DPChallenge: A Digital Photography Contest
 
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American Dreamer
American Dreamer
blindjustice


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Self Portrait Without People III (Advanced Editing VII)
Collection: challenges
Camera: Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi
Lens: Lensbaby 2.0
Location: Hartford CT
Date: Jul 22, 2012
Aperture: inf
ISO: 100
Shutter: 1/4000
Date Uploaded: Jul 22, 2012

 IMG_1730amerin dream
crop shadow highlight photo filter
saturation tool/desat dodge burn
resize

I was happy with it. Kiss of death. 4.5

It was going to be titled middle American semi suburban back lot overgrown dreamer. That would have been a bit much.

This is the parking lot behind a super Thai-Lao restaurant on the Hartford/ West Hartford line. I guess I was intoxicated by sticky rice and shrimp pad thai, but my concept was that here is a beautiful scene,(at least in person) gorgeous blue sky green grass summer day. But its out the back of a little used trucking company with decay and all the trappings of overgrown, not worth it to take care of end of a boom decline. Kind of an anywhere in America place, places at the end of parking lots that we daydream into. All I had was the lensbaby attached, so the dream thought came to mind.

In retrospect, the image quality is not so good. I know. And, I was going for a more stale feeling of economic ennui- and it would have worked better with a nice foreclosed house and this title. But, that is too negative for a "self portrait" anyway. (I thought the light on on the dock was a hopeful sign,)

When you add all this together, poor image quality, difficult to crack theme, well you get the picture. I will keep dreaming.(of image quality improvements)

Statistics
Place: 66 out of 67
Avg (all users): 4.6400
Avg (commenters): 7.2500
Avg (participants): 4.9412
Avg (non-participants): 4.4848
Views since voting: 471
Views during voting: 198
Votes: 100
Comments: 5
Favorites: 0

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AuthorThread
Ricoh GR III
Pentax DA 18-135mm F3.5-5.6ED AL [IF] WR DC
 08/03/2012 12:29:16 AM
dreamers these days are rare and brave. en amerique.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
Canon EOS-40D
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
 08/02/2012 11:30:58 PM
I like this emptiness
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Fujifilm X30
Custom Made Pinhole
 08/02/2012 02:22:07 PM
Isn't it great to dream.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS
 08/01/2012 10:00:35 PM
This makes me smile, though my sentiment may not be what you've intended. It is a bland scene, with little to recommend it. The colors are washed out, as Lensbaby colors often are. Yet if one squints just so, one can see the potential here. A quiet spot of respite, perhaps a small garden awaits. Hence, your title. You are perhaps someone who sees what might exist, rather than being swayed by what doesn't.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Nikon D810
Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED VR
 07/28/2012 02:25:09 PM
LensBaby?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
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