Glow

Untitled, originally uploaded by Taigah.

There are alot of photography rules. One is don't shoot into the sun. It saps the contrast out of a shot and washes all the colors out. Another rule is don't try to get backlit shots unless you want a silhouetted foreground or burnt out background. Well here's a photograph that does both--with glorious results. Sunsets, along with puppies and flowers is one of the most derided photo subjects on flickr. In defense of sunsets, though, it's a tough situation to photograph in a creative or interesting way. I love this photo because of its unconventional approach to a tough shot, capturing an amazing warmth.

Instead of sapping the color away, the glow of the sun breathes life into the entire scene. It's beautiful how the grains of sand are lit golden as they drift down into the sunlight. Incidentally, Taigah's real courageous here for getting down for this low angle shot. Sand pretty much hates anything mechanical, cameras especially so. But the angle works well here to fill the frame with not just the subject but the beautifully colored sky. It is not easy to capture nice gradient in the sky at dusk. Here it just looks like it was so easy.

On top of that, the little details work to add to the "story" here. There's that band-aid above the right knee, toughening up our heroine. She's got that handful of sand, grains slipping away into that sunset. I wonder if she's thinking about metaphors as she gazes down at that sand. Credit has to go to Taigah here for exposing for the foreground, affording us a glimpse of a magical moment. I probably would have exposed for the sky, loosing everything but a boring sunset in the distance. The two beach chairs complete the picture. It's great how you can't tell if they're occupied or not. Maybe they're beckoning us to visit Aruba.

Lineup

Untitled, originally uploaded by Jersey Yen.

I loved this shot when I first saw it because of how nearly perfectly everyone is lined up against the wall there. You've got this one horizontal strip of light, nicely highlighting these commuters waiting for the train. It boggles my mind how each one of these people can simultaneously be so emotive. The body language and relationships of their individual silhouettes with each other and the tile background speaks volumes: lethargy, exhaustion, impatience, resignedness, intimacy, friendship, detachedness.

The blur and the skew are both elements that might be considered flaws, but are actually adding to the photograph. I like how the fuzzy forms are kind of mirroring the fuzzy quality of the lighting. That undulating bank of fluorescent lamps above reinforce this off kilter feel of the slanted platform and tired commuters. The thing here to ground us is the station placard, proclaiming the location to be Taipei, the two Chinese characters close to being swallowed by the shadows.

This photograph isn't a favorite just because it captured a feeling, though. It's a favorite because it evokes a feeling. When I looked at this for the first time, there was an immediate recognition. I've stood on that platform before. I've felt like that before underneath those nasty fluorescent lights, sandwiched by darkness. I feel like each one of those people on that platform represent a place I've been at one point. The photo reminds me of all the times I've taken the train to the east coast of Taiwan, in a sour mood about being away from my girlfriend in Taipei. In a way, I feel like this photograph is a memory of mine.

Lastly, I should mention the camera used to take this shot. It's the (in)famous Lomo LC-A. The lomo costs $200 and reigns supreme as king of the "toy camera/lo-fi" hill. Down the line, I'll have an example of color night photography done with a Lomo because the images that come out of this camera can also be shockingly saturated.