portrait with XA1 35/1.4

Click4hope wrote:

Take this with a pinch of salt as it is only the way I see it, i.e. just an opinion.

I think you have caught the expression well and assume this conveys something of what you know of his character and personality.

I think the main issue to address would be that of distractions. You have mentioned the TV screen, which is one. It looks like a sporting event and started me wondering whether it was the champions league final, the FA cup final, cricket, maybe the american form of rounders or what... which distracts from the face. However you are aware of that and it maybe suggests something of a surrounding he enjoys which adds to the information we learn about him.

The other thing that my eye is drawn to is the triangle formed by a bit of his hand at the bottom. After faces we are drawn to hands and triangles also catch our attention. And then you notice the pen which has you wondering if it is a cheap ballpoint or some unfamiliar brand.

As these are all at the edge of the frame they tend to hold our attention longer. This is probably not where you want us to be concentrating. So in most cases, unless they clearly contribute something to the message you want to convey it's probably best to see if you can avoid triangles at the edge of the frame. That's difficult, I know from my own experience as I still struggle to put it into practice in the heat of the moment. In this case a simple crop above the pen would help concentrate our attention on the face more, probably without losing the overall sense of his pose. That doesn't always work but probably would here.

Anyway just my thoughts as I say.

Yes, I was thinking as well that I should have cropped it above the pen. As for taking the shot, I had no time to think, I just turned to him, saw his expression, and clicked. Actually, it's funny that he's not a sports fan at all, and in fact was upset that we had to sit near the large TV monitor which was distracting to him and he felt was distracting some of us who were facing the screen, as he was trying to have a conversation with his mates whom he hadn't seen in a while. So he does have a slightly annoyed expression, which does indeed show something of his character that I was trying to capture. He tends to like to control the situations that he is in, and dislikes distractions, such as TVs and people pointing cameras in his face.

Thanks for your comments, and now that I look again, I also think that the colour photo is the best, because the slightly harsh contrasty crispness fits with his character. Tho I also like the 3rd photo as well, as I did want to soften the image somewhat because his personality also has a soft nature to it.

It is interesting to read other's comments and makes one reflect about the images one has tried to capture. All part of the photographic experience which is so important, and we sometimes tend to forget in this age of digital snap, snap, snap. Thanks again.