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ovbacon

Suspended
Original poster
Feb 13, 2010
1,596
11,509
Tahoe, CA
It is my honor to do this for the first time so here goes.

Through the Looking-Glass

Of course when using a camera of any kind you are already looking through a "looking glass" at the world but in this weeks theme you should have a photo that has the subject seen through/in something else. Think of a window, door, tunnel, glass, hole in the wall or a reflection or something else....

But as many have probably said, have fun with whatever camera you use.

_MG_0410.jpg


As always, standard rules apply:
  • The photographs must be your own work
  • You may only submit one photo per contest.
  • No commenting or liking photos until after the judging has taken place.
  • This contest runs for about a week, starting now.
  • At the end of the competition, the judge (last week's winner) will choose a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place photo, providing as much feedback as possible.
  • The 1st place winner will start a new thread here with the topic/theme of their choice, and act as the judge for that contest. (Winner has 48 hours to create new theme, after that it defers to 2nd place).
  • Be sure to update the Contest Master List as soon as you post a new theme.
  • Contest ends on May 19 at 12:00 PDT (UTC-7).
 
Last edited:
d5f58fa057ea652668cbebfb1eed3041.jpg


Looking at Barcelona from the hotel terrace bar.

March 2019

iPhone XS Max
 
AND...the votes are in 🥁

Wow wow. I'm impressed by the submissions and that made it all the harder to decide on a "winner" but anyhow HERE goes.

in order of submission:

oblomow: Instantly impressed with the first submission and I love the crispness of the center subject while the brass frame for the looking glass still attracts the eye. The dark wall or door frames it well without adding any distraction. Pretty awesome photo of what almost feels like a diorama.

akash.nu: interesting photo that is nice and sharp I do feel however that when I look at it the subject is the person in the photo. I understand that the view is the intended subject but when looking at the image my eyes are instantly drawn to the plant in the foreground, then the lamp and then the person...

RSB96: Nice still life setup where the subject is both the actual objects as the reflection in the glass table. I like it but I do think the still-life need light. When I look at the image I'm instantly down to the left upper corner to the red roofs and at first I had a harder time seeing all the pieces in the still-life. But kudos for creating a still life as more and more it seems a forgotten art.

OldMacs4Me: What appears a spontaneous photo opportunity that is really fun. the flags (and flag poles) are really instantly the attraction in the window and almost instantaneously you gat drawn to the cars side mirror. Only after really seeing the subject in both places did I notice what the store was and the self-made bench and lastly the mountain in the "background". To me this really feels like spur of the moment art.

someoldguy: Really nice idea and very well executed. This photo gives me similar feelings as oblomow's. The subject is the first thing that I look at and the flowers are sharp and crisp. The magnifier is a good and interesting border and I like that it is black to really contrast between one in and out of focus parts, for me the orange button adds a nice transition to the border. Again only a little later did my eyes notice that from the center sharp subject and then the blurry flowers it goes onto sharp edges... I really like it.

Mollyc: Well framed image of what, on first glance, appears to be spontaneous but when looking a little closer is intentional (looking at the camera and positioning), or at least gives me the feeling of it being so. The photo has a LOT going on but because of the difference in in and out of focus and due to its lack of color it radiates a certain calm. I found myself not only looking at you and your photo partner but trying to find all the details which really meant that the photo was interesting to explore.

JAWJr: It looks pretty stunning and I instantly wanted to be there... so yes a very nice picture. But, when looking at it I immediately felt something off and to me it is that what I feel is the subject is out of focus while the window and shrubs below it are in focus. I also felt it was unbalanced in a way that my eyes were drawn from left up to right down (imagine it as a diagonal line from top left to bottom right). I kinda wanted to see more of the window, there is a clear window frame on the right and the top of the image but the left is only a very thin line and the bottom feels cut off.

_timo_redux_: I instantly love the image and I really had to look longer to figure out why I love it so much. I'm going with the assumption that the intended subject is YOU, but when I keep looking at the image I keep changing what I feel is the subject. First time I saw it I instantly was drawn to the customer in the barber shop and then the other people in the shop. Another time I felt drawn towards the yellow cab and yet another time to you, the photographer. Like Molly's image there is so much going on but it feels fun and compelling to explore. The photo for me is definitely not calming but that makes it fun and it almost feels like you want to look for Waldo. I also like that I can not tell if the image was taken at the spur of the moment or if you were out intentionally trying to take a good photo.

Janichsan: As with someoldguy, yet very different, a cool use of a magnifier (although I think were missing 6 "F" in the subject) ;). But all kidding aside, a smart photo that I bet you could sell on stock photos to be used on science oriented articles or sites. As for the "art" piece of the photo it doesn't draw me in or makes me explore the photo a lot. To be clear, I think the image is cool and very inventive but it only has my attention and interest for a short moment.

I hope that everyone understands that my opinion about your image is just that, an opinion and as we all know we all have one. I have not looked through the previous contests but man this was tough to "critique" and say one person is the "winner". But I'll make a 123 list as is expected.

1: _timo_redux_🥇 🏆
2:
someoldguy 🥈
3:
mollyc 🥉
3.2
oblomow

As could be taken from my photo feedback oblomow, Molly and someoldguy could have all beed 2nd or 3rd and it felt almost wrong to place them and so place 2 and 3 are only chosen because that is expected of me.

Thank you all for participating and allowing me to judge your images and please do not judge me on my judging to harshly ;).
 
Last edited:
::runs up panting::

I'm here! I'm here!

