Comp progress

[MHD]

Boom - Tish....

Can we speak freely about the entries now?

YEs

[Heath Bennett]

ahh. illuminating

[MHD]

Yes... some entries by people (that If I didnt know) I would not have picked

[stubbsy]

Wow

As an extra bit of excitement I try to guess who took what. I managed to get a whole TWO right (embi - under pressure cooker and sirhc55 - Your Olive Sir).

Now some comments:
Leek - where'd you take 'The Scars of Struggle'?
nnnnsic - idly curious - what did you use for the blood?
embi - I really liked the border on your shot - is it a PS action, or was it done in illustrator?

Just gone through and added some comments to the pics.

[kipper]

Stubbsy, he had a few litres of blood to spare

[embi]

Wow

As an extra bit of excitement I try to guess who took what. I managed to get a whole TWO right (embi - under pressure cooker and sirhc55 - Your Olive Sir).

Now some comments:
Leek - where'd you take 'The Scars of Struggle'?
nnnnsic - idly curious - what did you use for the blood?
embi - I really liked the border on your shot - is it a PS action, or was it done in illustrator?

Just gone through and added some comments to the pics.

Its neither its a border someone else on here used and I just downloaded it from the site he mentioned.

Its a border image and I just dropped mine into the middle of it.

[PlatinumWeaver]

Wohoo Comments!
D`oh no comments on mine!

Interesting seeing whose was whose. I picked one or two of them i think.. Darb's I guess I think..

So... who do we think won?

[stubbsy]

Wohoo Comments!
D`oh no comments on mine!

Interesting seeing whose was whose. I picked one or two of them i think.. Darb's I guess I think..

So... who do we think won?

Dean - This is the first of our comps where I don't have a view. I think there are some high quality images that don't fit the theme and some less high quality images that do.

[Nnnnsic]

nnnnsic - idly curious - what did you use for the blood?

What would you say if I told you it was real?

[kipper]

Blood (eg. Goats) or not a re-enactment?

[kinetic]

What is the record for the longest thread on this forum?

[leek]

OK Guys... A few people alluded to this in earlier posts. I thought that I'd stir the pot to see what other people think...

I am afraid that I was extremely disappointed with both the number and quality of the entries in the latest competition.

When the competition was originally announced it was called The Decisive Moment, but the post made it clear that the topic was "inspired by one of the greatest photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson".

After doing some research on HCB's photography, I expected to see some great HCB inspired people photography or photo-journalism from our members.

However, the majority of entries seemed to have ignored the reference to Cartier Bresson altogether and strove instead to include a decisive moment in their pictures...

Sorry, but I couldn't ignore this in my voting, despite the undoubted technical quality of some of the shots...

I really don't see any point in having a themed contest if the theme is not followed.

I am ashamed to say that I voted at least 30 entries as "It's a Picture" because they didn't honour the theme as I understood it...

I'm sure the voting will however reflect the view of the majority - that this contest wasn't about Henri Cartier Bresson at all...

[embi]

I have to agree with you Leek.

After I posted the description of HCB's work yesterday

Cartier Bresson was the supreme master of the decisive moment – capturing a split second of human behavior with meaning, and then integrating that moment into a geometrically inspired composition that intensified the meaning of the story.

I went back and changed my vote considerably. I too ended up with a lot of "just a picture" votes. Not from lack of image quality, but lack of following the theme.

[thaddeus]

i've just re-read the article in the original link
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/ph ... 040116.htm

it seems to me that the article had a slightly different interpretation of the subject than HCB. your thoughts?

[kipper]

That's why I didn't bother to enter

A) I don't know who HCB is
B) I don't think I could try to reproduce his style even if I did know who he was.

[Aussie Dave]

When the competition was originally announced it was called The Decisive Moment, but the post made it clear that the topic was "inspired by one of the greatest photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson".

True - it was inspired by HCB...but does it say anywhere that entrants had to follow his style ??

