details: Ilford HP5, Rolleiflex TLR, probably 1/60 @ F4, in my garage with a bunch of 200 watt clamp-lamps.

-- Steve Leroux (steve@bigadventures.com), September 26, 2000

Answers

I like that there is some space above your subject's head because it gives me the sense of impending motion - that of him raising his head above his hat, like to say Boo or to stick out his tongue - because of his lively expression (all of which is by the eyes, by the way!). An appealing photograph in a whimsical sort of way. I like it.

-- Tony Rowlett (rowlett@alaska.net), September 26, 2000.

Hi Steve. Here's some good natured ribbing, 'cause I actually like this photo, but... I don't think you really used a bucket of clamp lights. It looks like you used one. Which was a good idea. Any extra light *on the subject* would have made this a goofy (and bad) image with aspirations beyond it's simple reason for being. A carefully placed clamp light on the background would have been perfectly way out of focus ( since you used f4) and supplied two supporting elements: 1) a little seperation of this guys head from the blackness, and 2) a little "garage" clutter to contextualize his hat. A good job with the genuine expression fitting the prop and directional light, good lighting of the face but the black background better suits a more serious demeanor. Welcome to the forum... t

-- tom meyer (twm@mindsring.com), September 27, 2000.

Okay, you caught me. Yt was actually several clamp lamps shining into a sheet of white polyester, making a nice cheap softbox. In previous attempts at this shot I had another "softbox" coming in from the right and the results just looked bad.

-- Steve Leroux (steve@bigadventures.com), September 27, 2000.

Tom's ideas would turn this into a more traditional image. However, this one is exactly what the top celebrity photographers are doing today - and the one I'd put in my portfolio.

-- John Kantor (jkantor@mindspring.com), September 28, 2000.