Thanks Brandtb.
Thanks Vieri.
About a 16-9 crop: I tried coming in closer and it does afford a better vantage point. My concern is, and I warn you this is a concern maybe too off topic to LuLA, is coming closer intrusive? I want this to be both something of an account and a memorial to a family's heritage- their tradition on the water, how they put seafood on their table and a few dollars in their pocket from the local seafood wholesaler.
How does this seem to you? Is a greater distance from the old, sinking boat a means to be more respectful ? Or not?
Thanks.
Richard
One way to show respect is to make the best image you can. I like Vieri's suggestion. Good image.
Hello Richard,
I see your concern, even though in a way that concern alone would take the photo out of the Landscape section to put it into the "Documentary" category (I hope that makes sense). That aside, I like sdwilsonsct point: as photographers, a great way (one of the best ways) to show respect to our subject matters, is to do our best to make the best image we can, the one that tells our intended story and conveys our intended message in the strongest possible way. This is true in general, for landscape photography or any other kind. Generally, I think that your concern about being intrusive is more of an issue when shooting street with actual people (Bruce Gilden seems to have solved all his qualms about that one!): in that case, you are entering their personal, "physical" space, and that is always to be done delicately and respectfully IMHO. Here, you are entering some "space of the mind", to create an image that tells a story and - honestly - a story that might be clear to you, since you know it, but to me (as probably to the most of us) this is just a sunk boat, could be any boat, a boat that put food on the table as well as a boat that has never been used for such purpose: nothing in the image suggests either. As such, I don't see any problem with intruding in someone's space; in fact, now that you told us the story, I see the opposite problem, which is that I don't see anything that points me to any story of the kind you told us with words. Perhaps getting closer would have revealed some more details that helped us understand the story without the need for you to tell it verbally? Personally, when I create an image I always have something in mind when I start working on it (both in the field and in post), and when the image is done I ask myself "did it succeed telling what I had in mind?", I ask myself if there is everything needed to understand the idea, nothing less but also nothing more, nothing distracting or superfluous, and so on.
Hope this makes sense. Best regards,
Vieri
