The funfair worker

[sebasj]

Since moving from my rangefinder to a DSLR has shown to be rather problematic for me -though I'm trying to keep my DSLR as "old school" as possible-, I'm making some tries at street shooting again.

So, as this is one of the selected "keepers" of these first tries of getting to shoot street with a DSLR, any critique is really welcome please.

Technical data: Pentax K100D Super, Pentax-M 50mm @ f/1.4, ISO 1600, RAW and converted to B&W in Lightroom.

Best,
Sebas.

[taken]

first thing that struck me in this pic,are the subjects hands! very strong,hardworking,seen all,been there,type of hands! i like the subject looking into the intentional blurry back ground,making the pic. more interesting than it actually looks this pic has some strong elements that will keep the viewer glued to the pic,for quite some time......which i feel is a very good attempt by the photographer

[tirediron]

I like this picture! Definitely some strong elements in this capture, but a couple of areas which, if I may, would make it stand out even more.

(1) The area around the main subject's back and upper leg and back of his right hand is too dark. I would suggest brightening that a little bit; just enough so that some detail is visible. Perhaps 1/2-1 stop.

(2) The background is fighting with the main subject. Good use of selective focus to highlight the main subject, however there's still enough detail in the background that it will draw the viewer's eye.

[McQ]

I like the richness of tones and texture with the metal gate and all the types of fabric. I also agree about the background-subject competition. If you could have moved to the right just a foot or two you would have gotten a clear division using the white wall directly behind his head/body. Just a sliver would be all that is needed...just so there's no overlap and you get a full head/torso silhouette. On the other hand, this *is* street photography, so presuming full foot placement/timing was under your control is often being unreasonable...

[sebasj]

Those are the critiques I was looking for, thank you! Well, let's see... for the blurred background, I noted on the final image it does compete with the main subject. The subject still holds on, it's sharper than the rest of the image and certainly has some details that capture the beholder's attention. For example, his hands, which Taken noted clearly. Those hands indeed called my attention. But it is truth that the background is less blurred than what I thought it was going to be. Though blurry, not enough defocused. The baby is still clearly seen, and it steals some protagonism from the main subject because the subject is indeed looking in that direction (I believe it was his son, later when I passed along the same stand he was holding the baby in his arms). I can only guess I missed the aperture. I'm almost sure I was shooting at f/1.4, but certainly this picture doesn't seem like been shot at that wide aperture. For what I'm used on this lens, that looks no wider than f/2.8. My mistake.

And for the composition, well, that's the biggest problem: I had the man standing still there looking at the baby for some seconds... I should have framed better The time was enough to focus and compose better, and I only focused.

I'm still getting used to shoot with the cropped frame on the DSLR. As I come from a long time with 50s on film, I'm quite used to shoot with that frame size. Now I can't find quickly a good framing, and this kind of details as those as Tirediron and McQ mention are the ones that mark the difference between an acceptable photograph and a good photograph.

While this could be a good street shot, given the failures it's an acceptable shot only. The shot is saved by minor details, but composition could have been better indeed.

Thank you very much for these critiques! Let's see how do I go next time. I'm really glad for having posted here and the critiques received. Thanks again.

Best,
Sebas.