_timo_redux_: I instantly love the image and I really had to look longer to figure out why I love it so much. I'm going with the assumption that the intended subject is YOU, but when I keep looking at the image I keep changing what I feel is the subject. First time I saw it I instantly was drawn to the customer in the barber shop and then the other people in the shop. Another time I felt drawn towards the yellow cab and yet another time to you, the photographer. Like Molly's image there is so much going on but it feels fun and compelling to explore. The photo for me is definitely not calming but that makes it fun and it almost feels like you want to look for Waldo. I also like that I can not tell if the image was taken at the spur of the moment or if you were out intentionally trying to take a good photo.

I was trying to reflect on what my intention may or may not have been, 10 1/2 years ago. I do remember being drawn to the scene: the sometimes transparent, sometimes reflective glass, the line of men and their barbers, the portraits in front and the (soon to be) portrait of myself in the back. So yeah, a kind of selfie through the looking glass, although my aim was to be incidental in a larger tableau.

And it's funny/accurate you bring up @mollyc 's image: when I saw her's, it reminded me of my own, which I went looking for and let sit for a beat, before posting. Similar efforts, yeah.

The image was spur of the moment while I was out, intentionally looking for photos but not at all of this kind.

***

Thank you for the kind words and podium placement. I enjoyed all the efforts this week. I've been mulling what to do next, and I'll put up a new contest tomorrow.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mollyc and oblomow
AND...the votes are in 🥁

Wow wow. I'm impressed by the submissions and that made it all the harder to decide on a "winner" but anyhow HERE goes.

in order of submission:

oblomow: Instantly impressed with the first submission and I love the crispness of the center subject while the brass frame for the looking glass still attracts the eye. The dark wall or door frames it well without adding any distraction. Pretty awesome photo of what almost feels like a diorama.

akash.nu: interesting photo that is nice and sharp I do feel however that when I look at it the subject is the person in the photo. I understand that the view is the intended subject but when looking at the image my eyes are instantly drawn to the plant in the foreground, then the lamp and then the person...

RSB96: Nice still life setup where the subject is both the actual objects as the reflection in the glass table. I like it but I do think the still-life need light. When I look at the image I'm instantly down to the left upper corner to the red roofs and at first I had a harder time seeing all the pieces in the still-life. But kudos for creating a still life as more and more it seems a forgotten art.

OldMacs4Me: What appears a spontaneous photo opportunity that is really fun. the flags (and flag poles) are really instantly the attraction in the window and almost instantaneously you gat drawn to the cars side mirror. Only after really seeing the subject in both places did I notice what the store was and the self-made bench and lastly the mountain in the "background". To me this really feels like spur of the moment art.

someoldguy: Really nice idea and very well executed. This photo gives me similar feelings as oblomow's. The subject is the first thing that I look at and the flowers are sharp and crisp. The magnifier is a good and interesting border and I like that it is black to really contrast between one in and out of focus parts, for me the orange button adds a nice transition to the border. Again only a little later did my eyes notice that from the center sharp subject and then the blurry flowers it goes onto sharp edges... I really like it.

Mollyc: Well framed image of what, on first glance, appears to be spontaneous but when looking a little closer is intentional (looking at the camera and positioning), or at least gives me the feeling of it being so. The photo has a LOT going on but because of the difference in in and out of focus and due to its lack of color it radiates a certain calm. I found myself not only looking at you and your photo partner but trying to find all the details which really meant that the photo was interesting to explore.

JAWJr: It looks pretty stunning and I instantly wanted to be there... so yes a very nice picture. But, when looking at it I immediately felt something off and to me it is that what I feel is the subject is out of focus while the window and shrubs below it are in focus. I also felt it was unbalanced in a way that my eyes were drawn from left up to right down (imagine it as a diagonal line from top left to bottom right). I kinda wanted to see more of the window, there is a clear window frame on the right and the top of the image but the left is only a very thin line and the bottom feels cut off.

_timo_redux_: I instantly love the image and I really had to look longer to figure out why I love it so much. I'm going with the assumption that the intended subject is YOU, but when I keep looking at the image I keep changing what I feel is the subject. First time I saw it I instantly was drawn to the customer in the barber shop and then the other people in the shop. Another time I felt drawn towards the yellow cab and yet another time to you, the photographer. Like Molly's image there is so much going on but it feels fun and compelling to explore. The photo for me is definitely not calming but that makes it fun and it almost feels like you want to look for Waldo. I also like that I can not tell if the image was taken at the spur of the moment or if you were out intentionally trying to take a good photo.

Janichsan: As with someoldguy, yet very different, a cool use of a magnifier (although I think were missing 6 "F" in the subject) ;). But all kidding aside, a smart photo that I bet you could sell on stock photos to be used on science oriented articles or sites. As for the "art" piece of the photo it doesn't draw me in or makes me explore the photo a lot. To be clear, I think the image is cool and very inventive but it only has my attention and interest for a short moment.

I hope that everyone understands that my opinion about your image is just that, an opinion and as we all know we all have one. I have not looked through the previous contests but man this was tough to "critique" and say one person is the "winner". But I'll make a 123 list as is expected.

1: _timo_redux_🥇 🏆
2:
someoldguy 🥈
3:
mollyc 🥉
3.2
oblomow

As could be taken from my photo feedback oblomow, Molly and someoldguy could have all beed 2nd or 3rd and it felt almost wrong to place them and so place 2 and 3 are only chosen because that is expected of me.

Thank you all for participating and allowing me to judge your images and please do not judge me on my judging to harshly ;).
thanks for the mention, and congrats to timo!
 
  • Like
Reactions: _timo_redux_
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