Postcard Exchange Round 58 Comments and Feedback

[mfohl]

I received two more nice cards. Jim Christie's "Rainy Day", a shot taken out of a hotel service window on, of course, a rainy day. What appears to be a parking garage through the raindrops on the window. Nice scene, catches the gray mood of the day. And all the horizontal and vertical lines are parallel to the frame. Nicely done.

And Tom Taylor's "Wagon Wheel". Ah yes, the wagon wheel, a staple of camera club photography. I like them, and I shoot them myself. And this is a nice one, separated from the background by selective depth of field. Nice grass and a soft shadow. Good lighting on this.

Thanks Jim! Thanks Tom!

 

[mshchem]

Last few days received 3 cards/prints

@jonmon6691

The Fontaine, amazing composition, terrific darkroom work. Excellent

@Tom Taylor

Wagon Wheel, nice composition, soft.

@Jim Christie

Rainy Day, This print reminds me that there is beauty all around us. Beautiful photo.

@koraks

Amazing panoramic diptych optical color print of a favorite wooded spot. This may be my favorite print so far. It reminds me of places I have been and places I hope to return.

These cards make my day. My wife the former museum curator bubbles with delight seeing the cards. This really is worth the effort. So many lovely people around the globe

 

[henryyjjames]

Update from my mailbox:

I've received cards from Jim Christie, Tom Taylor, James O'Gara, and mshchem now. Thank you all for the photos!

 

[drpsilver]

19 Mar 2023

My card will be delivered to the post office tomorrow. I hope you like to image I chose for this round. My comments follow in order of how the stack of cards sits on my desk.

"Rainy Day" from Jim Christie is interesting because of the "looking through an old window" effect. The post office added some postage on the image side of this card - a piece of a "Alpine Flowers" forever stamp.
"in the heart of the Financial District" from jvo is a nice brown/sepia print from a very old negative. The high contrast give the viewer a sense of what the place must have been like.
"Wagon Wheel" from Tom Taylor is from a very familiar place, and one of my favorite photography destinations - Bodie and Mono Lake. The use of depth-of-focus to highlight the wagon wheel is very effective.
The card from negativefunk give the viewer a nice perspective of the lake. Nicely printed.
"Howth Hike Bike, Ireland" from henryyjjames illustrates a great way to start a hike. I like the story(s) that could be told around the bike, gate, and trail. Nicely printed.
"TIRES 15 UP" from mshchem has a couple of messages: inexpensive tires, and a political position. This photograph could become a source of conversation.
"Cranes, Seattle 2022" from jonmon6691 is well composed. Capturing both cranes in different directions lend depth tho the photograph. Well done.
"Not That Way, Guys" from Michael Howard is a wonderful "human interest" photograph. If only geese could read.
Two things intrigue me about "Callanish II" from mikeg: the sky, and what is the bull thinking. Nicely printed.
The yellow toning of "Crates" from Don Heisz is very effective at creating tone where little exists, and thereby keeping the viewers eye inside the image. Photographing with a 4x5 in snow is something I have never done.
The card from John Patrick Garriga arrived in a very interesting envelope, one with information about the photo, and a message. Very novel idea for sending cards. I really like to drama in the skies of this photograph.
"The Longest Shadows" from mfohl is the latest in a string of showdown photographs. I really like how the steps, hand railings, and light interact to form all sorts of shapes. It gives the viewer a lot to examine.
"Refecting" from BHuij is printed dark, maybe by design. The two rocks in the foreground lead the viewer into the image.

That is a lot of cards! I look forward to what you think of the image I use for this round.

Regards,
Darwin

 

[John Patrick Garriga]

Sorry I haven't been sending out recently. I've been preparing for another trip which I just got back from. This time it was the entirety of the North American south west in just under 11 days. I got to take a lot more pictures this time and am much happier with the results over Texas. Hopefully I'll be back to getting everything sent during this week. Once I start sending out some more cards again I'll make sure to write out who all I have recieved from. Lots of cool pictures I've seen so far.

 

[mfohl]

I received koraks' nice image of a pine forest. Actually two consecutive square 6x6 photos printed together to give a nice portrait of the tall pines. Color images printed at home. Along with a very detailed description of the area. Very interesting, Raphael, I hope the small wood survives the power company incursion. Thanks for the great photo with backstory.

 

[koraks]

Thanks tor the kind words, and I'm glad the print made it!

 

[Don_ih]

I got @Daniela's end-of-the-roll photo of what looks like a crane tower reflected in a window set within an ornate arch. You have to look hard to find such architectural details, here.
I've printed a number of end-of-the-roll, partial frame shots, also. Sometimes, it's the best one.

 

[Daniela]

I got @Daniela's end-of-the-roll photo of what looks like a crane tower reflected in a window set within an ornate arch. You have to look hard to find such architectural details, here.
I've printed a number of end-of-the-roll, partial frame shots, also. Sometimes, it's the best one.

Yay! Glad it made it there
It was indeed a crane. They were either installing or taking down a huge sculpture in the middle of one of the Louvre's courtyards, the Cour Carrée. It's such a privilege to get to walk through such beautiful places to fire off a last shot!

 

[Don_ih]

Glad it made it there

It arrived completely unharmed - like you'd handed it to me. Other postcards have been scuffed and scraped. @koraks' card was nicely protected in an envelope, but the envelope was practically folded in half.

 

[koraks]

@koraks' card was nicely protected in an envelope, but the envelope was practically folded in half.

