CRITIQUE: CHINESE SOLDIERS

Sam, your image has a very musical quality. This is created by the strong linear repetition, which is vertical in the men's legs, and horizontal, in the men's knees segueing into the horizontal slats of the bench. The musical quality is made even stronger because of the men's feet, which create a joyful tension and subtle movement. The feet seem to almost be tapping. In addition, the "dancing light" which speckles the left third of the composition could be exploited more to help maximize the musical aspect of the photo. Try testing different angles and filters to find the most effective way to use the light in your photo.

The contrast of the green uniforms with the red scarves is a very striking use of color. This could be made even more prominent by including more of the red scarves. Try photographing a larger area and experiment later with the most effective cropping.

An "uncomfortable" tension is created for me in the fact that the men's heads are not included in the picture. Including the expressions of the men's faces could add a more humanistic and emotional quality to the image that is not only visually but also viscerally stimulating. The strongest images are those which both communicate an emotion and do so in a graphically interesting way. Because your subject is soldiers there are many intriguing concepts which could be addressed by the photo. This again could be explored by framing your subject more broadly and exploring your cropping options later.

critiquer: "photohip"

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