LPS #9 - First Submission, All Comments Appreciated..

hawkeye978

I was thinking of submitting this for LPS9. Tentative title: Gatekeeper of the Legacy. All comments appreciated.

anwmn1

Tom-


Welcome

I think this image is a miss because most people are not going to know what this statue represents - including myself.

Keep shooting - you still have time.

LiquidAir

anwmn1 wrote:

Tom-


Welcome

I think this image is a miss because most people are not going to know what this statue represents - including myself.

Keep shooting - you still have time.

While I am fairly sure I know what you are after, I am with Aaron. You are relying on viewer to know the story rather than telling it with your photo.

hawkeye978

I understand what you are saying. Guess it's back to the drawing board.

Thanks..

Swartzy

Yep...
Good idea....just a bit different feel and setting..the steps take away from the statue (which should be the subject or a solid part of it). Keep shooting!

hawkeye978

Actually, just for historical reference, the statue is the Minuteman statue at the site of the Battle of North Bridge in Concord, MA. This was the second battle of the Revolutionary War. The wooden structure in the front is the bridge where the battle occurred. I wanted both in there because of their significance to the American Revolutionary War.

anwmn1

hawkeye978 wrote:

Actually, just for historical reference, the statue is the Minuteman statue at the site of the Battle of North Bridge in Concord, MA. This was the second battle of the Revolutionary War. The wooden structure in the front is the bridge where the battle occurred. I wanted both in there because of their significance to the American Revolutionary War.

It is a good concept with a lot of meaning but you have to remember this is a world wide competition so there are many that will not understand the significance in our history.

Many Americans will not either. Sad but true.

Good luck with the competition.

Flyinggina

Hi Tom

I recognized the statue and the location immediately and, as a result, also understood why you thought of it for this challenge. I like the angle a lot because it does let you get both the minuteman statue and the bridge, but I find the DOF too shallow for my taste or maybe it's just the amount of space the bridge takes up in the frame seems to overpower the minuteman. I would also like to see a little more space between the minuteman's feet and the bridge, but it may be that you had no room to move to the left. For your portfolio I think it is well worth your working this shot to see if you can make it even better.

That said, I have to agree with the other comments about its suitability for LPS#9. Many people don't recognize the statue. Even in the southern US, folks are more likely to think of Williamsburg in connection with the start of the American Revolution than of the skirmishs that took place in Lexington and Concord. Imagine how obscure the meaning of the picture to you and me is likely to be to someone from another country.

If you followed LPS#8, you may have seen the threads about the entry of a D.C. fireworks picture with the statue of the raising of the US flag at Iwo Jima in the foreground. It didn't make the top ten. Even though the contest period encompassed July 4 and even though it is widely known that for many Americans July 4 is a patriotic holiday in which we honor our flag, the special meaning that the photographer saw in the photograph (appreciated by many, many other dGrinners btw) was not resonant with all of the judges and, in the end, the photo came in 11th.

Bottom line, check out who is judging this round, look at their galleries to get a feel for what they like to photograph (not that you should copy them, of course), read Shay's comments on entries in earlier rounds then give it your best shot and enter. Maybe you will win, maybe not. But you will learn a lot in the process, get some wonderful photographs for your porfolio and, I hope, have fun.

Virginia

hawkeye978

The angle was a tough one. I basically had the river lapping at my toes. A little to the right and I go in the water, a little left and I start getting interference from other objects.


Thanks for all the comments. I got similar comments over in CCC in Smugmug and this was as much to solidify those comments and get a few more insights.

Thanks all...