The Photographer

[ceeboy14]

 

[MiFleur]

You know what bugs me? It is your title, that is not the image I have of a photographer...
But it is a nice shot, I would try to remove the branch that crosses the bench at chest level.
I like his concentrated expression and his straight sitting position.

 

[Derrel]

But the branch at chest level is foreground bokeh...it gives the appearance of spying or being voyeuristic; it creates a very "you are there" feeling; it is also a VERY popular compositional device throughout much of Asia. Most westerners loathe out of focus foreground objects though, and will outright reject *any* OOF foreground objects that overlap a human figure.

 

[kathyt]

But the branch at chest level is foreground bokeh...it gives the appearance of spying or being voyeuristic; it creates a very "you are there" feeling; it is also a VERY popular compositional device throughout much of Asia. Most westerners loathe out of focus foreground objects though, and will outright reject *any* OOF foreground objects that overlap a human figure.

Lol....with your foreground bokeh!!!! Oh Derrel. Some of the phrases that spew out of your mouth crack me up.

 

[ceeboy14]

I think there is way too much credit and attention to silly details on this forum. So many shots are panned or discarded because people let the little things get in the way of a great shot. Derrel is correct in that allowing the foreground bokeh to exist lends itself to the voyeuristic approach to this shot. If the man with the iPad had been cognizant of my presence, it would have changed his stance or concentration and the shot would have been lost to just another tourist snap. It is nicely composed, pretty much perfectly processed and that this guy is taking a concentrated shot, that's the story in this photo...sorry I don't meet everyone's tidiness needs.

Actually, I don't think I meet many of the needs of this forum....it's why I rarely post here anymore.

 

[manaheim]

Actually I thought the idea and the title was sort of a sardonic combination, and I thought that was cute.

I liked the foreground elements. I liked the composition- or was at least fine with it.

The only thing that bugged me was the blue thing. It's very distracting because it's SO blue and SO big.

ceeboy, I seem to have this impression of you that's positive and my memory is that you post some pretty interesting things. (There's so many people on here that most times I just can't remember everyone- but I remember you- and it's not because yer a meanie or anything. lol)

Just shrug off the commentary that doesn't work for you and stick around. Remember there are a lot of folks on here who are new, and many who just won't click with this or that particular style and not realize that it doesn't mean your work is a failure.

 

[kathyt]

Actually I thought the idea and the title was sort of a sardonic combination, and I thought that was cute.

I liked the foreground elements. I liked the composition- or was at least fine with it.

The only thing that bugged me was the blue thing. It's very distracting because it's SO blue and SO big.

ceeboy, I seem to have this impression of you that's positive and my memory is that you post some pretty interesting things. (There's so many people on here that most times I just can't remember everyone- but I remember you- and it's not because yer a meanie or anything. lol)

Just shrug off the commentary that doesn't work for you and stick around. Remember there are a lot of folks on here who are new, and many who just won't click with this or that particular style and not realize that it doesn't mean your work is a failure.

I agree with Manaheim in that your work is memorable. I always enjoy seeing it. I also agree that the big blue thing is rather distracting in this image. Negative critique should not keep you away from the forum ceeboy, because you really have a lot to offer.

 

[DarkShadow]

Nice shot but I think B&W looks much better and less distracting from what ever that blue thing is the background and the blue stripes on the sneakers. I think.

 

[manaheim]

Oh yeah, good idea. A b/w might help it a little.

 

[ceeboy14]

I did it both ways and in the end, liked the color better which is sort of contrary to my tastes. Taking the advice the blue thing (a kayak) was distracting, I removed it. I also did some selective sharpening only on the guy to keep any contrary emphasis caused by the foreground bokeh from drawing attention away.

 

[DarkShadow]

Well done.

 

[ceeboy14]

Nice shot but I think B&W looks much better and less distracting from what ever that blue thing is the background and the blue stripes on the sneakers. I think.

