Stills

Re-purposed laptop sans lcd, or so it appears to be. I like the juxtaposition between very low tech security and hacked together high tech.
 

hacked together high tech.

They installed it and then it rained. It hasn't worked since, so they leave the gate open....

I find the content interesting, but the composition leaves me cold. Difficult to explain why, but the tilt is a part of my problem.
 

I think that the problem with the composition is that the bowing of the brickwork adds to the awkwardness of the white on the left; none of which is compensated for by the view into the garden. My feeling is that the DOF leaves one with a messy upper central part of the image. For me the security element isn't strong enough to overcome a visual repulsion - anyone of a sensitive aesthetic sensibility should not enter here!!
 

I'd been considering this some more, but I see that John has beaten me to it, because the conclusion that I came to is that the picture left me with no desire to walk through the gate.

This still seems incomplete as an explanation, but it's the best I can do.
 

DOF is indeed a problem and the larger the format, the more often it happens. I learned that the hard way.

In this case, I am not sure more DOF would have helped that much, because the intended path is the stairs going left right behind the wall, so maybe the point of vue needs to be changed if the viewer is to be invited in.
 

The thing that first bugged me about this image was the left hand sliver of white wall; the second thing was how near to square the walls were but not quite.

I don't mind the DoF because the humour is in the keypad and the gate. Perhaps the DoF should be shallower in order to remove even more distraction from the garden.

I wish the sliver and squareness didn't bug me, I think it is my problem!
 

I revisited this gate earlier today and wish I had taken a plumb line - the brickwork is not straight and I think it is more to do with workmanship than plate tectonics.

When I took this shot it was just beginning to rain quite heavily, I was losing light and I wanted to get at least one shot in before taking cover. I was in two minds whether to crop the white slither but it seemed to make the walls crookedness more pronounced.

I took a couple of different shots this morning as the gate was closed (like any good nature photographer I do not like to alter my scene - I shoot as I find it) and I had a little more time to think about a better shot. It's not often I re-shoot but this needed another go.

Another problem I was facing with the first shot was presenting it in a way that the international community would hopefully work out what the keyboard was adorning - a doorbell button. Not many houses in Japan have such things on their actual doors so I went for this angle to include some environment to help determine what the keyboard was adorning.

Interesting reading your comments and has made for much thought in my mind the last couple of days - thank you! I am really enjoying shooting with the Rolleicord now and will be using it pretty much 100% over this winter. The square format is slowing getting easier to work with and the lack of DOF at F8 is wonderful!
 

I don't have much to add to this discussion. I agree that the DOF is problematic, but as Stephane said, more may not have helped. I hope you will post the re-shoot.
 

Perhaps the guy who put up the keypad also did the brickwork!

I'm intrigued by the thought of using solely the Rolleicord: does it give you less flexibility in subject matter?
 

John: Not much of a loss in flexibility - I was never much of a street 'candid' shooter in the first place (i.e. shooting people for the sake of shooting people). However it forces me to think a little deeper about what I plan to shoot which is giving me a much stronger understanding and appreciation of the medium.
 

That's the third member firming up on a particular bit of kit/combination. I understand your last sentence; for a long time I only had one lens (at least, only one that I used on the street) to go with my camera. I now have four, which probably means that I am achieving one quarter of any "understanding and appreciation of the medium". Nonetheless, I am enjoying, at this relatively late stage in life, finding out what works best for each of those lenses. I do like candid shots but am not sure that any of those lenses is the right one! At least my outlay was relatively modest.