Little Dancers

[DanRuch]

I'm new to the Forum. I quickly went through every photo on my computer. The archive goes back almost 20 years. It was a humbling experience to glean photos I felt worthy of sharing with knowledgeable critics. There were so many that weren't very sharp or interesting.

This one was taken with my Pentax K100d about 8 years ago. I stripped out the color in iPhoto.

Let me know what you think.

Thanks!

Dan

 

[SquarePeg38]

Makes me want to see more.

 

[Designer]

Let me know what you think.

Welcome!

This shot certainly has/had potential, and I applaud your vision for seeing it.

The first thing that is troublesome is the overall muddy grayness. It needs some whites and some blacks. Depending on what is in your original file, you might be able to boost contrast to try to drag some drama out of the shot.

Next, the composition either needs something more, or something less, depending on how one looks at it. Either more of the primary models or less of the one in the background would help us know what is important. For me, this is reminiscent of Edgar Degas, so here; Edgar Degas - The Complete Works - edgar-degas.org

You'll notice that Degas depicted the entire dancer(s), and was thus able to include their humanity as well as their costumes.

 

[Jeff1550 50]

Just the legs.????.....

 

[DanRuch]

Makes me want to see more.

At first I thought you meant that you wanted to see more of my pictures. (No ego here, eh?) But based on the other replies I understand more what you mean. I need to work on defining my subject better.

 

[DanRuch]

Thank you so much for the insights! It is rather gray, isn't it. I do need to work on defining my subjects better.

 

[SquarePeg38]

Makes me want to see more.

At first I thought you meant that you wanted to see more of my pictures. (No ego here, eh?) But based on the other replies I understand more what you mean. I need to work on defining my subject better.

I realized after I posted the reply that it was a bit ambiguous but, I didn’t change it because both interpretations are correct.

The photo makes me want to see more of the scene. as a b&w it does lack a bit of contrast and that distracting set of legs in the right corner should be cloned out. Also the ballerina on the far left I would either show her whole tutu or crop it just below that.

The photo also makes me want to see more of your work. It’s an interesting shot and has a lot of potential.

 

[terri36 7]

I think it's a charming composition! The viewer can easily see that the subjects are children, and I really like your strong leading line to the upper right of the frame. There's certainly nothing wrong with studying Degas for inspiration, but I think you showed sensitivity in not photographing for possible public consumption the entire child - many parents remain concerned about that. Besides, your vision is your own - go with it!

I agree with others that this shot could use some overall lightening, added contrast, and perhaps sharpening. You said it was a color shot, so it's just a matter of improving your conversion skills. You'll get tons of help with that around here.

Welcome, and keep posting!