Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2006/09/11

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Subject: [Leica] Portrait
From: tedgrant at shaw.ca (Ted Grant)
Date: Mon Sep 11 06:45:04 2006
References: <f2f825f20609100950k26f3b3e1n1a989fdf833078a6@mail.gmail.com> <2231A455-6DE7-4AD1-BA27-B4FFA6296347@pandora.be> <4504881F.4080306@hemenway.com> <006401c6d52b$e1dc2990$a302a8c0@ted> <58DB97A4-41F0-4FB8-B252-06326BBAD8EB@pandora.be>

Philippe Orlent offered:
Subject: Re: [Leica] Portrait


> Ted, there sure must be more ways of lighting than Rembrandt's,  mustn't 
> there?
> Although Rembrandt's is one of the more beautiful ones, and your  credo 
> helped me enormously in making better photos.<<<

Philippe,
Of course and I've recognized and used good, bad and ugly light styles many 
times because that was all there was. It isn't always "Rembrandt only 
works."

However, when one is confronted with the potential of a light type, in this 
case to make a beautifully lit portrait, surely it would be prudent to wait 
a moment because one knew ... "if I wait a second it's going to be a 
beauty!" Not just a somewhat ordinary photograph.

But in the case of Victor's portrait where he had an excellent subject and 
the opportunity for a beautiful portrait instead of the basic flat lighting, 
it would've only taken him a waiting of possibly a few seconds for her to 
turn her head and it would've become an "excellent portrait."

The comments about her hair reflected in the mirror threw me off completely. 
I had to find the photo again because I thought surely I've been looking at 
the wrong photograph.

I stand by my hair comment it does nothing because unless I'm still looking 
at the wrong picture that background blur is meaningless when we have this 
very interesting face.... that for a few seconds "could've been a smashing 
great beautifully lit face!"

We see time and time again in pictures presented where members could've 
improved their photographs with a few judicial moments of understanding 
light and waited a moment or slightly changed their position producing a 
"WOW FANTASTIC" photograph than an "OH Hum" nice kind of picture.

I know I'm being some what hard assed about this, but critiques and comments 
are asked, many times I say nothing. But the potential in Victor's photo was 
incredible, particularly when using the longer lens and a great looking 
subject, I felt this was one well worth commenting about.

Sometimes it takes a ... comrades in arms discussion such as this... for 
people to learn nit-picking makes the difference between good, bad or 
ordinary results  in their photography. And second best never counts!
ted 


In reply to: Message from vroger at gmail.com (Victor Rubin) ([Leica] Portrait)
Message from philippe.orlent at pandora.be (Philippe Orlent) ([Leica] Portrait)
Message from Jim at hemenway.com (Jim Hemenway) ([Leica] Portrait)
Message from tedgrant at shaw.ca (Ted Grant) ([Leica] Portrait)
Message from philippe.orlent at pandora.be (Philippe Orlent) ([Leica] Portrait)