Golden rule of interesting picture.

[Ko.Fe.]

Something is wrong with me. 😱 I'm not looking at pictures with most views in any online gallery. Those are female in reproductive age nude or so pictures.

I have zero interest in classic nudes as well. But I'm enlighten by Winogrand vision of "Women Are Beautiful". Because it is a lot more intriguing and social comparing images of ladies a-la Francois Boucher style (female sauna).

I like portraits of people with age. Their eyes have something deep and appealing.

Last night I read the local comment which is perfect definition of interesting picture to me:

"I like photographs that make me think, search for clues, and speculate - they stay in the memory much longer than pretty pictures."
Lynnb.
Lynn is nice RFF member and interesting photographer.

To me interesting picture is almost equal to good picture. And pretty pictures often have nothing good in them.

Thanks to Lynn! But I might be still missing something. 🙂

Cheers, Ko.

 

[daveleo]

I can't define what I mean by and "interesting picture", but I'll tell you my acid test of a picture: I try to sink into it for 30-60 seconds. I don't think about anything but the picture and what it is this guy is trying to show me.
If I don't give it the minute, I can't honestly say it's not interesting.
If it's not interesting enough to keep me looking after a minute, it just ain't interesting.
As a viewer, I struggle to look at a sequence like: portrait, abstract, landscape, still life, landscape, portrait, portrait, abstract . . . throws my brain out of whack.

 

[Lauffray]

I often wonder if I don't have a pre-fixed yet vague idea of what I'd like to see then look for images that fit that. (1) Sometimes what doesn't meet that highly subjective criteria gets tossed in the "not so interesting" category (2) sometimes it'll grow on me (3)


At the risk of sounding irreverent, examples:
1) Klavdij Sluban, Thomas Dworzak
2) Alec Soth, Araki, Bruce Gilden
3) Eggleston, Shore, Martin Parr, Winogrand

 

[Highway 61]

There is no difference between whether a photograph is good or not and whether any art work of any kind is good or not. And there is no difference between good and interesting in that matter.

 

[kxl]

What is an 'interesting picture?'

To quote Justice Potter Stewart in the landmark US Supreme Court case Jacobellis v. Ohio: "I know it when I see it." 😉