The Look

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The Look

What works for me in this image is the duality of her expression and the hints of possibility. Innocence & jaded truth. An unexplored need. I find myself drawn towards what I call "people photography", not portraiture, not street photography but a knowing exploration of a person. An attempt to show something personal. What do you think?



-- Joe Perrigoue (joe@supply.com), September 23, 1999

Answers

I think you got just what you wanted. "An attempt to show something personal". It's very compelling. I get the sense of intellectual presence in a beautiful woman who appears (to me) to be aware of how she looks and is comfortable with herself and her conflicts.

The photo is well composed and executed, in an invisible sort of way. By that I mean I don't wonder how you did it, I just enjoy it for what it is, a compelling photograph of an attractive person.

I'm not sure of what you mean by "An unexplored need". As a caption it would be troubling (perhaps you know more than this picture lets on...).

If I were to infer anything about her expression, it might be that she would be an interesting person to talk with during a walk on the beach. There would be contradictions enough to be engaged for hours...t

-- tom meyer (twm@mindspring.com), September 23, 1999.


Tom,

"Unexplored need" is mostly a youth thing I think. I mean that she is at that age where the world is filled with things to long after. Things like experiencing Paris in the spring or Ireland in the fall, making new friends and staying up all night talking in a cafe somewhere, falling in love for the first time, having an epiphany... Things that you know exist and that you desperately want to know but haven't yet, they remain unexplored. I think you can see that in her eyes.



-- Joe Perrigoue (joe@supply.com), September 23, 1999.

Call it whatever you want, but for me a portrait (or people picture...whatever) should convey something to the viewer other then what someone looks like. It should convey their personality or mood at the time of the shot. This one accomplishes just that. By viewing it you seem to learn something about the subject. Very nicely done.

-- rob dalrymple (robd13@erols.com), September 24, 1999.

"Intimacy without invasion." (I've stolen the phrase, but it applies well to this picture.) The ambiguity works nicely for me. Swimsuit with dungarees. Lots of flesh, but not a 'glamour' pose. The direct look at the viewer, with that knowing but inquisitive expression.

I'm not convinced about the angle, or the loose crop, but it's not a real problem. Perhaps it's a little overexposed.

Yes, it seems to a be real person.

-- Alan Gibson (Alan.Gibson@technologist.com), September 26, 1999.


I find the crop a tad loose, too.

But I'd be glad to claim it as mine. In addition to what's been said, I like the muted color palette. The blue of the denim can be found in the background as well.

-- Bill Smith (f8andbethere@rcn.com), October 11, 1999.



Well done! This is an intriguing photo. If I had photoshop I would like to see the image in black and white with a little more vertical pose if possible. Any takers out there?

-- (Sands@Msn.com), October 11, 1999.

I like the shot! To me it could go in a clothing catolog or be a portrate. I don't know what they mean aboutloose cropping. I would onlt suggest that maybe you might have your model not pull her clothes down as it looks like she is streching them and brings her shoulders and neck down. I do like it thow very nice picture and model.

-- Mark Jones (jmjonesx3@aol.com), February 22, 2001.

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