Here we go - For this mini-challenge you need two images; one shot from inside a place, a space, looking out at the world; and one shot outside looking in. Either or both images can show us something of both the interior and exterior worlds, but doesn't have to. Here are two quick examples:
Inside out -
And outside in:
Oh, because this is my challenge, and I get to set the rules:
No tilted horizons; no homeless people; no post processing beyond contrast and exposure, adjusting white balance, sharpening, and/or conversion to black and white. ;-) (And I'm not going to debate, discuss, explain, or modify these rules; they are what they are.)
The challenge closes on Dec. 3. So get shooting!
P.S. You get extra points for ambiguity - a good image should make us think.
I have NOT forgotten you, and will have a winner by the end of the day. These choices are difficult for me because several people only posted a single image, and while the single images were excellent, those posts missed the point of the challenge. Other people posted excellent images but wildly reinterpreted the challenge, and as this was my challenge, that doesn't wash. And some people had one great inside - or outside - shot, and then a mediocre outside - or inside - shot. So bear with me a titch longer and I'll post my decisions and tick everyone off.
__________________ bd@bdcolenphoto.com Dgrin Artist In Residence
"He not busy being born is busy dying." Bob Dylan
"The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Leonard Freed
Okay, so having said that, let me put myself out of my misery and declare a winner:
Tatiana, you have two nice images, but in the first you lose the kids in shadow, and the second seems a bit busy without purpose, and the color strikes me as, well, odd. But both are good catches;
Davev, nice shot of the Tetons, but just too much dense shadow across the bottom; the deer are nice, but that really isn't an outside-in shot. (good try with that. ;
PedalGirl, you were definitely headed in the right direction with that lovely first shot of the 'butterfly' trapped inside - really nice, but you totally lost me with that second shot;
WhatSheSaw, really nice inside-out - very National Geographicish, but sadly, the second shot is just too much of a jumble of reflections;
EvanLavine, I'll take your word for it that those are minors. It's weirdly good, or goodly weird, and I think it would have been a real killer with less defocusing. Unfortunately, you took it a bit too far so that we don't know what it is without explanation;
Ben, Ben, Ben... You have two great possibilities here, but didn't quite work your magic with either. The first needs post processing work so that we don't lose the head of the figure on the left in the shadows, and the second needs more of an inside-out sense, and I must say I'd prefer to see the figure more to the right, or way over to the left. But both are really close;
Paul (Froch) IF you had entered two images as strong as the one bar shot you entered, you'd have won in a walk. That's an excellent, slightly weird, shot;
Liz, if your outside-in image had been as strong as Jeeter 2, you would have beaten Froch. I loved that image when I first saw it, and it has only improved with time. Very, very nice. The other is "okay," but it would not be instantly identified as a "Liz," and you are at the point where you have set that high bar for yourself;
DsrtVW, the shot from the blacksmith shop is nice, but not a "wow." If only there'd been someone in that window;
DoingCool, you broke my heart. The first image is quite strong, though it could do with a bit of burning in of the people outside, and a bit of dodging on the interior - but it is an excellent inside-out. And the second shot could be a world-beater, but. Between your tilting for no reason, and your weird color post-processing, you leave me wondering if it really is as good as it seems to be. If it is - if the kid looks as weird as I think he does; if it is as other worldly-Stephen Kingee as I think it is, it would have been much stronger shot with a horizontal horizon and posted in its original color, or real black and white. Sorry;
Saphire73, you have a nice inside out, but it definitely needs dodging to bring out the sneakers on the ground, which make the image, and I'm afraid your outside-in, while close, is just too busy to have real strength;
Rainbow, the second of your new images is a winner, the first is 'okay' - and similarly, the second of the old images is terrific, but the first is just too damn busy, but busy without a real purpose. (But you knew I wasn't going to just pass this back to you, right? );
Billseye, if you had shot your inside-out from closer to the pile of clutter, you might have won. The first image is a definite winner - well composed, with a high WTF factor. But, unfortunately, the inside-out is just too loose.
