Jay’s Day Out

[Marty E]

I cropped and converted this BW shot from color that I took of an old friend named Jay with dementia currently locked down in an assisted living center in Michigan. He was absolutely elated to escape briefly from his “prison” to have a deli sandwich with us at a nearby restaurant. The gleeful expression on Jay’s face couldn’t have been brighter to capture how much eating a favorite sandwich with friends meant to him when everything else in his world is fading away. Any suggestions for edits and title? The original color photo is posted below.

[Patrick]

You captured his great smile very well , good stuff Marty .. I cropped away some bits that i felt distracted a little bit and for me they kept making me look at them ( just my feeling ) i think it puts the focus back on the main man , i straightened the horizon a little , removed the cap logo (M) EYE SNAG for me .. took away the person or people on the right .. the burred head kept pulling my eye to work out what it was … All only personal taste Marty

I left all the crucial details

[Marty E]

Hi Patrick, thanks so much for this great feedback. I really like how you eliminated the distractions while straightening it a bit to put the focus on the man. I probably try too hard not to over crop, but this looks perfect. Leaving all the crucial details! I will definitely remember this lesson 😀 Glad you like his smile, it was contagious

[Patrick]

All good marty , i fully get not cropping too heavy but the key to that is better framing before taking the shot , i admit i crop a lot and have no issues with doing it at all if it makes a better picture.

[Marty E]

Thanks for your thoughts, Patrick. Framing and cropping are creative art forms for sure, and the best teacher is often experience in knowing when and how much

[Patrick]

Very true indeed Marty

[beth]

a good picture and a better story.  glad jay got out for a bit.

this is one of  those documentary style shots that captures the moment.  you nailed the exposure.  the pose/expression is natural and interesting, so you captured the right moment.  i prefer the color shot, but the your original b&w crop.

[Marty E]

Thanks so much, Beth! I really helps to know I got the right exposure and captured the moment with an interesting and natural expression. It’s also good to know you prefer the color, I’ll definitely reconsider the strengths of each. I’m not exactly sure what your comment “but the your original b&w crop” means.

[beth]

the crop you have on the very first b&w image is better than the crop on the color.

[Marty E]

Good to know, thank you 😀 The color was the uncropped original I think.

[Author]

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