#73 Rush is Relative: C&C welcome...

bbjones

Here's an idea I'm playing with. Do either of these work?

"Rush is Relative"

#1:


#2


Any suggestions are most welcome... thanks!

konomaniac

Maybe a saute pan with some butter and lemon??

indiegirl

As queen of "not quite with the theme" I think this will go over pretty poorly with most folks. You'll get nailed for it not being on-theme. FWIW, I really like it. But I never get very far so best not listen to me!

bbjones

konomaniac wrote: »

Maybe a saute pan with some butter and lemon??

If you are hungry, come on over. I've got a million of these things in my garden. Posing for a contest picture does not get them forgiven for eating my irises.

indiegirl wrote: »

As queen of "not quite with the theme" I think this will go over pretty poorly with most folks. You'll get nailed for it not being on-theme. FWIW, I really like it. But I never get very far so best not listen to me!

I hear you. The best entries, to me, are the ones that ride that line.* The point is to stretch your eye, so going the most obvious route is not the most interesting. However, if you go too far over the line, then it's just petulant. That might be interesting, but it's also annoying.

They said Marcel Duchamp (among many others) went too far over the line. Actually, some people still say that.

*I'm certainly not claiming to have ridden that line successfully...

GretaPics

I'm with you bbjones. Unless the rules specifically state otherwise, I think the interpretation of the theme beyond the literal is far more interesting.

I like the 2nd one the best with the snail's arched body (and it could be perceived as an attempt at rushing too.)

But I'm fairly new to these challenges myself so my credibility here isn't much.

GP

sweetharmony

Hi! ...I'm always on the edge with theme interpretation, too.....often even sabotaging myself and opting against a more conventional personal entry with one that I find more interesting....but anyway, in light of that, I think the snails are great. Love the sense of humor and I think that they will contrast well with other "fast" shots. For me, the first works because I think the spiral on the snail's shell adds an element of visual energy.
Just as an aside, what I like the most about these is the long snail shadow.....

SeascapeS

I love the shot, love it! But I'm out to lunch on the theme. I agree with using different interpretations of the theme, but sometimes going totally opposite is stretching it. My opinion, which is only worth 2cents.

sapphire73

I really like #2 and find myself brainstorming ways to tweak the title rather than the photo.... Love the shadow, the definition of the snail, the lighting, the contrasting texture of the sidewalk, etc.

As far as interpreting the theme, I have stretched it more often than not but had a very boring title for my last entry. Fortunately, folks paid more attention to the image than the title!

"Rushing at a snail's pace"

"The antithesis of rushing"

I googled at a snail's pace and came across the expression "at a snail's gallop" which I had never heard, but perhaps that will help you in some way. "The antithesis of rushing is a snail's gallop"?

Good luck with it!

bbjones

Thanks for your help, everyone!

I'm gonna gamble it on the theme. What's the worst that could happen, right? If it makes any difference, this guys was bookin', for a snail. I pulled him out of the flowers and put him on the path, and he was not happy about it!

I'm still torn as to which one to pick. I like the strong diagonals in #1, the long shell shadow, the clear eye-stalk shadows, and the good view of the shell.

In #2, I like the arch of the body, and the angle on the head.

From a composition point of view, I'm leaning towards #1. What would your art teacher say?

thanks for looking!

WhatSheSaw

I lean toward #2. I like the translucense of the body and the eyestalk is more in focus.

How about 'Faster Than Glacial' for a title?

sapphire73

WhatSheSaw wrote: »

I lean toward #2. I like the translucense of the body and the eyestalk is more in focus.

How about 'Faster Than Glacial' for a title?

Ditto

If it helps, I lean toward #2 not only because of its attributes but because I am wishing the shadow and eyestalk in #1 were more clearly defined. There are strong diagonals in #1 but I think the composition of #2 puts more emphasis on your subject.

bbjones

WhatSheSaw wrote: »

I lean toward #2. I like the translucense of the body and the eyestalk is more in focus.

Another good lesson I learned from this exercise: DOF for a long lens at short distance and wide open is VERY small. These were shot with 100m, f/3.2 from as close as I could focus (about 3 feet or so).

This site calculates it for you. With my settings on #1, my theoretical DOF is about 1/3 of an inch. I wanted to isolate the snail, but I probably should have used f/5.6, which would have given me a DOF of about 6/10".

I like the name ideas from everyone. I'm leaning towards something involving "a snail's gallop" -- that's a nice parallel to the theme contrast...

SeascapeS

I've been thinking about this too and it IS the title that's the problem, rather than the shot.

rteest42

Like 2, think the title does need attention... Maybe, " I AM rushing" Or "I'm in no rush," "he's not in a rush" "warp speed, snail style..."

bbjones

Thanks for your help everyone! And especially thanks Sapphire, for your naming suggestion!