This is really strong. Great entry, man, really great. Just a suggestion: maybe remove the "cry" text? I was getting all sorts of emotions until I saw it down there in the corner, and then it kind of brought me back to reality.
Hi Ian, Thank you. I'm glad you like the shot. Thank you very much for the thoughts about the cry tag. For the entry image I would agree because we know the title of the piece. As a stand alone piece I was afraid the audience would not understand the story. I didn't what them to think he has a migraine over spilling a can of oil. I like presenting you guys with my final work not necessarily altered to push a shot for votes. What do the rest of you guys think? Is the cry tag an important part of the piece or an eye sore? I would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks in advance. Ian, thank you again.
Mike,
I really like this image . It shows some powerful emotion and a nice choice with the BW. I have to agree with Ian on the "cry" tag on the image. I just don't think it needs it.
Mike, you know I really like your work and appreciate the effort you put into each piece. I agree with other poster's that the cry should be removed, it is a distraction. Barbara
On that regard I would have to say no. It would hold emotion very well (outside of the WA) but would 'crying' be the first emotion that comes to mind? The overall emotion of the pic could easily suggest frustration or anger.
I like the drama of the image, and I like the lower case "cry" in the corner. It is an image that could be interpreted in other ways, and I understand your desire to be clear. I would add that if someone finds it dramatic for another reason other than crying it wouldn't be a bad thing.
Mike, I agree with the other comments on that I also find the cry distracting, I also feel if you took it off and I saw this outside the WA it appears that your hair is wet and get the impression of you washing your hair. So cry would not be the first impression that comes to mind.
That aside the image placed in the WA has great emotion for me great shot Mike.
So nice to have you back Mike. Once again your work is thought provoking and to me the tag makes me go somewhere else...I like it best when I look an image and draw my own conclusions of what the image is saying. It is powerful in iit's own way..I vote no tag.
Great work!!!
Being a migraine sufferer, I have never held my head in the way the model is holding his head. What the image does portray, at least for me, is one of despair. There is nothing left to do but cradle the head and cry. No tag is needed when one has been there and done that. A really great, emotional shot.
I am coming late to the discussion (so did not see the cry tag). However, I feel the image is perfect as it is. But then, I'm a big believer in letting the viewer bring some of his/her experience to a great piece of art, which this is.
To me, for what it is worth, it certainly embodies "sadness" but is more intense of a feeling than that. I like Pete's word "despair." If I had to give this fellow a story, it would include some very "end of the road" life circumstances, perhaps addiction (and its effects), loss of a job, homelessness (he looks like he's in a shattered place).
Hi Pete and Carolyn, Thank you so much for your thoughts. It means a lot. Not to be sappy, boar, or attempt to get a vote,..but this image was based on a true story that happened to me about to about 14 years ago. Pete, you see despair. Carolyn, you see a shattered place. You are both correct. It was love, a love that left me., left me alone in a dark place. Not wanting to believe it, I had no choice but to face it. I planed it. I prepared myself one night alone with our favorite song set to continuously repeat. I laid my head in my hands over a table as the tears flowed for two hours straight. It was my way of letting go.
The shot took me about three hours to reach this point. Back and forth between the camera and lights and myself. I just couldn't seem to get it right. I settled with this. I realized I could never capture the loss I felt.
Mike, now that is some serious agony! There is nothing glamorous about this scene, which makes the capture of the emotion - the agony - all the more believable. Good work.