So where do I end up? I end up with one set I want to make the winner, but just can't make myself do it:
Jen, the outside-in is really stunning - the color, the composition, the geometry, the mystery - it's one of your best. The second one? Well, I want to love it; I like the layering, but at the end of the day I have to ask, 'so what?' So you get the Silver Award.
And the winner - with caveats - is....my buddy Tony Cooper! Congrats, Tony. But don't spike the ball too quickly. . Seriously, you have two potentially great images, but both need post-processing work to make them real black and white rather than gray and gray. But you've seen to really nice scenes, and have composed and framed them extremely well. So you get the Gold, are this round's champ, and now it's up to you to mount a challenge.
And thanks to everyone who entered.
Congratulations Tony clap
My jaw kinda dropped when I saw your first image. I don't remember seeing it before.
Thanks BD for the challenge. I wasn't happy that I was unable to get any fresh images for this challenge. I did try though, just no go.
First congratulations Tony and I look forward to what you come up with.
And Congratulations to Jen for Silver and to all the participants who rose up to this creative mini-challenge. I enjoyed viewing people's take on this and the shots that they entered.
And B. D., thank you for running it and for the critiques. It was very instructive to read your take and evaluation of the shots! Now you can rest... Hope you enjoyed it!
I'm not sure what you mean about seeing the image before.
Both images were shot the day they were posted and haven't
appeared before.
Most of the images in the challenge are from the archives as is usually the case w/ the mini challenges.
What I meant was that at one point you were a frequent poster on street and I don't remember these images from back then. Now I know why, they are fresh images which is even better .
Thanks BD!
I missed though...I kick myself for getting locked into the moment of seeing the bassist walk out of the bar. Didn't look around enough to frame for the drummer in the corner. A lesson learned when I dumped my card that evening.. :O)
And... to BD thanks for your critiques. There's been a lot of discussion here recently about commenting and critiquing. Thanks for the examples of how it can be done with directness and suggestion for improvement. I really enjoyed reading the comments and revisiting the images. As it should, good commentary changes the way we look, the way we see.
sapphire73Registered Users, Super ModeratorsPosts: 1,944moderator
edited December 9, 2011
Congratulations to TC on winning this challenge!
BD, thank you for this challenge and for taking time to comment on all of the entries. I enjoyed seeing what folks entered and appreciated your comments. I hesitated to enter anything and am now a little embarrassed that I misunderstood the parameters for processing. (I had the mistaken impression that selective adjustments weren't allowed, but I guess you were just hoping to head off over the top photoshopping.)
Saphire73, you have a nice inside out, but it definitely needs dodging to bring out the sneakers on the ground, which make the image, and I'm afraid your outside-in, while close, is just too busy to have real strength;
So here's the color edit of that first shot as I had it in my best of 2010 gallery. Much happier to share something that brings out the potential of that shot a little bit better. I was a guest for tea in this home in rural Kenya and could hardly wait for an opportunity to try to photograph this doorway.
BD, thank you for this challenge and for taking time to comment on all of the entries. I enjoyed seeing what folks entered and appreciated your comments. I hesitated to enter anything and am now a little embarrassed that I misunderstood the parameters for processing. (I had the mistaken impression that selective adjustments weren't allowed, but I guess you were just hoping to head off over the top photoshopping.)
So here's the color edit of that first shot as I had it in my best of 2010 gallery. Much happier to share something that brings out the potential of that shot a little bit better. I was a guest for tea in this home in rural Kenya and could hardly wait for an opportunity to try to photograph this doorway.
Gretchen
MUCH better, Gretchen - and I am stunned to learn this is a Kenyan scene - I would have guessed somewhere in the Midwest. Just goes to show how much our own 'lenses' distort our expectations, if not what we see.
MUCH better, Gretchen - and I am stunned to learn this is a Kenyan scene - I would have guessed somewhere in the Midwest. Just goes to show how much our own 'lenses' distort our expectations, if not what we see.
