Weekly Competition # 136 - "Suffering"

My thoughts as well.

The competition subject is suffering in the human form.

alun - a very nice image but I would regard it as way off topic.

I think there have been a few pictures off topic in recent competitions but if the judge can see the point then its down to him or her to decide whether they are valid entries. A wide interpretation is to be encouraged as it leads to inventiveness but as Hyram says, this week's competition is about human suffering and its difficult to go too far off topic with that one.
david

What about the suffering that will be endured by the poor SOB that has to refit the boat?

Or the agony the boatbuilders felt when they saw what had happened to their handiwork ?

......... both very valid points but I don't think it is what mattox has in mind

The thread that we had recently concerning the Forum participant who had photographed a car accident set out some reasons why it might be acceptable to take pictures that dwelt on pain and suffering, but I find it difficult to justify an interest in this topic simply for our own amusement.
Johns entry is closer to the topic than mine, so perhaps this is more towards what mattox had in mind, ie, a more abstracted interpretation?

I think the topic is bold and interesting.

Yes, we all love beautiful views, pretty girls, sunsets, flowers...photographs which please the eye. But photography offers so much more than this: it has the power to engage the mind and make you think and feel. Look at the work of great photographers: yes, pictorial work like Ansel Adams is wonderfully enduring but what about Dorothea Lange's photographs or those by Robert Capa?

Sorry about that must burn that wretched soap box.


Andrew

P.S. Thought I'd picked a pretty good photograph for the competition until I saw John Riley's...

That is fine with me. However from my direction to do justice to my interpretation of this subject requires a level of detachment that I know I don't have, also requires courage and may involve some risk which I'm not prepared to take. If I was on commission to, say, Time Magazine then it may be different but not for a user group competition.

I think that while these competitions should be challenging they also need to be open and inclusive to attract lots of entries and encourage new members. I'm worried that this particular subject will have an inverse impact.

Glyn

It also requires opportunity which given I try to shoot within the week seems improbable.

I think it will be interesting to see what comes up as entries.

Mike

Just to expand on what I said earlier, I think this kind of shock-value photography has validity, if and only if the photo is going to be published in hundreds of thousands of newspapers or magazines to have some impact on public perceptions. Like Glyn said, shooting these shots for a small photo club competition seems a little different.

I'm not sure Tim, it is possible to take suffering and treat it with sensitivity and create an image of beauty. I shall dig about and see if I can find an example. But I agree that exploitation would be wrong.

Mike

We have a guy here on the forum, who has done(or still is doing) a excellent series on the homeless. In depth and with great respect for the subjects. Mostly high quality B&W and sometimes...throat grabbing.



Suffering was brought to the viewer in a intense way,
Specially if we didn't agree with the content or dared to challenge him.

The bold part intended to be very light hearted and in no way disrespectful to Pauly.
(for those who don't know who I am talking about)

Thanks for reminding me about Pauly. Thinking about my own feelings about his images has helped me crystallize my initial gut reaction. Yes, I agree Pauly's shots have a certain something, occasionally a brilliant something, and he is quite passionate about them But he's not taking his photos for a competition. I didn't quite realise it before but that seems to be the root of the problem for me. I guess it's the same exploitation angle Mike mentioned earlier.