honest and adult about it. I find your comments about color and whatnot interesting though -- honestly, they couldn't have been more true to life. And, as far as it goes, *grin* I personally DIG the orange and black and white.
As for the lighting, well, depending on what part of that you're talking about I'd agree. Not with the colors, as I already said, but with the hotspots on the balloons and on the bottle. I probably should have used a softbox since I was in a studio, but it would have been in the way of the shot unless I'd put the light on the floor. And since it's not my equipment, I figured leaving it on the tripod was a better idea.
Anyway, you didn't like colors and that's very much an acceptable criticism. I'm sure others didn't either. Thanks for letting me know.
|
|