Thanks, BD. This is in a rural part of Kisii, Kenya where they use every square inch of their fertile land. You might have guessed that this was taken in Africa if I had paired it with an outside-in shot of one of the classrooms with the mud walls, termites-at-work framing, chalkboard easel, and students crowded together on benches....
Comments
these are very fun!!
I have NOT forgotten you, and will have a winner by the end of the day. These choices are difficult for me because several people only posted a single image, and while the single images were excellent, those posts missed the point of the challenge. Other people posted excellent images but wildly reinterpreted the challenge, and as this was my challenge, that doesn't wash. And some people had one great inside - or outside - shot, and then a mediocre outside - or inside - shot. So bear with me a titch longer and I'll post my decisions and tick everyone off.
__________________
bd@bdcolenphoto.com Dgrin Artist In Residence
"He not busy being born is busy dying." Bob Dylan
"The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Leonard Freed
"He not busy being born is busy dying." Bob Dylan
"The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Leonard Freed
Congratulations Tony
My jaw kinda dropped when I saw your first image. I don't remember seeing it before.
Thanks BD for the challenge. I wasn't happy that I was unable to get any fresh images for this challenge. I did try though, just no go.
Congrats again Mr. Cooper:)
_________
... and thank you BD for all the comments and for this very interesting challenge.
TravelwaysPhotos.com ...... Facebook
VegasGreatAttractions.com
Travelways.com
I'm not sure what you mean about seeing the image before.
Both images were shot the day they were posted and haven't
appeared before.
http://tonycooper.smugmug.com/
And Congratulations to Jen for Silver and to all the participants who rose up to this creative mini-challenge. I enjoyed viewing people's take on this and the shots that they entered.
And B. D., thank you for running it and for the critiques. It was very instructive to read your take and evaluation of the shots! Now you can rest... Hope you enjoyed it!
Most of the images in the challenge are from the archives as is usually the case w/ the mini challenges.
What I meant was that at one point you were a frequent poster on street and I don't remember these images from back then. Now I know why, they are fresh images which is even better
_________
Something with Flowers maybe I'll do better
At-A-Boy Tony
My Galleries
Flicker
G+
Thanks BD!
I missed though...I kick myself for getting locked into the moment of seeing the bassist walk out of the bar. Didn't look around enough to frame for the drummer in the corner. A lesson learned when I dumped my card that evening.. :O)
And... to BD thanks for your critiques. There's been a lot of discussion here recently about commenting and critiquing. Thanks for the examples of how it can be done with directness and suggestion for improvement. I really enjoyed reading the comments and revisiting the images. As it should, good commentary changes the way we look, the way we see.
Check out billseye photos on SmugMug
BD, thank you for this challenge and for taking time to comment on all of the entries. I enjoyed seeing what folks entered and appreciated your comments. I hesitated to enter anything and am now a little embarrassed that I misunderstood the parameters for processing. (I had the mistaken impression that selective adjustments weren't allowed, but I guess you were just hoping to head off over the top photoshopping.)
So here's the color edit of that first shot as I had it in my best of 2010 gallery. Much happier to share something that brings out the potential of that shot a little bit better. I was a guest for tea in this home in rural Kenya and could hardly wait for an opportunity to try to photograph this doorway.
Gretchen
My SmugMug Galleries
MUCH better, Gretchen - and I am stunned to learn this is a Kenyan scene - I would have guessed somewhere in the Midwest. Just goes to show how much our own 'lenses' distort our expectations, if not what we see.
"He not busy being born is busy dying." Bob Dylan
"The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Leonard Freed
Thanks, BD. This is in a rural part of Kisii, Kenya where they use every square inch of their fertile land. You might have guessed that this was taken in Africa if I had paired it with an outside-in shot of one of the classrooms with the mud walls, termites-at-work framing, chalkboard easel, and students crowded together on benches....
Gretchen
My SmugMug Galleries
Congrats Tony!
If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera. ~Lewis Hine
http://sandizphotos-seascapes.smugmug.com/