Visited the Bee Keeper while out yesterday...not much for conversation and although he willingly agreed to allow photos - "Sure" - averted looking directly into lens.
The subject has a road-side stand where he sells honey, folk-art, wooden toys etc.
From what he has said, one former occupation was a brick mason but there isn't enough around today to make it worthwhile so he does not do much of anything. This visit his sitting fee cost me 1lb of shelled pecans and a pint of blue-berry jam.
During the summer and fall, he kept a metal pot by the stand with a swarm of what appeared to be several hundred bees circling in and around the pot. He would demonstrate to those interested the non-aggressive nature of the honey bee by inserting his arm into the middle of the bee-cloud...something to watch but not try at home.
I like the crop, processing and appreciate you sharing the bee keepers story. The fact that he's not looking directly at the camera works very well for this particular image.
Thank you for your thoughts - he would be right at home in your part of the country.
This and a second image are posted on BWV, I prefer this to the second (at least the last time I compared) but looking now, it could stand the benefit of further development (no pun intended).
Software - combo of LR4 and CS6, I have SEPro2 but seldom use it anymore. I do not recall specifics, just things I typically do for BW. My natural inclination have have more contrast and grit in the skin tones (+clairty & sharpening) but this time I passed on that. An alternative is to burn in areas of his face to add more contour. Again, I let that be (probably for the better )
Light - natural, taken about 11am, high, light overcast, he is under a tent.
I do not have the Exif available, don't know quite what happened that it was stripped from image. From what I had mounted on bodies that day, likely a 17-55mm f2.8 Nikkor, ~f4, ~40-50mm, ~1/250-400 sec, ISO whatever the camera (D7000) selected, again probably somewhere between 800 and 2000.
There are additional images - I need to go back and take a second look.
<edit> Added second image at top - did a little selective burning-in on it
pinn8 wrote:
I like the pose of the first image better. I sense disdain in the second image, which doesn't sound like it goes with the man you photographed.
Thanks for your thoughts. Having spoken with him on several occasions, I think he was trying to be cooperative yet remain within his self-defined limits. Perhaps responding with images will change his viewpoint - he said people ask to photograph him quite often. But, perhaps you are correct - I need to find out.
