taken at the local "spring fling" (shot from the hip, so she wouldn't um see me). curves to bump contrast, channel mixer to black and white (I lost the sky but I liked what it did to the tones everywhere else), hue/saturation to color it sepia.
Statistics
Place: 68 out of 90 Avg (all users): 4.8577 Avg (commenters): 4.1429 Avg (participants): 4.4211 Avg (non-participants): 4.9349 Views since voting: 996 Views during voting: 362 Votes: 253 Comments: 24 Favorites: 0
Took me a second to realize it was a cane vs. a golf club (nice grip). Was noting the eyes were too dark, but that actually makes a nice visual suggestion to the theme. A little oversharp.
As usual, Don, I feel like this shot belongs on a wall with a bench in front of it. It's not an instant grabber, but rather it invites you to think about what's happening to and around this girl.
I think the picture tells about how blind people perceive the world without help: one big jumble. It begins with her facing away from the folks behind her and continues through the confused background. And the tones are so stark, emphasizing the harshness of making your way in a sighted world without sight.
Oh. I just got this was a challenge entry. :) I'm not sure how well this fits with the challenge theme, but I know you don't really care about that.
The only thing that bothers me is that she almost looks pasted in. I think it's because of the dark outline on her cheek on the image-right side and neck on the image-left side.
Went back - had a second look - read all comments - and now my revised - and hopefully better thought through comment:
I still feel that the stick and the back of the person on the right is not adding value to your pic.
Must confess - taking more time on the pic than as per the original voting 5 seconds... her loneliness is more evident.
Hmmm, took me a bit to register she was blind. Honestly not sure what to think. My first reaction was... well... I'm clueless, got nothing really :D I suspect that says more about me than your image! Tones are a big plus though. Nice conversion.
As perhaps an interesting byproduct of processing, she looks almost pasted into the shot, which echoes the feeling (or lack of) I get from her facial expression.
I enjoy this photo and I think because of your title, I see hubub and activity all around her, the way she is holding the cane, as a virtual extension of herself, not a crutch. The tones are perfect, and the blown out sky is actually perfect to me as it surrounds your subject.
This one has me stumped. I see a girl who looks lost in her own thoughts. She seems invisible, even to the person directly in front of her(her mom perhaps?) The cane strikes me as her salvation/her rock of solitude and comfort.
Or, she could be waiting on some friends to come take her somewhere. Hard to figure within the context of a single photo.
hey guys, don't you see that the girl is blind?! So her stick in front of her face, and the fat lady are all distractions for us, and not for her. I guess that is the point of the photo, and the point well made. The girl is utterly inside her own world, so she does not really care abuot her own facial expression either - why would she smile if she can't possible see anybody smile back? The other interesting juxtaposition here is that everybody else in the frame is looking somewhere, except for her. The dark shadows on her eyes add to this feeling of solitude.
Interesting and thoughtful shot, Don.
I got she was blind. The rest of the stuff you said I don't see. So maybe I'm blind? What I do see is two people standing there bored and neither shown in a flattering way, IMO. That is by no means a requirement but I think if you are going to do that it should be done for some purpose that tells me more about them and this doesn't.
The dark shadows on her eyes almost look fake to me. Were they really that pitch black in the original? I would have loved to have seen her actual eyes. Btw, I've seen blind people smile even laugh no less!
hey guys, don't you see that the girl is blind?! So her stick in front of her face, and the fat lady are all distractions for us, and not for her. I guess that is the point of the photo, and the point well made. The girl is utterly inside her own world, so she does not really care abuot her own facial expression either - why would she smile if she can't possible see anybody smile back? The other interesting juxtaposition here is that everybody else in the frame is looking somewhere, except for her. The dark shadows on her eyes add to this feeling of solitude.
Looks like some sort of dipstick for testing the oil level in an old banger or for rectal exams. Was that a shot that went off by accident as you were taking the peashooter out? At least that is half the fun of those a530/540s. (And it got a mean spirited 3 from me, I will own up to).
The idea is unique (gave it a 6 in the challenge) but for me it isn't executed very well. It's just two people standing there looking indifferent. If anything the subjects are dehumanized in a way that tv news programs tend to do when they run generic video clips of people walking down the street. You even showed the overweight person in the most typical way (i.e. from behind and or not showing the face) and that to me just shows them as pieces of meat and not the people they actually are.
sometimes, your first reaction to a photograph is to its subject. Other times it is not. This is one of those other times. I wasn't drawn in and immediately went to reasons why - the black lump on the right side, a person's back no less. then the stick in the girl's face - she has an angry look and doesn't want me there. So I would immediately move on - my presence is not welcome.
So let us move on and find out what might be hiding. Other people with their back to me, looking elsewhere. This image is not interested in me as a viewer. It doesn't seem interested in itself. And the girl in my face with a big stick is looking down on me.
A very unwelcoming image indeed, almost threatening in its intentional disregard of me, the viewer. So odd that I have become so conscious of myself and my role as part of the photograph. Intriguing, to say the least.
When I saw this in the Challenge I voted it high, because both the blind girl in the foreground with her white stick, and your title gave me the story.
I also liked the way your monochromatic treatment of this unified the image and helped alleviate the busy-ness of the composition.
If I had my druthers, I'd have rotated this slightly to take care of the background people who are hanging on to that slope. But that's minor, and I forget whether you can rotate in basic, anyhow.
Anyhow others saw the busy bits, and missed the story and you received a low mark for a good image.
Personally I do not like the stick in front of the girls nose.. and the back of the person on the right is also a bit "obscuring" my vision... would have liked to see more of whats going on behind them.
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