Perhaps this is why so many entries have seemed to go off on their own tangent ?? I'm sure everyone who entered has their own meaning/interpretation of what the topic was....which was "The Decisive Moment"....it just wasn't like HCB's interpretation.

Am I wrong in my way of thinking here ??

[sheepie]

What I find interesting with all of this discussion, is the number of people who are 'disappointed' by the lack of 'adherence to theme' seems to be more than the number of photo's those same people claim to see the theme in.
Obviously the 'theme' was interpreted far wider than some people are now suggesting.
This has been, perhaps, the most challenging theme we have had so far (rightly so, given the importance of this particular comp). The difficulty, and the wide range of interpretation in what that theme has really meant, has provided some interesting discussion.
Perhaps, though, we are taking this all a little too seriously?
The idea of the comp is to get people taking photo's - to get them to think about what they're doing - surely, it is not designed to be a university test!

[embi]

True - it was inspired by HCB...but does it say anywhere that entrants had to follow his style ??

I think for me its more about the instant that everything comes together. As quoted from the original article.

Yet another form of The Decisive Moment.

"To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression." – From The Decisive Moment

This seemingly miraculous confluence of expression, gesture, lighting and composition is what makes so much of Cartier-Bresson's work exceptional, especially since most of it happened on the fly, in the real world and not in the studio.

I can talk freely about mine now.

I took over 180 images the night I stood in the kitchen taking photos.

For ages the chefs just horsed around in front of the camera. It was very frustrating. I was waiting for them to settle down into work but I thought I'd end up with a serious of shots that I could Photoshop red noses and large clown shoes onto.

Then the orders started coming in fast.

At that one moment, the head chef put something in the very hot pan causing the flame (hence the lighting around the demi chef's head) and at the same time let loose on the unsuspecting demi.

She was flat out (the two pans in front of her with roaring flames) and just kept her head down and butt up.

It was that one moment of the whole night that worked. The heat and steam and the urgency of the head chef. I was just lucky enough to be ready when the elements aligned.

Thats my take on it.

[embi]

i've just re-read the article in the original link
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/ph ... 040116.htm

it seems to me that the article had a slightly different interpretation of the subject than HCB. your thoughts?

Its interesting about the blacksmith shot that he "setup".

Could he have got the same result by just working with the natural rhythm of the smithy without having to time the blows of the hammer??

I think so.

[rokkstar]

The idea of the comp is to get people taking photo's - to get them to think about what they're doing

Thats exactly what I enjoyed about this. I knew of HCB, and had read a bit baout his work but had never actually gone out and tried to give what he was doing a go.
So I read more, got really excited and went out shooting. It was fantastic, and I've got loads and loads of shots out this comp that I am so happy with. If anything it's made me stop and think about what I'm framing up. I now make sure, or try to make sure, all the elements come together in that one decisive moment.

So my take on the theme has been pretty much following HCB's take on it, rightly or wrongly. Perhaps I've imitated his style more than some, and not thought laterally and uniquely creatively like others.
I'm looking forward to seeing who wins this bad boy of challenges. ANy hints Scott??

[ozczecho]

embi, yours is an excellent shot. Having worked in a kitchen many many moons ago I can relate - small space and a short amount of time where most of the work has to be done - and your image captures that.

For my effort, I struggled with the theme, and it took me ages to come up with an idea...in the end it was the couple in the park proposing - like you i took heaps of shots, and probably the one I entered I felt that her eyes and his look matched the moment...not sure if anyone else agreed but what the hell I had fun in trying and learnt heaps.

ozczecho (Mike)

[MCWB]

It's really interesting to see how differently people interpreted the theme. I somehow get the feeling the voting will reflect how most people interpreted the theme; nevertheless the whole point of these challenges is to get out there, shoot something and improve one's imagination and skills.

