Mike Fernandez  


Meet Larry by Mike Fernandez

May 2022 - Meet Larry

About the Image(s)

Conforming with traditional BNW, I am showing some wild life found at
one of my neighbors home.

Minor corrections and cropping then converted to BNW using Faststone
software and added a border.


This round’s discussion is now closed!
7 comments posted




 
How can not fall in love with this wonderful monochrome of this, hamster? Not sure which animal for sure, but do enjoy the close up of this adorable creature.   Posted: 05/09/2022 22:53:18



Debasish Raha   Debasish Raha
Mike, great portrait of Larry. Perfect exposure and nicely sharp.   Posted: 05/12/2022 19:13:20



Lance Lewin   Lance Lewin
Mike...Larry's portrait is simply marvelous! (And I bet he likes it, too!!)

Tack Sharp: I always mention this...when capturing both human and animal portraits, most important is to keep the eyes (or at least one eye in certain compositions) crystal sharp! Even if the rest of the image is blurred or surrounded by lens bokeh, a sharp eye will more often than not, make the work a "keeper".

Alternatives to this advice is work within the realm of the avant-garde. (e.g., 19th century photographer, Julia Margret Cameron, comes to mind. Google her work if you are not familiar).

  Posted: 05/15/2022 12:27:52
Mike Fernandez
No, actually was kind of upset that I was to close to him.
As Avant-garde, is worth mentioning Alice Austen.
A lady that started photography at an early age.
A few things to note, for a lady, she did carry a big camera(see picture). She would have love my heavy weight Canon R.
Also did most of her own developing.
The reason I mentioned it, is that I did visited her museum in Staten Island, NY. Worth visiting if you visit SI.
http://www.gothamcenter.org/exhibits/alice-austen
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/alice-austen-house-museum-staten-island?select=fpHyyhFgl3GEFUGCkHOajA   Posted: 05/15/2022 13:16:23
Lance Lewin   Lance Lewin
Really appreciate the lead to Alice Austen. Though I do not see her (work) as avant-garde, I do appreciate her ability to record some of the best vernacular based work I have enjoyed, including those captured by Walker Evans. I look forward to reading more about her in the coming weeks.   Posted: 05/16/2022 06:21:35



Jon Porthouse   Jon Porthouse
Hi, Mike. You mention that Larry was not happy that you were close to him, and if so then great job getting the shot. Very sharp and a majestic pose with his front feet higher than his rear. The border you added does a nice job of removing potential distractions in the background, but its brightness does compete with your subject and makes him appear relatively dimmer in the frame (i.e. his white fur appears to be a bit lower in brightness than the framing). Have you tried a more subtle dark border or a vignette accomplished using a circular gradient centered on Larry's eye? I hope you shared this with your neighbor- they are not likely to get a better picture of Larry.   Posted: 05/22/2022 06:44:00



Mike Fernandez
The white surrounding may be a bit stronger. Correct. Good point.
"a vignette accomplished using a circular gradient centered on Larry's eye?" That is intriguing?
What would be the intent?
Kind of 'give' the eye a border of lighter shade?   Posted: 05/22/2022 11:14:45