I think Sergio posed with honest intent for all to see and think its great. I'm no fan of funky post processing but his work is not bad. To me, it does remind me of some old film emulsions.
The contention is not sergio's, but on the picture of the girl folks cannot say why they like or dislike. We're either Chatty Cathys or Gripin' Gretchens and its par for the course for any board.
First let me say, I'm a huge fan of Sergio's work. I've never seen anyone duplicate the same technique (either by T/S, or by PP work), simply because his work is ever changing - while remaining the same (does that make sense to anyone?)
Now to the fun: I find it ironic, that he post a series of photos and says basically: "hey, I took some pictures"; not a word of "please comment", "what do you think?" Despite that fact, there is always many pages of responses discussing either how much he sucks, or how creative his work is.
No matter how many pictures I take, I will always have a vision myself as a student of photography. Thank you Sergio for continuing to change the game and inspire people like me.
I know I'm new here, but I look at the arguments here as silly for one main reason
I'm sure Sergio shows his prospective client his past work, right? If his clients didn't LIKE his past work, they wouldn't hire him, correct?
So - what really matters - if WE like the work and it conforms to 'the norm' or his CLIENTS like his work/style?
And guess what? There is a spot for a "snapshot" in an album too. The young girl is cute, and I'm quite sure that folks are going to love remembering what she looked like on the day of that wedding.
Tell you what - I went back and looked through the proofs of my wedding, (mumble, mumble years ago), and some of my favorite shots NOW are badly composed, poorly lit "rejects" where a flash failed, someone stepped in front of the camera etc. Why? Because "Man, look at Uncle XXX. Darned that he was diagnosed with cancer 4 days later, and he died in 6 months" "Oh Man, do you remember when Jim was dating HER" (just a regular guest who I still know)
I'm seriously thinking of scanning the negatives (yes, I negotiated getting them from the photographer as part of the deal - basically they came to us 1 year after the albums were delivered - note the word albums - there was B&G, 2 Parents, and a small album for each member of the party) - just to be able to edit some of those "bad" photos, to get some of those memories in hard copy
This is how it looks to ME - just a client, and a "used to be" serious photographer, who has had brides/grooms ask for my negatives to have some pictures included in their album
57suzi wrote:
Doug, seriously, how can you tell that story and not tell us what was in the photo??
Suzi,
You're right. I'm going to even see if I can dig it up.
The photo is of a classmate, Bill King. It was just a head and shoulders photo. We had a standing assignment in Jim's class. In addition to whatever else we were supposed to shoot, we were to bring in one portrait a week. I had reserved a shooting area at Art Center's studio and checked out the lighting equipment and was all set up. My model never showed, though. Bill was there working on an assignment of his own. I'm sure I was jammed up, so I asked Bill to pose for me. It was late in the evening, we probably had less than 30 minutes before the studio closed. I think I shot two or three rolls, we were required to bring in contact sheets from at least two rolls.
We worked insane hours at Art Center. I woke up at six and rarely went to bed before 12 or 1. Bill worked as hard or harder and it showed in the photo. I think his weariness and his direct stare that elicited the emotional response.
If I find and post the photo, I think you'll wonder "what's the big deal?". I liked the photo when I took it, but never expected the response it elicited.
BTW, Jim McCrary had the biggest darn flash I've ever seen! It was an 8x8 softbox for a total of 16,000 ws! You might remember Jim for his iconic photos of Joe Cocker and Leon Russell, among others.
deepbluejh wrote:
The same old tired arguments get rehashed *every*single*time* this guys posts an image set. It's almost like he's flame baiting, but he's not.
Most regulars here seem to like his work while most others just don't get it. The two factions argue it out for 5,7,10 pages before the moderator locks the thread. Wait three weeks, repeat cycle. Very predictable.
I think these are beautiful pics. Now the shot of the little girl has a rough looking bokeh to me. But, the shot and composition more than makes up for it. I'd hang that one on my wall for sure. The images overall have a great look and feel to them. Exactly the style that I like. My only personal critique is that I'd prefer some of the very contrasty shots be softened a bit. I was guessing that these were pushed in post...as a style preference.
While image quality is certainly important, and these are very well done, the shot and subject matter trumps. These are very artfully done. And, I'm guessing the bride was thrilled.
i think the bokeh is actually quite smooth, but the background is fully trimmed rose bushes with no flowers, in a grid. a bunch of pokey things, essentially. that probably accounts for the roughness. oh well, i think it adds a cool texture.
VPell wrote:
Really. Now please go back to the Nikon forum and never return.
How nice of you to be so hospitable. What a wonderful open mind you have.
There is no accounting for taste. Good or bad. We all have differing opinions about what we like and what we dislike. Imagine how boring the world would be if everyone made photographs like Richard Avedon?
On the other hand, bad manners are just that: Bad. Inexcusable.
In my personal opinion. Several photos seem to be intentionally and grossly overexposed. Not to my liking. The photo of the couple on the path: The OOF areas of the lens are annoying. The fake grain, exposure and contrast seem to be more appropriate for skateboarders. Not to my liking.
Prospective clients and prospective photographers should always interview each other to make sure that they share a similar viewpoint and expectations.
