Help Me Pick Images for My Exhibit

ornate_wrasse

ornate_wrasse

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In October, I will be showing some images at Blackbird Wine Shop in Portland, Oregon. I will be exhibiting three images. I've got it narrowed down to four images. Can the good folks at RFF help me select which three images to be in the exhibit? Thank you in advance for your thoughts and opinions on which three are the strongest and best images.

Two of the images were shot with DSLRs, one with the Leica M9 and one with the Fuji XPro-1. Here are the four images I've narrowed it down to:

Image One
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Image Two
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Image Three
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Image Four
original.jpg
 
I would go with images 1,2 and 4. I happen to like 4 a lot too.

I think having 3 very different images with a variety of colours makes things interesting.
 
There's an intrusion into the left side of the frame by a structure that really detracts IMO. I played with your image, strongly cropping the zebras and converting into contrasty B+W. You might want to try that just for giggles?
 
FrankS said:
There's an intrusion into the left side of the frame by a structure that really detracts IMO. I played with your image, strongly cropping the zebras and converting into contrasty B+W. You might want to try that just for giggles?
Click to expand...


I really like your idea of converting it into contrasty B&W and I may do that, except that this particular exhibit requires that the images be in color. :mad:

Are you able to post the B&W image? I'd sure like to see it.
 
Hi Ellen,

Cute zebra photo, but IMO it doesn't fit the theme of the other 4 nature/landscape pictures - and I prefer Frank's bw crop for that subject. Is there a particular reason you shortlisted it? e.g. if everyone in Portland knows and loves them?

Are you hoping to sell the prints you're exhibiting? If that's the case I'd go for simple, graphically strong and colourful (what we would call saturated) photos, as from what I've seen they tend to sell more than subtle pictures. Given it's a local market you're targeting, I'd also go for "iconic" (with apologies to Lawrence for using that word - perhaps "recognisable" would substitute) locations that locals would be familiar with.

So my choice would be #1, #3 and #12.

You have a lot of photos I really like in your Pbase gallery. However given you're only exhibiting three pictures I'd have a common theme to tie them together, like landscape/nature. If you included a wildlife picture, I'd go for something that's native to your geographic region rather than a foreign species.

Hope this helps. Good luck with it!

kind regards,
 
lynnb said:
Hi Ellen,

Cute zebra photo, but IMO it doesn't fit the theme of the other 4 nature/landscape pictures - and I prefer Frank's bw crop for that subject. Is there a particular reason you shortlisted it? e.g. if everyone in Portland knows and loves them?

Are you hoping to sell the prints you're exhibiting? If that's the case I'd go for simple, graphically strong and colourful (what we would call saturated) photos, as from what I've seen they tend to sell more than subtle pictures. Given it's a local market you're targeting, I'd also go for "iconic" (with apologies to Lawrence for using that word - perhaps "recognisable" would substitute) locations that locals would be familiar with.

So my choice would be #1, #3 and #12.

You have a lot of photos I really like in your Pbase gallery. However given you're only exhibiting three pictures I'd have a common theme to tie them together, like landscape/nature. If you included a wildlife picture, I'd go for something that's native to your geographic region rather than a foreign species.

Hope this helps. Good luck with it!

kind regards,
Click to expand...

good thinking!
 
The first three; leave out the Zebras. As others have pointed out, the zebras don't fit in with the rest of the work, and even if they did, the manmade stuff visible ruins it.

When you exhibit multiple pieces in one exhibit, you need look at it as the showing of a body of work, and that body of work should fit together rather than being a group of random 'cool photos'
 
lynnb said:
Is there a particular reason you shortlisted it? e.g. if everyone in Portland knows and loves them?

Are you hoping to sell the prints you're exhibiting?
So my choice would be #1, #3 and #12.

I'd have a common theme to tie them together, like landscape/nature.
Click to expand...

There is no particular reason other than I happened to be looking at some images I took at the Singapore Zoo years ago and could not believe I had missed that one (meaning i had overlooked it). So, it's a "recently discovered" image. But that's a pretty poor reason for selecting it :)

Yes, I'm hoping to sell the prints, but I am certainly not counting on it

Yes, I agree it would be best to have a common theme. I'm not the only one who will be exhibiting prints there. There are a group of us who took a class together and I think most, if not all, of them will be exhibiting landscape images.

Thanks for taking the time to give me your honest and frank opinion.

Ellen
 
Can I reinforce what others have said?

For me: #1, #2, #12 are the three to show.

The zebra image is much improved by Frank's suggestion. Even if it remained color, the crop removes that very unfortunate structure on the left. That thing ruins the image for me, but the cropped image is a whole nuther story.

But, considering theme and all. Numbers 1, 2, and 12 nail it.

I've never been to Blackbird Wine. Whereabouts is it?
 
rfaspen said:
Can I reinforce what others have said?
For me: #1, #2, #12 are the three to show.


I've never been to Blackbird Wine. Whereabouts is it?
Click to expand...

Of course you can reinforce what others have said :D
Thank you for jumping in with your thoughts!

Blackbird is on NE Fremont in Portland. Here's the link:

http://blackbirdwine.com

Apparently they hang photos on the walls of the shop. I've personally never been there before as it's being arranged by someone else who's talked with the shop owner. Interestingly, another RFF member mentioned in another forum here that he, too, had images on exhibit at Blackbird. My images, along with others in our group, will be there the month of October. Feel free to stop in if you're in the Portland area.
 
Hi Ellen,
congrats to the opportunity to show your work.

I agree with others about the zebra shot ... it today's digital image world I'd consider this shot 'click bait'. A lot of people will look at it for a very short amount of time (and get counted) and move on. It's a perfect moment in a sense that you captured with that frame but beyond being funny or lovely there is nothing much that keeps the interest up to watch in longer or again after you have seen it once. It doesn't fit in any way with the landscape shots. Just my $0.02;)
 
FrankS nailed it right!

So. Now we have two bw zebras and two are landscapes in color. And the question is - how it is going to be displayed? If all at one spot, doesn't feel good for me.
If zebras are in one spot and landscapes are together in another spot - fine.
I like #12. And One is singing same song. Which cool to me.

Two is cheesy and over processed. Three is "show me what I haven't seen."
 
I forgot to say "congrats" Ellen! They're nice images on screen; I look forward to seeing the prints.

I'll be in Portland a few times this month (my son goes to college there). I plan to stop in at Blackbird Wine and view some nice images. Of course I like wine too, but not so sure about nuclear cheese :confused:

My wife has been in a few exhibits in Portland. She currently has an image or two in Black Box Gallery, right across the street from the (in)famous Doug-fir Lounge. As for me, I'm lucky to have an image in the local library.
 
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