Against the ads..., a photo from Hong Kong, South

Photographer's Note

Spent a few running days in HKG, last week...
just like this gentleman slaloming his way through Wan Chai MTR station advertisements.

I had many TE's images in mind, shot in HKG or elsewhere...I borrowed some aesthetical or technical ideas from some of the most inspiring TE members and tried to input my own twist.

I've been lurking with envy on carolynanna's wide angle shots, I then bought in HK a 21mm for my Leica, also remembered Maciekda's ad shots.

Here's my own mix... For who knows HK, the only difficult thing here is to get some clear empty some space for a fraction of time.

maciekda heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

flip89 (3418) 2003-11-23 12:58

What a wonderful title. For that alone, a big smiley is so worth giving :-). The photograph is very dynamic and the fact that you included two pillars with the same ad bolsters your title. I also love the black and white ... very contrast to the vibrancy and colors of Hong Kong. But then again, you did capture, as you said, a rare Hong Kong sight ... clear empty space.

[2]

ninadev (5377) 2003-11-23 17:51

Your note, the title and the image really say the same thing "what are the ods that you would find an empty space in HK". I like that we see those men on the signs standing still with arms crossed and as a contrast this man walking rapidly in the opposite direction.And image of contrasts that really required B&W.

Skorj (581) 2003-11-24 3:01

Great subject, well observed and executed. The space frame left (and the person) detract a little, as does the bright reflections - I have made a brief WS to perhaps increase impact by eliminating a few of these elements (frame included sorry).

henrye (3500) 2003-11-24 4:44

This is great! I love the way the ads repeat in the picture, with the man walking between them. The black and white is wonderful, and adds a great deal of atmosphere to the shot.

carolynanna (1324) 2003-11-24 13:09

What an amazing eye you have Luko. I love it. Your composition, the contrast, the content. I would love to see you work with an 18mm as well!

I just sent in my holiday wish list for the Leica... lets see what it brings!

maciekda (19895) 2003-11-26 1:50

this is an interesting shot, the ad is really great, I haven't seen this one yet... and if it was my shot i'd rather cut the left part of the pillar to have its right contour somewhere in the middle of the pictre... you included the whole pillar - it gives an interesting effect, I must try it sometime... also the guy passing by, blurred here, adds more life to the picture. and only one guy around at the MTR station, unusual, was it in the late evening?
I like this picture and i know it is from HK even without looking at your note, such a typical scene...

Darren (6823) 2003-11-26 11:42

This is really good Luko. For me, this is counter to your normal method of shooting, where you display a chaotic scene, but find order within it. Here, you have caught movement to be sure, but not chaos. This does remind me of Carolyn's work, but not exactly the same either. A top notch effort Luko and something a little different, which is to be complimented. Perhaps the reflections on the far left are annoying, but I have no idea how to avoid them (a polarizer would take away too much light), and since they are not in a critical area, they aren't much of a problem.

dsidwell (9783) 2003-11-26 12:21

This is a delightful image, Luko. I haven't seen your work for too long! The idea of the man walking through this signs with all these guys is really good; it's a wonderful juxtaposition.

numahr (350) 2003-11-26 18:17

Reading your note, I looked again at the pic carefully... and ey! you're right! the empty space here must be really exceptionnal... there is already someone new arriving between the right pillar and the edge of the pic!!

With that and your note in mind, it looks like now that this quitness will not last long...

clodreno (0) 2003-12-23 4:57

I thought I gave you smileys for this shot.It's very, very nice. I love htis guy walking through those adds.

kourosh (2346) 2004-06-01 10:58

what i most like about this shot is the small blur in the moving man. i guess you used 1/20 or something close? the effect is very good against the still figures in the poster.

markoci (3933) 2004-12-07 20:57

I like this a lot!

Disagree with Maciekda (even with the undesired reflection (sorry no idea either how to get rid of it), I'd like to see the whole left pillar)

I'm also curious what was the shutter speed on this one?

Agree with all other comments above.

I also like the no frill ad itself (nothing but a logo on the shirts) Nicely captured!

Mark

rowanb (864) 2005-04-07 6:22