[Nnnnsic]

I didn't actually think the premise of how HCB came to "the decisive moment" mattered all that much.

To me, a lot of the pictures didn't breathe "the decisive moment" at all.

In fact, I found a lot of them to be just shots where someone thought that a "decisive moment" could be planted directly on them... landscape people, I'm talking to you.

And it was dishwashing liquid.

[PlatinumWeaver]

In fact, I found a lot of them to be just shots where someone thought that a "decisive moment" could be planted directly on them... landscape people, I'm talking to you.

I don't follow what you mean...can you explain further?

[kipper]

Dishwashing liquid with food coloring. How'd you make the incision, bit of makeup?

[sirhc55]

The inspiration for the comp was the decisive moment - whether or not one emulated HCB or not is a matter of conjecture. To me it was a matter of a moment in time that was decisive and when approached from this viewpoint can be interpreted in many ways.

Basically I could not afford a trip to Paris to take an out of focus pic in black and white

[leek]

the whole point of these challenges is to get out there, shoot something and improve one's imagination and skills.

Exactly - which is why I didn't think studio, staged or posed shots were very suitable for this particular theme...

To me, a lot of the pictures didn't breathe "the decisive moment" at all

I actually found that far too many of them tried far too hard to "breathe" the decisive moment, being of a moment or a decision or both...
If you look at HCB's work, then very few of his pictures actually feature a "moment"... they are just well composed shots of people taken at exactly the right time...

Perhaps, though, we are taking this all a little too seriously?

I don't think that I'm taking it too seriously... I was just genuinely disappointed that many people opted for easier staged options and didn't challenge their comfort levels...

The inspiration for the comp was the decisive moment - whether or not one emulated HCB or not is a matter of conjecture.

Actually, I think that the title of the comp was The Decisive Moment as inspired by HCB..., but I'm obviously in the minority...


No offence intended, but I was just sad that most of the entries weren't more people oriented a la Henri Cartier Bresson...

[Heath Bennett]

Maybe in the rules there should have been an exclamation of the theme and what it entailed. I am still a bit of a newbie here, and didn't know of the thread that started the theme... This is the first I have actually recognised that HCB has something to do with the contest. Voting people down because the theme wasn't shown properly is not cool, because there was no clear instruction of the theme. I just took it as the decisive moment... please tell me if my one fitted:

thumbnail of it:

[ozczecho]

Leek wrote:

Exactly - which is why I didn't think studio, staged or posed shots were very suitable for this particular theme...

from the "decisive moment essay"

Capturing the Decisive Moment can be calculated, as well as spontaneous – and each is legitimate. Here, I asked Eastern Shore blacksmith Rob Hudson to create a shower of sparks for me that I could capture using a slow shutter speed and flash. We choreographed each hammer blow with each photograph so that, in the end, all I had to do was choose the best fireworks.

[/url]

[Frankenstein]

Maybe in the rules there should have been an exclamation of the theme and what it entailed. I am still a bit of a newbie here, and didn't know of the thread that started the theme... This is the first I have actually recognised that HCB has something to do with the contest. Voting people down because the theme wasn't shown properly is not cool, because there was no clear instruction of the theme. I just took it as the decisive moment... please tell me if my one fitted:

thumbnail of it:

Heath, in my opinion it certainly did (and technically was excellent as well)

Frank

[radar]

Coming from a very newbie point of view, to D70users comps, photography and to HCB, I found the challenge a challenge. It got me thinking, got me out of my comfort zone.

I certainly have leant lots along the way. The composition of my shot is not as good as I had hoped, but given the limitations I had at the time, it still captured the moment which I thought was decisive. I have plenty of shots to make a story on dairy farming, maybe I can sell some some the National Farmers Federation! You try to milk 200 cows on your own in about an hour and a half and you will find that you have to be pretty decisive

It is a pretty amazing operation, getting 5000 litres of milk per day!

In the end, I suspect everybody had a really good time looking for their decisive moment and got their grey matter working.

