About the Image(s)

My image this month is one of my father in law. I took some time considering whether to submit it because I am undecided whether it would be defined as fine art. It is not documentary- I have definitely worked to interpret the image in a way that I hope conveys a feeling, an idea, an emotion, a story. I have removed distracting elements from the surroundings, and added artistic accents. Is it fine art?

Opa Jack, as we call him, was sitting in a chair one evening, and he asked me to find his old guitar. Now 93 years old, he is blind and deaf, so he played it by feel. He started talking about his experiences in the war, and how much he missed his wife. I picked up my camera while he was talking, but the unposed, unlit images were not great!

I had a picture in my mind of how I wanted the image to look. Real, but with a hint of the era he was immersed in.

I worked on depth and contrast using curves. I then converted a copy to black and white and used this at low opacity to further enhance depth. I used Analog Efex to add a subtle glass plate border and light leak. I then did some colour grading to tone the image overall, so that the light leak worked with the toning of the subject.

I look forward to everyone's comments :)