A photo I like, but don't know why

[tcolgate]

Here is a photo from a recent trip to Caister (north of Yarmouth on the east coast of England). We were staying in a building on the beach, just behind us there was a parking area filled with tractors that I thought might make for some nice compositions. Just when I was finishing up I walked past this clothes line. For some reason, of the 100 or so photos I took on this trip, this is one I always pause at when looking through the pictures.
I don't really know why I like it. It may be that it needs to context of a windy beach and sand dunes that some of the other photos provide. Some how, to me, it "feels" exactly like a windy seaside town.
Although it was a quick snap, and one I almost forgot I'd taken, it was taken with intention, opening up the lens and up'ing the shutter speed to try and freeze the blowing clothes and soften the background just a touch.
Am I mad?
(taken with an Olympus OM1n on FP4+, dev'd in FX55, I think it was the zuiko 28mm).

 

[koraks]

No, I see what you mean. Compositionally, several elements kind of fall into place - e.g. the statuettes on the ground and the lighter values in the top left and right corners 'pegging' the scene down, like thumbtacks. Like you observed, there's a sense of motion in the clothes on the line and the 'windy aspect' is prominent. There's also an interesting contrast between the exposed nature of the scene to the elements (bright sunlight, strong wind) and the secluded, boxed-in nature of the home in the background. Even the sun and the wind can't make the ugliness of the man-made arrangement of the house and its surroundings go away, even though they 'try' to create an organic, natural shape in the clothes on the line that's at odds with the oppressive angular nature of the setting.

It has something to it; certainly that sense of atmosphere.

 

[Don_ih]

It's a good photo. You should make a print. It's the kind of photo John Szarkowski would've purchased if you'd brought it into Moma in a stack of photos of tractors. (He would've ignored the tractors.) It exudes life. It's all very human.

 

[jvo]

it's an interesting photo, and i understand what you mean. knowing the backstory/context adds to the enjoyment.

aesthetically and technically it's great. all the lines against the "irregular" clothes. yes, life and joy.

 

[Rayt]

I know why. It’s a good photo. Andrew Wyeth probably painted something similar in his lifetime.

 

[MattKing]

I like it too.
I'd probably play with cropping it:

 

[Vaughn]

I was thinking along the same lines, Matt, but the cropping ends up making the image about the laundry instead of the place. Not that that is bad at all.

I enjoy the image because of the contrast between the ordinary still place and the sign of the movement of time (the wind blown laundry).

 

[Saganich]

I think the whole scene better balances out the 'life' element...all the human subjective experiences (a world)...lifestyle, journey, joy, passion, livelihood, memories, happiness, family, longevity...all in the frame. The second story peeking out and windows on the edge and mushrooms and gnomes in front all support the subject.

 

[tcolgate]

I'd probably play with cropping it:

That's an jnteresting crop! I do think I prefer the full scene (though I'm biased by the memory of standing there).
But you've managed to get rid of all the "classical" compositional errors in terms of unnecessary thing entering if crossing the edge of the frame, and keep all the main textures and areas.
I think the main oblong of the white side of the house works as a sort of frame in the frame for me (and I do like the gnomes).
Very cool suggestion though, I didn't see that option at all.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I like it uncropped.

 

[tcolgate]

Thank you to everyone for the kind and considered feedback. This one was far more luck than judgement, but at least seeing something in it after the fact is probably some kind of progress!

 

[Don_ih]

cropping

Matt, you ruined it. Those little statues need to be down on the ground. You made the door look incidental rather than liable to be opened at any time. You cut away the symmetrically placed second potted plant. Very very destructive. And you seem so beneficent....

 

[cliveh]

I would also not crop it, as it is a slice of life, but perhaps print it with a brighter midtone value.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I'd rather see a pretty girl hanging the wash. A blonde. With the wind blowing her skirt.

 

[cliveh]

I'd rather see a pretty girl hanging the wash. A blonde. With the wind blowing her skirt.

With your track record of previous posts I'm not surprised.

 

[MattKing]

Matt, you ruined it. Those little statues need to be down on the ground. You made the door look incidental rather than liable to be opened at any time. You cut away the symmetrically placed second potted plant. Very very destructive. And you seem so beneficent....

The horror, the horror .
As I said, play!

 

[RalphLambrecht]

No, I see what you mean. Compositionally, several elements kind of fall into place - e.g. the statuettes on the ground and the lighter values in the top left and right corners 'pegging' the scene down, like thumbtacks. Like you observed, there's a sense of motion in the clothes on the line and the 'windy aspect' is prominent. There's also an interesting contrast between the exposed nature of the scene to the elements (bright sunlight, strong wind) and the secluded, boxed-in nature of the home in the background. Even the sun and the wind can't make the ugliness of the man-made arrangement of the house and its surroundings go away, even though they 'try' to create an organic, natural shape in the clothes on the line that's at odds with the oppressive angular nature of the setting.

It has something to it; certainly that sense of atmosphere.

I agree. It has an action-filled calmness to it. Very good photograph.

 

[Brendan Quirk]

You like it because of movement!

 

[IpseLux]

I like it.
Well done.

 

[oneeyedpainter]

I think the strong balance between the movement in the middle (the clothesline) and the many counterpoises of evident stillness all around it (the statuettes, the vases, the bench/table, the chair) is what makes the shot especially appealing to me. There is lots of implied tension in there, as the eye would expect to see some of the motionless objects to be blown away by the wind any moment, while all of them do not seem to give a toss: they mantain a perfect British composure, and stay put.

It's a truly powerful image, indeed. Well done and thanks for sharing.

OneEyedPainter

 

[tcolgate]

I think the strong balance between the movement in the middle (the clothesline) and the many counterpoises of evident stillness all around it (the statuettes, the vases, the bench/table, the chair) is what makes the shot especially appealing to me. There is lots of implied tension in there, as the eye would expect to see some of the motionless objects to be blown away by the wind any moment, while all of them do not seem to give a toss: they mantain a perfect British composure, and stay put.

Yes! I like that interpretation, the still fixed "objects" vs the billowing clothes and unseen wind. Who knew that a gnome could say so much!

 

[awty]

Matt, you ruined it. Those little statues need to be down on the ground. You made the door look incidental rather than liable to be opened at any time. You cut away the symmetrically placed second potted plant. Very very destructive. And you seem so beneficent....

It's nothing without the gnomes

 

[Tel]

It's nothing without the gnomes

Totally agree; gnomes are magical things and go right to the op's question: some things defy explanation and analysis.

 

[TJones]

The clothing almost appears to be dancing on the table. And it’s full of interesting details: patterned roof, spare clothespins, rather ornate door, and of course the gnome. Well done.

 

[Willy T]

I agree. It has an action-filled calmness to it. Very good photograph.

Immediately thought about Joel Meyerowitz' clothesline shots in Cape Light