Topic: Got a pic in a show

[hookstrapped]

http://sohophoto.com/participate/competitions/national/

This is the pic (Mamiya 6 / 50mm f4 / Portra 400 shot at 800)
https://images.us.viewbook.com/6baeaebecf576cb3c757f3662397489a_large.jpg

The whole slide show is worth a look, I think.  I'm happy to be in such good company.  So much of contemporary photography is so alike and trendy and lame, it's nice to see a collection of good photographs.  Elizabeth Avedon (former assistant to and daughter-in-law of Richard Avedon) is the curator for this and I like what she likes so I guess it's not surprising.

The challenge was getting a good print.  Printing dark color photos is notoriously difficult.  When I tried it on my Canon Prisma Pro9000 inkjet printer, it all turned to discolored mud.  I had tried digital C-prints before but with dark prints there was still a problem.  So I found a place a lot cheaper than the place I used before because I thought I'd have to go through lots of test prints to approach anything acceptable.  Well, not only was this place cheap, they did a fantastic job, providing an additional test that the tech made on his own based on my comments with the order; then I specified to print the full-size print 20% from one of my test prints toward his test print, and it came out perfect.

I've really come to like this pic.  It's got a bit of a Roy Decarava thing going -- so dark that from a distance it looks like a murky silhouette, until you look closer and you see the details.  But there's a limit to that.  Look too close and you lose everything.  It's still ultimately opaque, obscure. Which is appropriate to the subject.  Here's a good short piece on Decarava

http://www.utata.org/sundaysalon/roy-decarava/

[astrobeck]

Wow!   
 This is more than excellent!
You're in good company and I'm a fan of your work as well as DeCarava's.
Well done!
I think you should have won the prize though!!!

Becky

[Francois]

Just getting in the show would be big for me. So congrats

[hookstrapped]

Thanks 

BTW, this is the print place, located in the LES in NYC (though they're moving soon, maybe to Chinatown)
http://lightprint.com/

[Photo_Utopia]

Well done! An excellent shot-you deserve every bit of recognition you get.

[limr]

Congrats!! Well-deserved.

[Adam Doe]

Congratulations!

[irv_b]

Congratulations Peter what a fantastic picture that more than stands up in that slide show. 
Thanks for the steer towards Decarava.

[Late Developer]

Many congratulations, Peter.  There's a warmth, a sensuality and an air of mystery in your photo which tells (or, more accurately, suggests) a story.  I've looked through the others several times and there is some good photography but very few of the photos actually engage me for more than a few seconds.

I have no formal art education so I risk being called a Philistine, however, your's is one of the few shots I'd look at repeatedly and fine something new and interesting.  The rest are good record shots.  I agree with Becky - you should have won the prize.

[hookstrapped]

Thank you!  I'm really touched. 

The shot, like many good shots, was a product of preparation, luck, and trust.


The full series, and full story, can be found here
https://www.lensculture.com/peter-schafer?modal=true&modal_type=project&modal_project_id=84656