The Modern American Cafe

[fjrabon]

The more I think about them the more I'm of two minds. The no cup shot is clearly the more technically sound shot. I don't think that's even arguable. However, the first shot is a bit more ambitious, which swings me toward it somewhat. It's a more complicated image, trying to reconcile why the cup is there. I think it also helps balance the man a bit better, and allows three lights instead of two, which I think is better in some ways.

However, I think the question becomes does the viewer 'get' the cup or is it just an ugly thing that takes up space and causes the person to be too small in the framing? In some sense the cup is ugly and clashes and is a mixed design motif. But that's also part of the point, that McDonald's is sort of an ugly gobbledygook of imagery.

I also like the sense of depth the cup creates, in that it seems to both bring a connection to the image, in that it seems like you are sitting there, drinking that coffee, looking at that man, while also creating a bit more distance between the viewer and the man as well.

But much of those thoughts are in MY head and to me it's unclear how much, if any, of that a viewer would see or feel. That's what I meant when I said I really liked the IDEA of that shot, but felt it fell a little flat in reality. Not sure it could have worked the way I thought it might or if my thoughts on the shot were actually impossible to have come across in any photo.

 

[The_Traveler]

The more I think about them the more I'm of two minds. The no cup shot is clearly the more technically sound shot. I don't think that's even arguable. However, the first shot is a bit more ambitious, which swings me toward it somewhat. It's a more complicated image, trying to reconcile why the cup is there. I think it also helps balance the man a bit better, and allows three lights instead of two, which I think is better in some ways.

However, I think the question becomes does the viewer 'get' the cup or is it just an ugly thing that takes up space and causes the person to be too small in the framing? In some sense the cup is ugly and clashes and is a mixed design motif. But that's also part of the point, that McDonald's is sort of an ugly gobbledygook of imagery.

I also like the sense of depth the cup creates, in that it seems to both bring a connection to the image, in that it seems like you are sitting there, drinking that coffee, looking at that man, while also creating a bit more distance between the viewer and the man as well.

But much of those thoughts are in MY head and to me it's unclear how much, if any, of that a viewer would see or feel. That's what I meant when I said I really liked the IDEA of that shot, but felt it fell a little flat in reality. Not sure it could have worked the way I thought it might or if my thoughts on the shot were actually impossible to have come across in any photo.

^^ that

 

[KenC]

Without the cup and with the sepia, a la Lew. I see what you're trying to do with the cup, but I think for that to work, the cup would have to be closer to the rest of the scene. As it is, you end up incorporating a lot of empty space that contributes nothing and throws off the composition.

 

[fjrabon]

Without the cup and with the sepia, a la Lew. I see what you're trying to do with the cup, but I think for that to work, the cup would have to be closer to the rest of the scene. As it is, you end up incorporating a lot of empty space that contributes nothing and throws off the composition.

I agree that the cup doesn't totally work. That being said, part of what I wanted to create with the cup was that feeling of emptiness and distance. I wanted the viewer to feel inside the picture, just as distant from the man as you would be, looking in a restaurant that is just as empty as it was. I think the failure isn't so much the distance, emptiness and space, the failure is more that I didn't adequately get the viewer to feel those correctly, instead making it simply look wrong.