taswir al-iskandria kathir (more alexandria photography)
These are the film photos I took in Alexandria that I got developed and finally got around to scanning.
Chair at Qaitbey Citadel
Hallway
Pyramids
Half-shadow Staircase
Fishermen 3
Fishermen 5
Fishermen 4
The Sphinx and the City
Roman Amphitheatre
The Tourists
Roman Staircase
Cleaning the Infinity Pool at the Alexandrian Library
Peace Sculpture
Chair at Qaitbey Citadel
Hallway
Pyramids
Half-shadow Staircase
Fishermen 3
Fishermen 5
Fishermen 4
The Sphinx and the City
Roman Amphitheatre
The Tourists
Roman Staircase
Cleaning the Infinity Pool at the Alexandrian Library
Peace Sculpture
posted by Seth Taylor Garrison | 8:00 AM
4 Comments:
Hey Seth,
I really like "hallway" and "pyramids". Those are some awesome photos. Thanks for keeping this blog up to date. I love to see what you're up to.
For me, the chair may be the most compelling photo in this set. The contrast between dark and light along with the seemingly grainy B&W film present an arty yet photojournalistic picture that could easily be decades old. Seeing the shadow being cast in the bright sunlight actually pulls me into the photo. It touches upon my own experiences, standing under a hot sun, having a moment of reflection. My only critique would be to try cropping out some of the top and right portions of the photo so that no stray elements distract from the main subject. I'm not sure how that would turn out but it might work.
I'm also digging the pool and Roman staircase shots. They both make great use of perspective and are helped by the use of B&W. The pool shot has a good use of the rule of thirds, going from light to shadow (left to right). The staircase looks like it's spewing an ominous smoke out from the top, though I suspect it was just a friendly little cloud.
I'm always a little hesitant about cropping or editting photographs after I've taken them, but I was considering cropping it after I scanned it. Now that I've gotten the same response from someone else independently, I'll go for it and try cropping it next time I'm in the media lab.
The chair is my favorite that I took on that trip. I'm wondering if you noticed that most of the photos have come out with a really high contrast? It's a problem I've been facing with black and white here, especially since black and white film is almost impossible to find here (I've yet to find any, but I know someplace sells it; I just don't know where it is), let alone finding ISO 800 or 1600. But in lieu of a higher ISO, I've been trying to work with the contrast and use it to my advantage. The chair was one attempt, and so was the Half-shadow staircase. Do you think it is effective and that it's acheiving its purpose, or does it come off looking like I let too much light in?
By the way, I really appreciate the criticism, thanks a lot.
I don't think there's any reason to hold back on the cropping. It's common practice and is necessary to achieve quality results more often than not. Nobody can frame every photo perfectly.
If I'm understanding you correctly, you're saying that you've intentionally been using high speed film? If so, I think you may be better off going with a lower ISO. I'm far from being an expert on film types, but based on my experiences and observations, I would use a 100 speed film as often as possible. Unless your doing action photography you shouldn't have any problems with ISO 100 outdoors. 200 is definitely OK for lower light situations and even 400 can be OK, but I would suggest never going above that. I made the mistake of using ISO 800 film all the time when I was younger and now I'm stuck with a bunch of great photos that are grainy when I try to enlarge or digitize them. The lower ISO film should improve saturation and clarity in your photos. Ask your dad for some tips the next time you speak with him. You would probably know better I would, but I think he's had a good deal of experience with B&W photography.
To answer your question, I did notice that several photos had washed out areas due to high contrast. I didn't mention anything because 1) I'm out of practice and am not well versed in this area, 2) I didn't want to make any assumptions on the type of equipment you have (i.e. UV, polarizing, and/or ND filters to balance the sunlight), 3) I don't know what time of day your shooting and 4) I try not to be critical of artistic choices.
A great place to get your photos critiqued is over at Photo.net. Their community has some brilliant photographers who participate in the "Critique Forum". It's nice to both get their feedback and to see examples of other people's technique. They also have some good tutorials and product reviews.
Sorry if my comments are wordy, but that's just me.
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