the colours on this picture are perfect, the blueish tinge, or maybe that's just my monitor lol add to the fact that this is supposed to be a dead person, and as stated beore, the toe tag is a perfect addition.
Um, don't know the rules about jumping into a comment section about one of the winning shots, but I wanted to ask Nawets about his monitor calibration. I'm looking at this with an Apple 30" HD Cinema Display that is well-calibrated and the photo is not at all dark. Is your contrast adjusted correctly?
Also, just wanted to add that I think the toe tag is necessary in the shot if you want to give context for a MVA due to speed. The tag gives a very impersonal, almost "statistical" quality to this photo that gives it impact in my view. As a former healthcare person who has seen thousands of dead human remains (yes, thousands), this struck me because after a while, you start to just categorize them in certain ways -- such as "the MVA, the CVA, the MI, the Suicide, the homicide," etc. . . . In this photo, the photographer chose to illustrate a speed MVA fatality with that one item that grabs people's attention -- a toe tag. In fact, how would one even really know that the person is dead without it? This could be a tall guy waiting for a massage and treatment at the physical therapists office for all we know. . . . They use white sheets. And in this day and age, I haven't seen a dead body in a clinical setting without a toe tag -- too much risk of a mix-up. so yes, the toe tag works in my view. . . .
LOL! yeah, unless you have access to your local hospital or county morgue it's pretty hard to come up with a dead body in 48 hours. . . . but you could create the liver mortis with make-up, although that gets a bit messy. . . . in any event, good job!
Thank you guys, it's nice to get the blue again :)
Focused:
Yeah, you're right, I know about these flaws. But it was a 48h speed challenge, and as you can imagine, it is pretty hard to find some free corpse available for shooting during the weekend. :) Thank you for your nice feedback.
Nice composition, exposure and the use of a cooler light temperature really makes this shot. I have to say though, as a person who has seen many bodies laying on morgue tables that I knew it was a fake from the minute I looked at it. For this to have been more realistisic, there should be some blue discoloration (liver mortis) around the heels and bottoms of the legs. That's when the blood settles due to gravity. This guy's feet look alive and well. The feet also would not be hanging over the end of the table (its kind of hard to tell what type of table that is, but it doesn't look like a morgue table to me).
But keep in mind that I was a professional health care provider so I am going to look at this photo far differently from the average viewer. Does it evoke strong emotion in me even though I see the technical flaws? You bet. It's good work in my book. I think that it is worthy of a blue ribbon for many reasons and my congratualtions go to the photographer.
I wonder if you could sue anyone who is speeding for 'attempting to commit suicide'.
But then again, I am a Speeding criminal and do not attempt to commit suicide so...
Lets derail my thoughts for a moment. Yes great photo, would work well even without a title. The cold tone of the color makes it look really dead. Good work.
My evaluation method of this challenge is as follows:
1. Did you catch my eye while I was driving by? Oh yes.
2. If I didn't catch the text while I was driving, did you intrigue me enough to look for this billboard again? No words are needed.
3. Did you sell your stuff to me? So disturbing. Yes you did.
4. Extra thoughts: So powerful, so shocking, so painful. So true.
10 at first pass. 10 at second pass.
Hope I will not have to see that again.
great concept! I think on this particular image though, it would have been better just black and white. The contrast and lighting would have translated well. 7
ok, i am voting this challenge in 2 passes. in this pass, you will get a partial comment and a score. then i will come back to comment again. if you have any problem whatsoever with this comment, pm me and let me know. otherwise, take it with a grain of salt...i'm not trying to be a know-it-all, i'm just explaining where i'm coming from in voting this challenge. and, if this comment is NOT helpful (of if you think i'm full of $#!+), don't mark it helpful.
billboards are a science unto themselves. a lot of research has gone into determining just how much information a person can digest and retain in specific time spans. they use this information to develop formulas for determining the number of words and letters to use on billboards, as well as their sizes. they also determine the size and number of visual elements to include.
the graphics/photograph on a billboard are designed to get the point across in a moment. on the road, a driver will have less time with a billboard than a voter will give your image. this is a key element in the challenge: composing a shot that will get its point across quickly and succintly. along those lines, a strong composition will probably have few details and make strong use of negative space.
----------
nice concept. works well as a photograph, almost as well as a billboard. in terms of imagery and conveying the idea, you nailed it. the presentation is off, though, due to the border. the toe tag could have been a bit heavier, as it would be hard to read at 60 mph. all the same, one of the better entries in the challenge. good luck!
Advertisers wouldn't waste billboard space on a border. Things need to be as big as possible to get noticed by drivers. Great concept though and the shot it self is well composed.
I really like the impact of this photo. The toning you've chosen suits the subject matter very well. Being a big fan of Six Feet Under, I tend to like dark images like this :)
This should win the blue ribbon hands down. The clear best of the bunch. I was going to do a drunk driving one too but never got around to it. Congrats on your ribbon. 10
Very creative and very well executed. The only reason I gave it a 9 is because of the border. Most billboards don't have them, and I think it would be more effective without. But excellent entry, nonetheless.
In a pretty good shape for someone taken out of a 95mph car :-)
Two things: the border I'm not so sure about, and the tag size - it may end up beeing too small to read on a billboard. However, one ot the better photos so far.
AWESOME ! This is my favorite so far. This didn't need a title to save it or make me "get it". I like that's it not a copycat of some well known advertisting. The compostion is perfect. The color tone used really makes this have that punch to it. 10 ++++ Good luck !
Speeding Will Kill You
Add photograph to your favorites
Add photographer to your favorites
Photographer found comment helpful.
