Flickr Pic: A boat sank
I hope to be a better photographer by studying good pictures (or pictures I like) over at flickr. Today I realized I could blog about them (from WITHIN flickr, no less -- how cool is that?) to keep notes on why I believe certain pictures are extraordinary rather than ordinary. Here's my first!
This one is by "-Harry-" and is entitled "A Boat Sank". The FACT that a boat sank is interesting, but it's tough to make a picture of the masts sticking up into a good picture. You are limited as to where you can stand and you can't adjust your subject matter (unless you have a BIG wench). However, you may still want to save a memory of what you see by taking a picture. How do you make it worth the shot?
-Harry- did it by including the unknown girl in the foreground taking a picture of the wreck. In doing so he created a sense of foreground and background and ended up framing the shot well to boot (i.e.: don't stick your subject in the middle of an empty frame -- move it to one side). Additionally, the fact that she is taking a picture of the wreck reminds us that the wreck itself is really interesting. Finally, any picture with a person in it just seems to connect better with the viewer.
Great work, -Harry-!
This one is by "-Harry-" and is entitled "A Boat Sank". The FACT that a boat sank is interesting, but it's tough to make a picture of the masts sticking up into a good picture. You are limited as to where you can stand and you can't adjust your subject matter (unless you have a BIG wench). However, you may still want to save a memory of what you see by taking a picture. How do you make it worth the shot?
-Harry- did it by including the unknown girl in the foreground taking a picture of the wreck. In doing so he created a sense of foreground and background and ended up framing the shot well to boot (i.e.: don't stick your subject in the middle of an empty frame -- move it to one side). Additionally, the fact that she is taking a picture of the wreck reminds us that the wreck itself is really interesting. Finally, any picture with a person in it just seems to connect better with the viewer.
Great work, -Harry-!
Comments
Thanks Kevin. I can definitely appreciate your analysis of my shot, since the same things were going through my mind when I clicked the shutter. But I took another picture of just the masts here,">http://www.flickr.com/photos/godsoe/73811029">here, and thought it turned out pretty well despite the lack of an unknown girl. I'd love to know if you think the analysis holds.
Posted by: Harry | December 23, 2005 08:23 AM
I think the other picture works thanks to the interesting wave patterns. Still, I think the analysis holds and it really makes this picture. You also captured her at the right angle -- since you can't see her face she doesn't become the subject of the photo but remains "everygirl". I've notice the same is true in some of the best advertisements I see: people are present without enough detail to dominate: they become whoever the viewer wishes them to be.
Posted by: Kevin Gunn | December 23, 2005 03:56 PM