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Thread: Blue Window

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    Inspired by Denises' last positing, I changed my mind about posting this image. Of all the photos I have taken so far this trip, this one evokes thoughts and emotions in me, like no other. It is a story of life looking back on itself. There were once a group of hearty souls who built and lived in these homes, and sought to make their lives on the bet of Gold and Silver. These homes are well isolated on the top of RED Mountain Pass outside of Ourey, Colorado. I tried to imagine life here.....this image comes the closest. Enduring extreme winters, with little in the way of modern conveniences or community, I wonder if they lost their bet. I thought the contrast of stark light with rough wood textures, contrasted in an interesting way with the lively blue windows.

    Very little in the way of PP, I didn't want anything to interfere with the mood of the scene. I decided to go to two toned, preserving the blue and applying sepia to the dark-tones. Reduced layer of Topaz Clean with sharpening of details and textures. I did the best I could to frame the image off center, but this was the only angle I could get with the view I wanted. Hope you like it.............
    Last edited by Jay Sheinfield; 09-05-2011 at 03:14 PM.

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    Jay, The broken glass and hollow window panes paint a very gripping story. I get the sense of abandonment. I like your choice for a two toned image. The sepia added to the dark tones looks great and adds so much in a subtle way. I really like the view, it is well seen and captured. The multiple frames within the image add interest. Nicely presented and I'm glad you decided to share this with us.

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    Quote Originally Posted by denise ippolito View Post
    Jay, The broken glass and hollow window panes paint a very gripping story. I get the sense of abandonment. I like your choice for a two toned image. The sepia added to the dark tones looks great and adds so much in a subtle way. I really like the view, it is well seen and captured. The multiple frames within the image add interest. Nicely presented and I'm glad you decided to share this with us.
    Denise, you have a way with words. I was struggling with the title and feeling that best described the seen....Abandoned! It will be re-titled. Thanks for the kind words.

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    Jay, I just used John's words to re-title my image.

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    Quote Originally Posted by denise ippolito View Post
    Jay, I just used John's words to re-title my image.
    Denise, Just goes to show......a fresh pair of eyes always helps.

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    Jay, I think Denise summed it up pretty well. I really like your choice of toning and the composition.
    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly" - The Little Prince

    http://tuscawillaphotographycherylslechta.zenfolio.com/

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    Jay, I really like this image. You and I had a conversation the last time we were at the Botanical Garden about some of your images and the feelings they evoked (we were talking about your wagon wheels then)....this is one of those images. It's a privilege that you have really...you're shooting the history of someone long past. You don't know their story but you're paying homage in a sense...you're telling their story. There's a lot to like about this image...the subtle tones, the frame-within-a-frame, the textures of the wood, the patterns in the broken panes of glass...and it speaks a good bit about being a photographer...you saw something more than just an abandoned building. Well done!

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    Jay, love this one. It certainly has tons of emotion in it. I could see it being used as an record cover. Very nice work!

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    A wonderful composition!!! Great repetition of shapes, the window, the house. Fabulous textures. The colors are just right. Seeing the house through the window works so beautifully to let us know it is not just one abandoned house. I might suggest a slight CW rotation. Thanks for sharing.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Anita Bower View Post
    A wonderful composition!!! Great repetition of shapes, the window, the house. Fabulous textures. The colors are just right. Seeing the house through the window works so beautifully to let us know it is not just one abandoned house. I might suggest a slight CW rotation. Thanks for sharing.
    Anita, Thanks for the kind words. Funny you should mention a rotation, I tried it but the far house then became tilted,, so I stuck with the original as just a slight favorite.

    Thanks everyone for the feedback.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jay Sheinfield View Post
    Anita, Thanks for the kind words. Funny you should mention a rotation, I tried it but the far house then became tilted,, so I stuck with the original as just a slight favorite.

    Thanks everyone for the feedback.
    I see the problem!

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    Hi Jay, agree with comments above but might add a small amount of room to the rt if you have it...

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Mills View Post
    Hi Jay, agree with comments above but might add a small amount of room to the rt if you have it...
    Hi Dave, yes i do have it. I actually cropped the right a bit to get the far house out of the center of the image.........I think your idea is worth looking at again. Thanks.........

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    I just wanted to pass along something I neglected to mention before, but has come up in another photo feedback discussion. Here; lens choice was everything. At 35-50mm, standing close to the subject to get just the one foreground window, it turned out that the far house was way too small in the frame for the effect I wanted. Backing up 10 feet or so, and using the 100mm focal length, gave enough compression to fill the second window frame with the far house. I have used this technique on many of the "townscape" shots in the series, depending on whether I wanted to compress the far landscape to eliminate unwanted canvass. I'm sure this is obvious to most landscape photographers, but it was a learning for me..............

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    Brendan Dozier
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    All been said, Jay, very nicely seen and composed image with plenty to say!

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