Cheers and I hope to meet a lot of you at the AW dinner.

Radar
aka André

[Onyx]

Scott/MHD - no doubt you wwould have tallied up the votes and know of the winner already...and perhaps why you've stayed outta this thread since photographers have been revealed.

Could you perhaps let us know - would the winner of this comp be surrounded by controversy? Throughout the voting process you mentioned how close it all was, so I'm guessing there's no one clear cut winner here. Plus now there seems to be conflicting ideas/interpretations of the theme which may please some and not others. I'd just hate to think some entrants felt they missed out getting better votes because of a theme interpretation issue. by the same token, I raise my hand - guilty as charge.

For all those who entered - well done. You deserve credit just for having the guts to do so. You have my respect.

[sirhc55]

Onyx - That is the nicest statement made on this particular thread.

[Nnnnsic]

Dishwashing liquid with food coloring. How'd you make the incision, bit of makeup?

Nose putty.



There are three formulas for blood I use for different effects purposes (I shoot with "blood" quite often...)
One is the standard corn syrup recipe, another is the blue dishwashing liquid and red food colouring one (this one; tastes horrible but washed off perfectly... can't be used with water), and the other one is my recipe for keeping blood looking wet with the use of lubricant.

And the nose putty... I normally Gel FX, which is a gelatin based putty you need water to apply, but I didn't think it would be that much of a hassle... I probably should've... I pulled a few hairs in trying to take the nose putty off... Lol.

[Heath Bennett]

Thanks Frank, I appreciate it.

[gstark]

And it was dishwashing liquid.

That expolains the red stuff in the dishwashing liquid bottle when I was doing the dished the other night!

[gstark]

Scott/MHD - no doubt you wwould have tallied up the votes and know of the winner already...and perhaps why you've stayed outta this thread since photographers have been revealed.

Could you perhaps let us know - would the winner of this comp be surrounded by controversy?

I would hope that Scot does not do this at this time.

I think this discussion, and the controversy over the meaning of the theme, is healthy.

Likewise the fact that the theme is open to interpretation.

There's a reason that it's called a "challenge", and if it's made you take some photos that perhaps you would not otherwise have made, then its achieved it primary purpose.

Throughout the voting process you mentioned how close it all was, so I'm guessing there's no one clear cut winner here. Plus now there seems to be conflicting ideas/interpretations of the theme which may please some and not others. I'd just hate to think some entrants felt they missed out getting better votes because of a theme interpretation issue. by the same token, I raise my hand - guilty as charge.

I do not have an issue with this; everybody remains subject to the same conditions, so I think it all evens out in the wash.

For all those who entered - well done. You deserve credit just for having the guts to do so. You have my respect.

Exactly.

[leek]

I do not have an issue with this; everybody remains subject to the same conditions, so I think it all evens out in the wash.

Exactly...

I may have voted down pictures that I didn't think fitted the theme, but I fully expect that other people voted other entries down because they couldn't find a moment in the photo. We all had our interpretation of the theme - maybe mine was more purist than others...

Luckily this was a 2-stage contest so people were able to see the trends in the entries in Part 1 and could decide whether to alter their approach for Part 2 (I know I did!!).

I can't wait to find out who the winners are on Saturday night...
I can't imagine that there'll be any controversy whoever / whatever is judged #1 - #6...

[Manta]

I have no issue with differences in the interpretation of the theme - except that the current entrant-voting system breeds widespread inconsistency.

I feel the only way to have a fair, consistent comp is if we have a panel of judges who do the voting - like most photo comps do. The panel will have decided on what constitutes adherence to the theme prior to seeing any images and can apply that consistent yard stick across all entries.

JMHO.

[MHD]

Could you perhaps let us know - would the winner of this comp be surrounded by controversy?

I certainly hope so

[MHD]

Just an encouragement for everyone to add thier comments to the entries

[gecko]

Well here we are on page 23 of this thread - here's my 2 bobs worth....

