Demonstration against police brutality - Wash DC, Dec 13,2104

[Overread]

I'd say the shot is a hit in so much as you've great emotion upon one character and also a great class/contrast with the two main subjects. So it works as a photo.

However it says nothing to me about police or protest. There's nothing in the shot upon its own to really suggest either (minor consideration for protest because of the badge, serious look and paper, but that could be connected to other things very easily and need not all be unified). As you said if this were part of a larger presentation of work with protest elements it could indeed become part of that story and show an isolated element of the whole protest.

On its own it can't say protest easily - as part of a larger work it very much could.

You could also use a description to give context to the primary character or both characters

 

[sashbar]

You have captured a great facial expression and the character is truly charismatic. This person is so imposing , she could easily be a monument. All that is lacking here is a pedestal (hope I spelled it right). I think if you could fill about half a frame with this imposing figure, it would work really well as a close-up portrait and we could read the badge that explains it all.
This is all of course purely theoretical in a real "O! Great! Wait!! Oops. Gone..." street shooting situation like this.

 

[JoeW]

Lew, as a street photography shot, it works. Very expressive subject. There's even the potential for a class-race message (about the black and white women going in opposite directions or passing each other like two ships in the night). However, if you hadn't indicated as was part of a demonstration, I never would have gotten that from the photo. As a character study, it's a win. As a photojournalism assignment, not so. Now, as part of a sequence of shots this might work with the story (where you get some of the crowd and possibly signs so you see the message) and then you see her expression in this shot. But solely, this one doesn't convey any hint that it's a demonstration, let alone the purpose.

 

[fotomonkey]

I think I'm missing it. I just see an angry woman (or gassy) and what looks like Christmas shoppers. Aside from barely being able to make out what I now presume is a sign I would've missed the message.

This will probably be easier to understand if you see it amongst a bunch of other pictures from the demonstration about police excesses with African Americans in the US.
What I was hoping to show symbolically, as snerd said, that the African American community is disturbed and upset and the white majority is seen as 'turning their backs' on the problem.

Right. I get it, but only in context. By itself not so much. As others have said, on its own it's still a good image. We just don't capture the meaning you intended when it's by itself. You definitely captured some emotion there, though.

 

[pgriz]

As a stand-alone image, it doesn't really tell the viewer why the woman has the expression on her face that she does. In the context of the demonstration and some of the other images you captured, it is quite powerful, so I see this as part of a series.

 

[The_Traveler]

thanks all for the responses.