Gerrald

tsabary · Jan 7, 2015

I feel bad for not noticing I've missed the bottom of his necklace but I still like it. what do you think..?

James Baranski · Jan 7, 2015

Great detail

tsabary · Jan 7, 2015

Thanks that's the main reason I'm always drawn to take pictures of elderly. I like all the flaws, they tell a story

otherprof · Jan 7, 2015

tsabary said:
I feel bad for not noticing I've missed the bottom of his necklace but I still like it. what do you think..?

Beautiful portrait. I've never understood the idea of looking at portraits of people, who we've never met, and praising the portrait for capturing their essence or character. But this certainly gives me the feeling of who this person is and who he has been.

Benjo255 · Jan 9, 2015

It's a beautiful portrait. May be just a little bit too much Dragan fro my test, but it's a nice shot!

tsabary · Jan 9, 2015

Thank you..! Noy sure what a dragon fro means though.

The_Traveler · Jan 9, 2015

There are several things going on here that work against the image.
His face is rather dull grey and his eyes are not as sharp as they might be while his chin and beard are.
The background is an ugly grey tone and is covered with dust bunnies.

tsabary · Jan 9, 2015

The_Traveler said:
View attachment 92823 There are several things going on here that work against the image.
His face is rather dull grey and his eyes are not as sharp as they might be while his chin and beard are.
The background is an ugly grey tone and is covered with dust bunnies.

I agree about the eyes, I wish I had time for another shot. I volunteer in a hostel at the moment and this man was one of the guests, this photo was taken moments before he left.
About the bunnies, it's actually the dirty wall behind him when he was sitting.

Thank you for the CC.

tsabary · Jan 9, 2015

I tried to fix the background a bit what do you think..?

Heather Koch · Jan 9, 2015

I completely agree with you, on the fact that photographing elderly is definitely an experience. They have so much to tell and one can just imagine what they've been through, while having a smile on their face. Great emotion!

LOVE IT.

Benjo255 · Jan 9, 2015

Dragan: boosting micro contrast areas. I think it's something like "clearness" or "clarity" or something like that in english.

sleist · Jan 9, 2015

The wide angle is unflattering in my opinion. He's all nose.

Nettles · Jan 10, 2015

There are several things working for this shot, in my opinion. It's a strong whimsical expression coming from a worn out face. Looks like lots of resilience captured there. A rough(ish) background will always suit that.

It's not true that eyes must always be tack sharp - it helps, but doesn't always hinder the overall impact. We can't always get hung up on photographic technicalities such as this, or even the necklace. It's a good image that gets the job done. B&W is a good choice too.

kdthomas · Jan 13, 2015

I like the image, reminds me of some of Avedon's portraits ... there's a lot of character here. This guy's been there & seen it.

The cropped necklace doesn't bother me ... I think what's beating me up here are the midtones. I might suggest tinkering with the curves and see if you can deepen the contrast. Maybe darken the lines in his shirt or bandana?