Firstly - THANKS for a great comp - to MHD for looking after it all and to Birddog for putting up the great prizes.

The 'decisive moment' theme is EXCELLENT.

Initially I came up with lots and lots of ideas for my decisive moment. But - then I saw the image of the mountian biker screaming down hill (prostitch's image I think) and my heart sank - surely this would be an indication of the quality of entrants in the comp and I got scared off....

With only a few days to go and a surprisingly low number of entires, I was inspired to enter something - though the rugby image had nothing to do with my original ideas....


The talent on this forum is outstanding, and the sense of community is terrific. I am looking forward to the winners being revealed....

Cheers
Gecko

[gstark]

Could you perhaps let us know - would the winner of this comp be surrounded by controversy?

I certainly hope so

You and me both, Scott.

Thanx for taking the trouble and effort in getting this going; I can assure you that your efforts are truly appreciated.

[stubbsy]

Maybe in the rules there should have been an exclamation of the theme and what it entailed. I am still a bit of a newbie here, and didn't know of the thread that started the theme... This is the first I have actually recognised that HCB has something to do with the contest. Voting people down because the theme wasn't shown properly is not cool, because there was no clear instruction of the theme. I just took it as the decisive moment... please tell me if my one fitted:

Heath

I'm pretty sure the rules referred to the them in detail somewhere (too lazy to check), but in any case the voting reflects a diverse range of takes on what constitutes meeting the theme. As others have said, I think it all comes out in the wash. We'll all score in different ways, but in order to rise to the top and win an image needs to be interpreted ACROSS THE BOARD as one that meets the theme ie one that the majority effectively agree on. There will be images I marked down that others marked up and this is the nature of anything subjective.

At the end of the day, while I'd like the peer recognition of one of my shots as the winner, the competition has been about stretching my imagination as well as my photographic skills and has, indeed been a challenge. If I take nothing away from the comp, but that I'll be a happy camper - even if my images rate dead last.

FWIW I rated you image towards the top as, for me, it met the theme and I liked the image for a variety of other reasons. YMMV PS And I'm with Scott - I hope the winner does generate some controversy since that means it works as an image for all manner of reasons (how many major art comps have non controversial winners?)

[stubbsy]

Dishwashing liquid with food coloring. How'd you make the incision, bit of makeup?

Nose putty.

There are three formulas for blood I use for different effects purposes (I shoot with "blood" quite often...)
One is the standard corn syrup recipe, another is the blue dishwashing liquid and red food colouring one (this one; tastes horrible but washed off perfectly... can't be used with water), and the other one is my recipe for keeping blood looking wet with the use of lubricant.

And the nose putty... I normally Gel FX, which is a gelatin based putty you need water to apply, but I didn't think it would be that much of a hassle... I probably should've... I pulled a few hairs in trying to take the nose putty off... Lol.

Thanks for the insight Leigh. Should have guessed you'd have blow by blow pics.

[leek]

I've added some background description to my first competition entries now that the voting is over, but I thought that I'd just post another photo here...

My main subject had incredibly realistic make-up - so much so that I couldn't tell if it was real or not while standing about a metre away from her. I knew that it wasn't because of the context of the situation, but the blood looked so real that I thought that it would drip down any second...

Here's another photo that better illustrates how good the makeup was (my apologies to those of a squeamish nature):

[stubbsy]

John. This one actually works much more strongly for me than the one you submitted. I think it's the direct eye contact. Go figure

[leek]

Yep... but it doesn't have any context... no soldiers - no situation for people to wonder about...
Plus she was posing... I preferred the candids beforehand...

[birddog114]

Leek,
What's the story behind this? a demonstration? Hit and run?
Or
A mistress was hit by other half of one of our member

[Nnnnsic]

Leek, that looks like a combination of Gel FX and corn syrup blood to me...