Also not New York

[amolitor]

This isn't really well suited to TPF, but other people have liked it, so let's see what y'all think. Comments and critique welcome, as usual!

 

[runnah]

If the man.woman is the subject I would do a tight crop on them. The bottom 1/3 doesn't add anything for me personally.

 

[Parker219]

^ Agree with the edit.^

 

[amolitor]

My take on it is that the photograph is about the footprints in the snow as much as anything else, but I see your point on the crop. That is also a nice image!

This was an almost completely accidental photograph. I was curious about the portion of the sidewalk where the snow was melting (which is a pretty interesting little tidbit in the photo) when I saw the gentleman in the bowler hat approaching. I didn't even notice the footprints, the for rent sign, or the figure in the distance. I am literally in front of my house at this moment, so at some level I knew about some of those things, and since the footprints are mine I was probably aware of them.

I could pretend that I set this up consciously, or that somehow my subconscious cobbled all these pieces together into the frame by magic, but I don't think so. I think I spotted a couple of elements, and got lucky on the rest.

 

[sleist]

I like the crop a bit better as well. Nice shot.

This isn't really well suited to TPF

Not sure what this means ...

 

[amolitor]

I like the crop a bit better as well. Nice shot.

This isn't really well suited to TPF

Not sure what this means ...

Not a lot of people on TPF get "street" of which this is a .. well it's not a particularly GOOD example, but it's sort of in the genre. I think we're actually seeing that here, (so far) nobody likes the footprints in the snow at the bottom of the frame, or feels that they're important. I'm certainly not objecting to that preference, and as stated, I see that cutting that off certainly strengthens certain aspects of the image.
[h=3][/h]

 

[o hey tyler]

Not a lot of people on TPF get "street"
[h=3][/h]

That's quite a high and mighty conclusion to draw.

 

[sleist]

It's not that I don't like the footprints. It's just that there aren't enough of them (in my opinion) to be an obvious part of the composition.
There isn't enough of them to tell a story without explanation given that the man draws attention away from them entirely.

 

[The_Traveler]

IMO, it is the distraction of the dark squares of the sidewalk and the stairs that breaks up my impression.

 

[amolitor]

Thanks, everyone. It's been really interesting to see what you all make of it.

Tyler, I don't even know what to make of your snippy little non-sequitur replies.

 

[Forkie]

Great shot, but I agree about the crop. The footprints would add more to the shot if they lead down the path, but since they just seem to have been left by someone just shuffling their feet, the guy at the end of the road is the next obvious subject.

I like the B&W conversion though - looks quite filmish.

 

[KenC]

I like the footprints and the part of the sidewalk with melted snow, so I'm with you on the basic idea. Two things bother me about it, though: (1) I don't see how the highlights being so dark really helps it; making the snow whiter would bring out the contrast with the prints and the darker part of the walk, and even the man; and (2) the parked cars are a bit of a distraction and I'd also prefer to see more of what's on the right, but this is really a minor quibble that many may disagree with.

 

[o hey tyler]

"Not a lot of people on TPF 'get' street [photography]" were your words regarding the subject of Street Photography and how it is perceived on the forum. I simply commented on the fact that it was quite high and mighty of you to suggest such a thing, as if you have some deeper understanding of what constitutes a good "street photograph." Just in case you needed it spelled out. Hardly non-sequitur.

As for the photo, it's very similar to airline food in it's level of "beige." Very flat, tonally. There's a whole lot of midtones which don't really do anything in the way of leading to a subject. It probably could have benefited from a lower shooting angle to both accentuate the sidewalk and eliminate other distractions. The footprints, IMO, do not add to the photograph, because they don't lead your eye to the man in the far distance of the frame. THAT would have been a great tie in, if they were actually suggesting that someone were walking down that particular sidewalk.

There you have my C&C.

 

[amolitor]

Thanks for your remarks, Tyler! I see that you are perfectly correct in your suggestions, they would certainly have produced a photograph that is quite a bit stronger in a couple of worthwhile dimensions.

You've also shown that you don't "get" street is, because your suggestions (and you are not alone here) are all about removing ambiguity and mystery, simplifying and focusing the image onto a single well defined "subject" and creating strong, clear, single narrative. That's what a great deal of photography is about, but it's not what street's about.

Saying that people on TPF don't "get" street isn't high and mighty. It's like saying they don't "get" Cubism or something, it's just a statement about the general tastes and background of the community. If I'd said "TPF generally doesn't "get" point-set-topology" would you have found that high and mighty?

 

[o hey tyler]

You've also shown that you don't "get" street is, because your suggestions (and you are not alone here) are all about removing ambiguity and mystery, simplifying and focusing the image onto a single well defined "subject" and creating strong, clear, single narrative. That's what a great deal of photography is about, but it's not what street's about.

Oh, okay. I didn't realize you wrote the book on street photography. MY BAD! :roll:

FTR, I've seen many street photographs that work on several different levels that do not fit into the mold that you just outlined. I'll even link you to a thread when I find it that you could potentially learn a lot from... That is, unless you've already learned all there is to know about street photography.