Mr Anonymous

This man smoked and his mush was interesting too. Double bonus....an interesting smoker as camera fodder. I asked if I could portrait him as he sat smoking and drinking beer in a local coffee bar. He said OK. He noticed my tremor and raised a brow. "Parkinson's....I am on medication" He said "So am I". "Parkinson's"? I asked. "Nah........anti psychotic" I stood back, pleased I had the 100-400. He looked a cross between an older McEnroe and a younger Keith Richard(!) In any event....he loved the camera and posed for all he was worth

The thick black lines on his face are shadows from the pergola in the cafe garden

Out of theShadows 2 by Pete Tachauer, on Flickr

Out of the Shadows by Pete Tachauer, on Flickr
 

DominoDude

Certified photon catcher
Feb 7, 2013
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Very well done, Petach! The first one is solidly good.
I have to disagree with anyone saying this could ruin the reputation of photographers. You brought out a part of the soul of a human, in an, otherwise, anonymous person. You did so with respect of him; it can't be done in a better way.

Don't feel ashamed for anything regarding this shot or how you approached the situation.
 
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Don Haines

Beware of cats with laser eyes!
Jun 4, 2012
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That first shot is fantastic. It captures your eye and you stare at it.... it is more than a portrait.

If I were that guy I would be asking for a print to hang.....

BTW, you engaged the subject, asked permission, and took a fantastic shot. I think that gives photographers a good name....

Once again, that is a fantastic shot!
 
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Dear All, I have not seen the post that has been modded out, so I know not what it said. I understand it was critical?

So, no....I am not ashamed of the shot. Never ever even entered my head to think so. I asked permission, I told the guy exactly what I would do AND I told him I would leaVE 2 A4 prints for him with the bar owner.....for free!

I like the shot, I think it is my best in my short career as a 'tog.

So, thanks for the positives. Can anyone let me know what the offending reply to my post was? I would be interested to know.
 
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beforeEos Camaras said:
out standing both are top notch and amazing you sir did well.

the shadows and highlights and his face is just epic keep up the wonderful work
Don Haines said:
I had to come back and look at your first picture again....

I don't know how to properly explain it but WOW WOW WOW!!! It is a picture that you can stare at and get lost in.

It is one of the finest portrait shots that I have ever seen. Karsh would have been proud to have taken that shot.

.........

Thank you all for your support and I appreciate the comments re the quality of the shot. As I said, I have no idea what the removed post said about me nor my shot. I'd have been happy for it to remain in view for me to answer ANY point made by the poster. If you put photos in the public domain.....you lead with your chin and have to be prepared to take the bad with the good. I live in a democracy and opinion is allowed....so long as it does not turn into trolling.

Maybe the offended person should have pm'd me first to lay out what had offended his/her senses and I could have replied (would have replied)

Back to the shot. I am inspired by Alan Shapiro and his Out of the shadows work. I had a long conversation with my subject over coffee. We talked for 15 or 20 minutes about life, love and the pursuit of happiness....his farm, his ducks, the death of his father. I took 20 or 30 shots as we spoke. I under exposed them to a huge degree so that I could extract the features from the shadows on a bright and hot sunny day. For me, the portraits are a true reflection of the person I was talking to and taking pictures of. I almost cried when I processed the main shot because it was "SO HIM". I truly have ever done anything which has given me so much satisfaction. I tried my hardest to present the person....not just a shot of a person.......not one dimensional, but multi faceted. What was behind the eyes? What caused the lines on his face? Where had he been? what had he seen. It was the wide open face of a life crossing my path. I took full advantage of the opportunity and I am mighty glad I did.

So thank you all.


The post removed by the moderators was very critical of you as a person and as a photographer for having taken that shot. It must be jealousy.
DominoDude said:
Very well done, Petach! The first one is solidly good.
I have to disagree with anyone saying this could ruin the reputation of photographers. You brought out a part of the soul of a human, in an, otherwise, anonymous person. You did so with respect of him; it can't be done in a better way.

Don't feel ashamed for anything regarding this shot or how you approached the situation.
Click said:
Excellent. I really like the first portrait. Well done Petach.
Sporgon said:
Excellent !
 
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YuengLinger

Print the ones you love.
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Dec 20, 2012
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I was surprised to see my post removed by the mod, but I did return to this thread to say that, while I initially found the first shot especially to be almost cruel in its honesty, I may have been personally influenced by having an alcoholic brother whose life is in ruins.

While I was blunt, as said, I'm surprised something without a personal attack or foul language was removed. If what I said was perceived as personal, rather than to the posting of such a revealing portrait, I apologize.

Re-evaluating the shot and my first response, I'd say that excellent craft was employed, and that an arresting result was achieved.

Still, a visceral response was only to be expected, and though I may not have used the terms of an art scholar to convey my personal feeling about the shot, and that in some circumstances a shot that captures a dark side or unattractive view might upset a subject, I will try to be more constructive with feedback in the future.

Best regards,
YuengLinger
 
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YuengLinger said:
I was surprised to see my post removed by the mod, but I did return to this thread to say that, while I initially found the first shot especially to be almost cruel in its honesty, I may have been personally influenced by having an alcoholic brother whose life is in ruins.

While I was blunt, as said, I'm surprised something without a personal attack or foul language was removed. If what I said was perceived as personal, rather than to the posting of such a revealing portrait, I apologise.







Re-evaluating the shot and my first response, I'd say that excellent craft was employed, and that an arresting result was achieved.

Still, a visceral response was only to be expected, and though I may not have used the terms of an art scholar to convey my personal feeling about the shot, and that in some circumstances a shot that captures a dark side or unattractive view might upset a subject, I will try to be more constructive with feedback in the future.

Best regards,
YuengLinger




It is very good of you to return to this thread to add more thoughts. You are an intelligent person and I appreciate why you may be upset. However, you must understand that a great deal of care went into the portraits and the results are from umpteen iterations; scrapped because they did not bring out the persona.

I was the only person in the cafe to take an interest in him, to seek him out and talk to him. His face, lived in and witness to many things in his life, just begged to be photographed. Such character!

I never, shoot the homeless or other disadvantaged people unless to make a valid point, or if there is an incongruous juxta.......or with permission.

I lost a wife to cancer at 39 and brought up 2 children on my own, I had a heart attack in 2006....now I have Parkinsons. So, I have had an arse kicking but I don't feel qualified to tell others that they should not broach these issues in whatever way they wish. Being offensive diminishes the offender in the sight of others and does not need me to make comment.

I have a sense of humour and I use it in the introduction to some of my photography.....in a way .....to attract attention or draw attention to an aspect which may not immediately be clear to the viewer.

I am glad that you think the portrait is well crafted......my hard work paid off. My next visit to the cafe/bar will include him looking at my shots for the first time. I hope he likes them as much as others do.

`i would have been happy for your post to stay.....to answer your points (to this day, I have still not seen them as I was out all day when posted and subsequently removed.

Regards

Peter
 
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distant.star said:
.

Outstanding images.

And civility and accountability from everyone, except the "moderator."

Please don't blame the mod. It is a beastly task at best of times.....something along the lines "some of the people all of the time" or "all of the people some of the time" comes to mind in regard to Pleasing! It is a fine line....no one died or was injured and I think we are both happy with the resulting conversations.

OK, let's take photographs.......3.............2.....1.....go

Pete
 
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