Taylor Wessing

Well its not a portrait in the traditional sense.

But its a very good portrait of 'a' family life. Thumbs up.
 
well it certainly captured a 'moment' and some clever use of light. The whole 'hippy' - baby - drinks cans things makes it interesting, especially when you add in what seems to be concern on mums face [assumption I know] and amusement on the face of the man holding dog. Can I honestly say I like it... not totally, no. On a personal level I prefer Lenny Henry and Vijay Rudanlalji Banspal.
 
A moment well captured, the owner of the dog truly loves his pet, the child is mesmerized and the dog certainly knows its place in the pecking order, eye contact from all too which is touching and certainly tells their story, as for baby drinks cans I hope not
 
I can see why they refer to the winner as "Rembrandtian". The light and mood of the scene certainly recalls some of his work. The whole thing seems a bit tight in frame to me though, and the person in the centre being obscured by the dog makes it seem more like a snapshot rather than one of Rembrandt's carefully composed masterpieces. I like it for the moment it captures, but doubt I would have voted for it as the winner. A different take on someone holding an animal though I suppose, but I much prefer the Redhead with guinea pig...
 
It's growing on me, it challenges the expectations of what a portrait are. There's something slightly unsettling about it for me though, can't put my finger on why? I do like the others that were shortlisted.


Staff Edit: Removed website links, signature is enough thankyou
 
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The winner is a hasty snapshot which the author has over-processed to wash out the colours and claim it as "art", and apparently he's succeeded.

I wonder who came up with "almost Rembrandtian"? Probably the photographer or his agent, spoon feeding it to a gullible journalist.
 
I am shocked! That winning image is a mess in my opinion. And aren't Rembrandt's famous works in richer colour?

Whereas I fully support photography which is evocative, this looks like just an ordinary 'family snap' of a standard which is far from being award winning - In my not so humble opinion.
 
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It makes a change from someone looking fed up waiting for the photographer to get on with it. :)
 
steveo_mcg said:
Isn't that the definition of photography??
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....Yes, you are right and I am always advocating evocative pictures.

I will edit my post to describe better what I mean.
 
StewartR said:
The winner is a hasty snapshot which the author has over-processed to wash out the colours and claim it as "art", and apparently he's succeeded.

I wonder who came up with "almost Rembrandtian"? Probably the photographer or his agent, spoon feeding it to a gullible journalist.
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Or maybe someone who recognised a similar lighting style to that which Rembrandt used. Go look up chiaroscuro. Its frustrating when people who clearly dont know what theyre looking at feel the need to knock it.

I like it, several there are really nice, several there i wander why. Just the usual mix that you seem to get.
 
essexash said:
Or maybe someone who recognised a similar lighting style to that which Rembrandt used. Go look up chiaroscuro. Its frustrating when people who clearly dont know what theyre looking at feel the need to knock it.
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Thanks for the personal insult. Always appreciated.
 
StewartR said:
The winner is a hasty snapshot which the author has over-processed to wash out the colours and claim it as "art", and apparently he's succeeded.

I wonder who came up with "almost Rembrandtian"? Probably the photographer or his agent, spoon feeding it to a gullible journalist.
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I had to look twice as i couldn't understand why it was #1. Its nothing more than a snap shot, how you interpret it is personal and i prefer to use my own judgement and not compare it to anything else. I never know why photographs are compared to art work as we are bound by the laws of physics where an artist can create what they want.
 
I rather like it. I'm sure it would be worth seeing it at greater then web resolution too
 
Whatever the merits of the composition and content, the tonal rendering is poorly handled. I much prefer the image 'Skate Girl', which gives a little jolt to your consciousness and leaves you curious ....
 
Lindsay D said:
:eek:

.... as expected.
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Yes...

Always interesting though, always worth a look, and always some good stuff somewhere down the list. I liked Lenny Henry* (y)

*Edit: and that was before I recognised him - always a good test.
 
