Re: mounting slides & Judge's comments

[P3D Carrano, Allan <allan.carrano@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

John Bell wrote:

>What if the viewer tilts his or her head to one side to match the 
>image's horizon? Does that produce a greater sense of verisimilitude? 
>(By "viewer" I don't mean the red-button kind, of course.)
>
>Does the same phenonmenon occur when one tilts the camera forward or 
>back instead of side to side? If not, why not?

Typical acceptable answers:  Forward and back - OK.  Side (rotational)
not OK.

My answers:  In looking at the image in a hand held viewer, if you were
to tilt the viewer in the same attitude as the camera when the picture
was taken, you would experience the same viewing perspective as when you
tripped the shutter.  I have purposely done this on several occasions
(KNOWINGLY breaking the rules);  e.g., I have a stereo slide taken from
the eleventh floor of a hotel at Myrtle Beach, SC.  The camera was
pointed down and tilted to the side (to catch seagulls being fed in mid
flight by folks on a seventh floor balcony below).  The horizon is
definitely not parallel or perpendicular to any side of the "window"
(Here, you have to perform a slight mental gymnastic.  You need to be
able to visualize your window as not fixed in space, but being able to
be rotated.  Otherwise it won't work for you) .  Viewing the slide by
tilting the viewer in the same fashion as the camera was tilted, makes
the slide work fine for me.  In projection, this slide would be a
disaster and you would never get your star. :-)  

I'd like to use John Bell's questions and my answers to tie into John
B's comments:

>Erlys talked about judges' comments.  I wonder if it would be a 
>good idea to make a FAQ of them...

Good idea, John, but I would like to see such comments prefaced as
"suggestions" or "guidelines" rather than be referred to as "rules."

For beginners or those not artistically inclined,  "rules" can be
followed with the result that the photographer will be strengthened in
the basics, take better snapshots, photographs and can accomplish even a
certain degree of artistic success.  But the paradox is that this
improvement or growth in photographic ability can be stifled by one's
adamant adherence to those very rules that have caused the improvement
in the first place.

Cliche' time.  Rules are meant to be broken.  Step outside the box.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

It seems that every few years a I need to remind myself why I shy away
from judges and photo contests.  THEY TAKE AWAY MY CREATIVITY.  I start
thinking in terms of "what will the judges like?", instead of "what do I
want to accomplish."  

For those who enjoy slide competitions (Hi, Dr. T!),  I don't mean to
offer my remarks in any way as a condemnation.  I do see where combining
the two can have a positive synergistic effect.  But not necessarily for
everyone. competition and good photography are not the same thing.  For
some (a minority like myself?), competition may actually work against
the flow of creative juices.

Bottom line:  I know that being the best photographer or artist I can be
has nothing to do with someone else's judgment of my efforts.  Proof?
There is none, but - cliche' time again - "no artist is recognized in
his time.  All the great artists are dead." :-)

Allan Carrano



  

             

 


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