Oh wow. I suppose the envelope actually served a purpose, then!
The RA4 paper I printed this on is flimsy to begin with. I considered laminating it to a bit of 2-ply board and then send it out as a postcard, but decided against it because it seems a tad messy and more work. However, next round, I may give that approach a try.

 

[Tom Taylor]

The post delivered 3 fine cards this week:

DRPSilver's Tree Reaching which juxtaposes a dead oak pointing to a live winter oak;
Daniela's untitled last frame in a 35mm roll which features a seemingly optical illusion of construction crain reflected in an arched window.
Koraks color diptych of a pine forest that showcases the height of the trees. Having never printed a diptych, I'm on the lookout for a suitable subject.

 

[BHuij]

I also received Tree Reaching from DRPSilver the other day. Amazing what you can do with expired, fogged film!

 

[mshchem]

Received @drpsilver

Tree Reaching, great picture. Quite interesting composition. Very nice print thanks!

 

[negativefunk]

Came back to find a bunch of cards waiting, thanks all!
@jvo 's "preaching a Wall and Broad Sts" is a document and the toning fits the subject. I was very happy to receive it.

@mshchem "TIRES 15 UP" is a different type of document. Truck guy really shows some commitment.

Also got @rcphoto 's "Lake Cumberland". There's something in bridges that calls for a photo - thanks for this one.

I got a different one from @jonmon6691 "the fountain" is a nice shoot overlooking the interior of a lobby, with the window's decoration framing the subject. I would have thought it was a church. Thanks for the good pic & print.

@koraks "Color dyptych" is indeed a fine composition of two pictures of a forest. I appreciate a lot the fact that you take the time to offer us some insight in the "reason why" of the photos you print. The perspective of having the undergrowth <10ft gives additional sense (to me) for the juxtaposition of the images - indeed a different landscape. Thanks a lot.

@Daniela 's untitled postcard, a print of a last cut frame of a 35mm roll, also just arrived. I enjoy the broken reflection of the crane, and the ancient/modern contrast of the "reflected" and "reflector" - if these are even words.

@Tom Taylor "wagon wheel" got here last. I like the printing tones, and I always enjoy to see grass leaves in BW. Thanks a lot!

Finally, thanks for all that commented! Whilst my picture is just ok, I think the place where I took it has a lot to offer for a more "meditated" approach so perhaps that's an idea for the medium term.
And for who mentioned - locals are very protective in what they call "paella", which even in its form proper has lots of variations - you be warned. As for me, I'm from Milan, so I'd go for a risotto every time if I had to do something with rice ^^.

 

[Daniela]

Daniela's untitled last frame in a 35mm roll which features a seemingly optical illusion of construction crain reflected in an arched window.

Glad it got there!

@Daniela 's untitled postcard, a print of a last cut frame of a 35mm roll, also just arrived. I enjoy the broken reflection of the crane, and the ancient/modern contrast of the "reflected" and "reflector" - if these are even words.

Glad you like it!
I still haven't received yours and something tells me it must have gotten lost. I'll still give it time because one postcard from the last round took two months to reach me!

 

[Don_ih]

I still haven't received yours

Since he signed up for 20, he might not have sent one to you. You don't always get cards from the people you send them to.

 

[Daniela]

Since he signed up for 20, he might not have sent one to you. You don't always get cards from the people you send them to.

Oh! Thanks for the clarification

 

[negativefunk]

Since he signed up for 20, he might not have sent one to you. You don't always get cards from the people you send them to.

@Daniela was indeed on my list! Hope it gets there eventually, else I'll send an additional one during the next exchange as I am running out of spares for this pic.
also hope @cramej got mines as I send over both pcx58 and a replacement for 57!

 

[Don_ih]

I'm always amazed that any postcard gets delivered. I think I've been lucky with it, so far.

 

[Daniela]

@Daniela was indeed on my list! Hope it gets there eventually, else I'll send an additional one during the next exchange as I am running out of spares for this pic.

I'll make sure to keep you updated. Thanks!

 

[jonmon6691]

I got a different one from @jonmon6691 "the fountain" is a nice shoot overlooking the interior of a lobby, with the window's decoration framing the subject. I would have thought it was a church. Thanks for the good pic & print.

Sorry for the sloppy handwriting, the title is supposed to be "The Fontaine". Its just the name of the building... but maybe The Fountain also fits the picture in its own way

 

[negativefunk]

Sorry for the sloppy handwriting

Your handwriting is miles ahead of mine - it was a case of "reading-without-reading" on my part!

Two more arrived.
"Rainy Day" from @Jim Christie - I really like it. I think it work very well in B\N and the distorted effect is much of my liking. I also dig the matte surface of the paper - thanks for this.

"Tree reaching" from @drpsilver made its way here too. That film still has a lot to give and I like the classic scene you photographed. Thanks!

 

[bedrof]

Ah, the exchange is in a full swing now. I've just dropped the first batch of my cards to European destinations in the post office. The rest will follow soon.
Hope to get my mail from Tashkent in the second decade of May.

 

[mfohl]

Another nice postcard in the mail, drpsilver's "Reaching Tree". Looks like the tree wants to touch its friend. A very nice easy going shot. With detail in the clouds. And on old Plus-X film. At one time that was my favorite film, maybe 40 years or so ago. Then I switched to Tri_X. I kind of like the little bit of grain. Thanks Darwin! Oh yes, a postcard on postcard paper!