Stills

John,

I haven't seen any earlier version, but this is a good conversion.

You set us quite a task - standing in for David Bailey and the other judges! Anyway, here goes....

I like the tonal balance - the way that you have made the subject stand out.

I'm with Rex on the arm. It makes it clear what the man is doing without over-emphasising the props.

I think you could kill the background a bit more. The bag below the arm I find distracting. Maybe also the blockwork wall.

I am distracted by the fact that the subject's back is not quite in the frame. Is this a part of your crop to squareness? If so, I don't think you've done yourself any favours. It would matter less if it were not that the lines on the shirt back are so visually appealing. Cutting short the visual journey is cruel.

And finally, the words which this image suggest to me are "concentration", "dedication" and "exactness". This man may be passionate about his painting, but I don't think it shows here. Good portrait, but wrong competition?
 

Rex - good to see you; a very good choice by Michael! I learned one lesson: take a sunset if the public is voting! But I couldn't pass up the chance to put a photo in front of David Bailey. Thanks for your vote of confidence. But I do have my doubts about this, even if they do not coincide exactly with Colin.

Colin - your last point about the emotion is an interesting one: I had taken 'passion' to mean what someone was deeply involved with, was motivated by, and had not thought through what might best convey that as the emotion in front of the camera (this photo coming from April 2005). "Exactness" is a very accurate observation as Glenn is very precise with his brush although a lot of his pictures are very inventive and full of visual surprises. Maybe he has a passion for exactness!!

The clutter is also an interesting observation. On the one hand I plead guilty to not checking what was in the frame. But if I had, should I rearrange his studio? What is the right balance between getting it right for the photo and preserving the 'reality'. Maybe the bag should have gone. Other photos from that afternoon probably had a better overall composition and feel for the studio, with greater aesthetic appeal but I didn't capture the face as well.

Of all your points, I think that the one about the square format identifies what is probably behind my doubts. Maybe I should have accepted that I didn't have the material for a square and cropped to a different proportion.
 

Again looking and not seeing the power of the main subject meant I did not see the distractions in the background. Now they are brought to my attention I cannot ignore them. Following your point John perhaps toning down meets the honesty of presentation objective without leaving a potentially distracting highlight?
 

Hmmm.

Why hasn't my comment appeared?
 

Excellent bit of advice; I should have been more rigorous with the editing! Water under the bridge now but useful for the future.
 

still remember this as a diptych. can only compare this with the one in my memory. think it works better as a single image for me. also the processing seems more balanced. a slightly more darkened BG could enhance the focus on the artist. u captured his concentration very well in a non posed scene. an image of an accurate and calm working artist. like that I can see a bit of the painting. my personal crop variation would have been a bit less on the right but his back completely inclucled.
did u have have a model release? the competition rules ask for one. always wondering if all competition submissions have one. would also submit something but I don't dare because of the lack of a needed model release...
 

In hindsight, I agree with your idea of the crop Michael. Too late! I have his permission and were I to be asked to publish (highly unlikely!!) I would ask him to sign the form, which he would do.
 

Way back, at the beginning of 'Stills' I posted 'portrait', which, for good reasons, I was told would not be liked by David Bailey, one of the judges in the Guardian photo competition. And you were right!! The winner has been announced, see: http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekendphotoprize

I like the winning portrait shot very much and think that it is strong enough to have been entered into the reportage category as well. I am not so sure about some of the 'commended' shots, which tend to a similar style, recognisable as the current fashion for people shots (see the Shweppes competition as well) in British magazines.
 

A very amusing white headress she has as well. I agree that the winner is a strong picture. Also that many of the commended ones are dreary. I thought the Schweppes prize was full of the most awful pictures and wasn't surprised to hear that Schweppes immediately withdrew sponsorship for future years.
 

There were a couple of b/ws in reportage and fashion but none in the portrait category - just an observation!
 

judges taste's are always inscrutable.
like the winner shot. but its not a unique unseen image for me. it looked very much like typically former images from the former eastern bloc or from china. would just need a socialistic slogan *lol*. nevertheless the images are great. anyhow. maybe its too much to expect something more unique in such an competition... impossible trying to suit everybody. especially the results of a competition.
 

Interesting observation, Michael, about the sort of image one might have seen from the former eastern bloc. Now that you say it, I can see that but nonetheless still think that it is well taken as a portrait! There was controversy recently about the judge's decision for the press photographer of the year (I think it was) competition, which generated some heated debate. I tended to agree with the critics about the winner, which I couldn't believe was the best of the year.
 

didn't ment to say the winner image is not good. like it, too. just saw the similarity. and judging is always biased by personal taste...