I like the blue stripes as the are attention getters to this whole guy's decorum. He's fastidious, clean, and is showing a great deal of concentration to the task at hand. It was this that first drew my attention to him, not the camera.

 

[Derrel]

But the branch at chest level is foreground bokeh...it gives the appearance of spying or being voyeuristic; it creates a very "you are there" feeling; it is also a VERY popular compositional device throughout much of Asia. Most westerners loathe out of focus foreground objects though, and will outright reject *any* OOF foreground objects that overlap a human figure.

Lol....with your foreground bokeh!!!! Oh Derrel. Some of the phrases that spew out of your mouth crack me up.

Kathy, I can not tell if you honestly do not know what foreground bokeh means, or if you're just trying to play the part of the cute blonde. I have a feeling it's the former...

Here's a few URL's that lead to many pictures that illustrate the concept. The term foreground bokeh is pretty well-known among experienced photographers.

How to create foreground bokeh in-camera | Model Mayhem Education Blog


Foreground Bokeh Challenge, photo entries
Foreground Bokeh Challenge Results


post your favourite foreground bokeh pics: Canon SLR Lens Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

 

[DanOstergren30 5]

I think there is way too much credit and attention to silly details on this forum. So many shots are panned or discarded because people let the little things get in the way of a great shot. Derrel is correct in that allowing the foreground bokeh to exist lends itself to the voyeuristic approach to this shot. If the man with the iPad had been cognizant of my presence, it would have changed his stance or concentration and the shot would have been lost to just another tourist snap. It is nicely composed, pretty much perfectly processed and that this guy is taking a concentrated shot, that's the story in this photo...sorry I don't meet everyone's tidiness needs.

Actually, I don't think I meet many of the needs of this forum....it's why I rarely post here anymore.

I'm in complete agreement with you here! It gets to a point where listening to a lot of the crap people say here actually starts to limit one's capabilities as a photographer. "Needs fill flash" is one of those silly details that seriously gets under my skin, yet it get's said to the natural light photographers all the time. Kinda goes against the whole natural thing, and if you argue against it you are told all sorts of crap about how you're holding yourself back by choosing to not use artificial light.

Sorry for my tangent, just had to share what was bugging me about those silly details as well. I like the shot. One of my favorite things to observe while I was in Ketchikan was all of the tourists using their ipads as cameras. I have nothing against calling them photographers, or have anything against them using these devices to take pictures; I think there is a beauty in art made with available technology.

 

[manaheim]

I think there is way too much credit and attention to silly details on this forum. So many shots are panned or discarded because people let the little things get in the way of a great shot. Derrel is correct in that allowing the foreground bokeh to exist lends itself to the voyeuristic approach to this shot. If the man with the iPad had been cognizant of my presence, it would have changed his stance or concentration and the shot would have been lost to just another tourist snap. It is nicely composed, pretty much perfectly processed and that this guy is taking a concentrated shot, that's the story in this photo...sorry I don't meet everyone's tidiness needs.

Actually, I don't think I meet many of the needs of this forum....it's why I rarely post here anymore.

I'm in complete agreement with you here! It gets to a point where listening to a lot of the crap people say here actually starts to limit one's capabilities as a photographer. "Needs fill flash" is one of those silly details that seriously gets under my skin, yet it get's said to the natural light photographers all the time. Kinda goes against the whole natural thing, and if you argue against it you are told all sorts of crap about how you're holding yourself back by choosing to not use artificial light.

Sorry for my tangent, just had to share what was bugging me about those silly details as well. I like the shot. One of my favorite things to observe while I was in Ketchikan was all of the tourists using their ipads as cameras. I have nothing against calling them photographers, or have anything against them using these devices to take pictures; I think there is a beauty in art made with available technology.

Well... I'd argue that you also have the opposite issue... Which is people defending poor choices as some sort of artistic or stylistic thing... And 'natural light photographers' very frequently fall into this category.