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Author Topic: The Bench  (Read 3476 times)

RSL

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The Bench
« on: June 30, 2013, 06:42:23 pm »

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WalterEG

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #1 on: June 30, 2013, 07:58:28 pm »

Russ,

You are possibly already aware just how much I love geometrics and this, with the strong diagonal of the "bench" is strongly about the geometry inherent in the framing.  But on this particular occasion I feel that the geometry is merely a framework of support and confinement for the powerfully emotional narrative of the girl.

It is a cracker, sir.

W
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kencameron

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #2 on: June 30, 2013, 08:07:00 pm »

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Slobodan Blagojevic

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #3 on: June 30, 2013, 08:15:25 pm »

... It is a cracker, sir.

Walter, I fully concur with your assessment of the image's virtues.

However, something else caught my attention, the term "cracker." Just a day or two ago I was reading about its controversial meaning, especially its slang use:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/kathleen-parker-a-few-reasons-why-cracker-doesnt-compare-to-the-n-word/2013/06/28/93509d72-e024-11e2-963a-72d740e88c12_story.html

Nothing to do with you or Russ, just an example how my attention often gets hijacked or sidetracked ;)

Ken Bennett

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #4 on: June 30, 2013, 08:21:14 pm »

The strong graphic quality is of course the first impression, but for me the pensive pose of the subject is what makes the photo work. And the fact that she is sitting on the lit side of the bench, and not the shadow side, is serendipitous.
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Eric Myrvaagnes

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #5 on: June 30, 2013, 09:11:13 pm »

I like your new "geometric" period, Russ. And I agree with Walter that this shot is so much more than just a geometric pattern.

Eric M.
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stamper

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #6 on: July 01, 2013, 04:16:24 am »

One of the finest images I have seen on here for a long time. A good image makes an immediate impression on you when you first view it and this made an impression. One question. I take it this was in a shopping mall? Are you entitled to shoot without permission in a Mall in the USA? It is problematic in the UK. Some allow it and some don't. Some people expect - I don't want to open a can of worms - their privacy. I think it makes a difference if you can shoot without an over zealous guard chasing you about. :)

BTW I have had another look and this is a VERY fine image. It grows on you. 8)
« Last Edit: July 01, 2013, 04:18:36 am by stamper »
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seamus finn

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #7 on: July 01, 2013, 06:25:01 am »


Great shot.
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Rob C

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #8 on: July 01, 2013, 06:28:55 am »

Russ,

You are possibly already aware just how much I love geometrics and this, with the strong diagonal of the "bench" is strongly about the geometry inherent in the framing.  But on this particular occasion I feel that the geometry is merely a framework of support and confinement for the powerfully emotional narrative of the girl.

It is a cracker, sir.

W



Indeed, and it has great colour coding too; also, it makes the girl fairly anonymous, and that's always good, IMO.

Rob C

francois

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #9 on: July 01, 2013, 06:31:08 am »

Fantastic geometry… Well seen and perfectly done!
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Francois

Slobodan Blagojevic

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #10 on: July 01, 2013, 02:56:59 pm »

... Are you entitled to shoot without permission in a Mall in the USA? It is problematic in the UK. Some allow it and some don't. Some people expect - I don't want to open a can of worms - their privacy. I think it makes a difference if you can shoot without an over zealous guard chasing you about...

Malls are private property it the USA, thus the owners have the right to restrict or ban photography on their premises, and most do. Hard to enforce these days when every visitor carries a phone camera at least. However, try to use your DSLR or even a P&S and if the guard spots you, chances are they will approach you and ask to stop photographing. The reasons are several, from privacy of visitors, to protection of interior design solutions and trade secrets. For instance, a guard ask me to stop photographing this (and I only had my Canon G10 with me):

As you can see, I was also after geometry, plus some color ;)

amolitor

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #11 on: July 01, 2013, 03:58:46 pm »

While I do like this, generally, it doesn't feel organic and natural to me.

Of course you didn't pose anyone, Russ, I know perfectly well that it *is* organic and natural, it just doesn't *feel* like it. It feels quite mannered and excessively formal for my taste. That is to say, my taste as it exists at this precise moment, it's quite possible that tomorrow I will feel quite differently. It's that kind of picture, too.
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RSL

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #12 on: July 01, 2013, 05:32:27 pm »

Thanks everyone (you too, Andrew). This is a picture that echoes HCB's dictum: "It's always luck." But he added "You just have to be receptive, that's all." So I guess I can take credit for being receptive.

