Critique of Steven's Photos with Text

1.)  The first photo I've chose to critique is the feather picture.  First I like his quote of Walt Disney and the positioning.  He chose to lie the text along the feather's main quill and in this it draws your eye from the bottom left to top right of the picture.  This picture seems to coincide with the rule of thirds in that the feather seems to not be right in the middle since it has the text in the middle drawing your eye in a diagonal line along the feather.  The color is balanced with the soft brown tones from the leaves on the bottom and the harsher darker tones on the top.  The focus is on the feather and leaves on the ground while still incorporating the scenery of the woods in the foreground.  There is slight framing by the trunk of the trees surrounding the feather on the right side.  I like the texture you can see in the bark of the tree the feather is laying on.  The lighting is soft but I would have liked to see the feather have more light focused on it.

2.)  The second photo is the quad-picture of the Caution sign.  He uses framing around the sign and then frame within the frame by combining all four together.  There are diagonal lines that draw you up towards the smaller triangle holding the exclamation point.  His usage of multiple colors gives the tone a very calming effect to such a serious picture/sign.  I would have liked to see the framing more squared up so you cannot see the small black line at the right corner of each picture.  The focus seems to be off at the top of the picture of the exclamation point.  I do not see rule of thirds however, since it is broken up in quarters it feels well balanced.

3.)  The third photo I've chosen is the highways crossing.  This is an open framed shot showing all of these highways criss-crossing.  There are multiple horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines.  It shows rule of thirds in that the road with the text is on the top 1/3 plane of the picture.  The text however is a little difficult to see because it is over the shadow of the ledge of the road.  There is multiple frame within a frame images from all the crossing highways.  There is stop motion in the car that is moving on the bottom road, behind the pole.  It seems to be slightly over-exposed and a little bright.  I would have liked to see the outline of the building in the background more and if the blue highway sign was in focus.  I like the blue pop of color though that the sign gives.  It does seem balanced by the green grass at the bottom and then the white sky at the top.

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Critique of Steven's sequence pics

1)  I like how the colors are very warm and the sequence carries the twirl of motion through.  The first picture has less motion but the second seems to pick up motion.  The persons image helps you to see that the lights are above and around him/her.  The lightness on the right side balances out the darkness on the left from the persons body.  Gives a lot of feeling of motion.  I would like to be able to see the person's face or more outline of their body to get a better idea of what is actually in motion and what is not.  The persons body shows rule of thirds.  There is asymetrical balance that gives you the feeling of going from the right to the left into the darkest spot of the pictures.
2)  The sequence is good in that it is obvious what the subject is (cup of chocolate milk).  I would have liked to see the angle on the glass/table not change in the bottom sequence.  There is some motion in the pouring of the milk but mostly stop motion in just seeing the cup in constant images.  The focus seemed a little off in the middle sequences.  There are a few vertical lines and the point of view is different in that we are looking at the cup at a downward angle.  There is a vertical line within the table that lines up with the spoon.  There is rule of thirds where the glass is on the right divider plane.
3)  I like the subject of this sequence in how it is very natural and not planned.  The lighting is good and there is just blur in her hand motion as she rolls the dough.  The images seem to have a little too much going on and it takes away from the focus on the dough.  The pop of red in the right corner balances out the pop of red in the upper left corner.  The white dusting of flour balances out the tissue at the top of the counter.

Sequence & Blur

Portraits

Writing Assignment #1

June 17, 2012

Almost 67 years later, this photo of a navy sailor spontaneously kissing a nurse at Times Square is one of the most reproduced picture.  The photo was taken by a Life magazine photographer right after President Truman announced the end of the war with Japan inn 1945. 
What I have always liked about this image is the history and story behind it.  It was not planned, neither by the photographer nor the spectators and this you can see in their faces.  Despite the fact that this image is directly in the middle of the frame, the image still carries the feeling of shallow depth and sets the focus directly on the subject.  The lines in the street and the people draw your eyes behind the couple into the scene of New Yorks, Times Square.  Also, you can almost feel the glee and excitment eminating from the sailor's body language in the way he is embracing the unsuspecting nurse.  Her foot hold is off, however you can just sense her acceptance in his arms.  The feeling of euphoria pulsates from this shot and the surrounding images and people take me back to a different time in life.  It's always been a favoriate picture and I hope it never loses it's value or that the story is lost.

June 13 - Color - Edited photos