As Stamper guessed, it was in a mall, as was the last one I posted. I was on the second level and peered over the railing and saw. . . this. I had about five seconds to focus, frame, and shoot, because three people were walking toward the frame I wanted. It's cropped. When I saw it I knew it had to be roughly square for the projected shadows to work, and I was shooting with a four-thirds camera.

Generally speaking, Slobodan's right. U.S. malls aren't any happier to have you shooting pictures in them than, as Stamper pointed out, are Scottish malls. But the situation is a bit complicated. A lot depends on what's in the mall. If everything is retail and food, they can keep you from shooting pictures, but if the mall also is a gathering place for, say, a mime performance, or something similar, you may be home free. As Slobodan also pointed out, about all they can do is tell you not to take pictures, and ask you to leave if, after the warning, they catch you at it. I always carry my E-P1 with its fairly big Leica lens, and nobody ever has tried preemptively to keep me from shooting. I always look around to see if there's a guard in sight before I raise the camera and shoot. Now that we're in a recession and the malls are saving money, there are a lot less guards to look for.

Seems to me that trying to keep people from shooting pictures in malls and museums is asinine now that, as Slobodan pointed out, we all carry phones. My Samsung 4 GE has roughly an 8 megapixel camera, which is a lot more camera than the 3 megapixel Casio, the 4 megapixel CoolPix, or the 5 megapixel Olympus E-20 with which I shot some of my favorite pictures.
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francois

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #13 on: July 02, 2013, 05:47:12 am »

Malls are private property it the USA, thus the owners have the right to restrict or ban photography on their premises, and most do. Hard to enforce these days when every visitor carries a phone camera at least. However, try to use your DSLR or even a P&S and if the guard spots you, chances are they will approach you and ask to stop photographing. …

A couple of years ago, in Tempe AZ, I tried to photograph flowers in the parking lot. Sure enough, not 1 minute later, a guard stopped by and told me to stop immediately. I told him that I was only photographing flowers. He replied that the country was at war and my photos could be used to plant bombs (!?). I didn't argue and offered to show him the images and also to delete them from the memory card. He just said don't do it again, you can keep your photos. Then, he told me that the Phoenix botanical garden was a better place for photography and even offered to give me a map…
So, lesson learned, I don't take photos in malls anymore.
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Francois

stamper

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #14 on: July 02, 2013, 08:19:33 am »

<A couple of years ago, in Tempe AZ, I tried to photograph flowers.

He replied that the country was at war and my photos could be used to plant bombs.>

Unintended Humour.? ;D You shouldn't have offered to delete your photos. As far as I know - at least in the UK - only a court can force you to do so and after they have viewed them as possible evidence of a crime.


francois

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #15 on: July 02, 2013, 08:27:18 am »

<A couple of years ago, in Tempe AZ, I tried to photograph flowers.

He replied that the country was at war and my photos could be used to plant bombs.>

Unintended Humour.? ;D You shouldn't have offered to delete your photos. As far as I know - at least in the UK - only a court can force you to do so and after they have viewed them as possible evidence of a crime.




When I heard his words [plant bombs!!!], I started to chuckle but the guy looked serious and decided that my time was precious.


Edit: Obviously, the Google map team hasn't been bothered. I wonder what kind of stuff they plant.
« Last Edit: July 02, 2013, 08:32:45 am by francois »
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Francois

AFairley

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #16 on: July 02, 2013, 10:57:40 am »

Yeah, it's luck, but all the luck in the world won't do any good if you don't see the image there.  I agree that the girl being in part shadow really elevates the image.
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RSL

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #17 on: July 02, 2013, 11:16:30 am »

When I heard his words [plant bombs!!!], I started to chuckle but the guy looked serious and decided that my time was precious.

Wow! Those bomb-planters are really getting hard up now that the NSA has 'em on the run.
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Rob C

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #18 on: July 02, 2013, 12:30:03 pm »

When I heard his words [plant bombs!!!], I started to chuckle but the guy looked serious and decided that my time was precious.


Edit: Obviously, the Google map team hasn't been bothered. I wonder what kind of stuff they plant.


Weed.

Rob C

francois

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Re: The Bench
« Reply #19 on: July 02, 2013, 12:31:42 pm »


Weed.

Rob C

Thanks Rob, I should have known!  :D
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Francois
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