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droj said:
Whatever the merits of the composition and content, the tonal rendering is poorly handled. I much prefer the image 'Skate Girl', which gives a little jolt to your consciousness and leaves you curious ....
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Interesting, I find the composition leaves me a little cold but I really like the reduced colour pallet.
 
double post
 
essexash said:
interestlingly, maybe, there is a pdf with the technical details of some of the shots

http://www.npg.org.uk/photoprize1/site14/downloads/TWPPP2014_technical_details.pdf

The more I look at the winner the more I love it. The only criticism I have of it is the cut off ladies face in the background. Cant wait to see it in the flesh.
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Isn't that a man? If you're talking about the middle person with a cut off face behind the dog!

Taken on a Panasonic Lumix GF1. Just goes to show it's not the equipment that matters. I do like the moment but am somewhat unsure about the colours.
 
could be, it just looked like a dress. Could be shorts though :)
 
Yes I like it, as a winner well perhaps not.

I question the light on the Childs face, has it been dodged in? the rest of the image is lit from the left.

Is it a setup shot made to look like a "snapshot"?

Rhodese.
 
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essexash said:
could be, it just looked like a dress. Could be shorts though :)
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Fairly certain that it's a bloke in shorts ;)

In two minds about it personally (the photo not the man vs woman question!)
Not my favourite one there, but I like the light, I like the processing and I like the moment that's been captured. I also like that it's not the 'conventional' family portrait which adds a good bit of interest.

On the downside, I do get the 'snapshot' comments above.
It was very possibly a deliberate choice, but the composition with 'cut off' bits at the edges of the frame and obscured face are just not to my taste.
It all feels a bit too sloppy and untidy. Perhaps the photographer intended that to provide a contrast with the 'traditional' light and feel . . . perhaps it really is just a dressed up snapshot . . . but that aspect doesn't really work for me either way.
 
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Rhodese said:
Yes I like it, as a winner well perhaps not.

I question the light on the Childs face, has it been dodged in? the rest of the image is lit from the left.

Is it a setup shot made to look like a "snapshot"?

Rhodese.
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My feeling is its partly reflection from the mans white legs and the far side of dogs coat [away from camera], ably enhanced with some dodging ;) I could be miles off, but that was my initial thought when I first looked.

It is also his own son, would be interested to see if this is part of a set that gives it more context, but a bit busy in the wilds of south manchester atm, so not had time to investigate further.
 
Is the Sarah Lee who has a couple of mentions our very own Sarah Lee?

I do like the Lenny Henry portrait.

As for the winner - I immediately liked its visual aesthetic, but I'm not convinced by it on reflection.
 
simon ess said:
Is the Sarah Lee who has a couple of mentions our very own Sarah Lee?
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Unfortunately not Simon.
It seems that I have another namesake out there :)

I was aware of a Canadian photographer with the same name, but didn't know that there was another UK one. I wouldn't have thought there were that many of us!
 
Jayst84 said:
Ah, the annual Taylor Wessing Animal Holding Contest continues to parody itself.
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I don't recall any animal holding last year. I remember a goat in a backpack.. or maybe that was a dream.. LOL
 
Rhodese said:
I question the light on the Childs face, has it been dodged in? the rest of the image is lit from the left.
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There would be a great deal of reflection back from the dog's white legs and the middle persons legs. However.. if it has, why is that a problem. Everyone in this forum retouches and processes work, yet we expect a high end prize image to not have any, and criticise it if it has. How strange. It's like admiting it's OK with your work work, because that's just crap, but a prize winner should have none.


Rhodese said:
Is it a setup shot made to look like a "snapshot"?
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In as much as it the photographer chose to shoot in this style, then yes. Does that matter too? I think you'll find most portraits are "set up" :)
 
Jayst84 said:
Yea, fewer animals in the last two years than I thought there were, now that I look back. Still, more than enough 'sad face' photos though.
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They're typologies... nothing new.... nothing that August Sander wasn't doing early last century. Sometimes it's the best way to see a person.. sometimes, ironically, the personality gets in the way. That shot of Lenny Henry is a good example. Do we need another image of Lenny Henry in a baggy, brightly coloured suit acting stupid? Would that shot of the little girl with the skateboard be better if she was smiling? I'm not saying no one can ever smile in a portrait, I'm just asking what would these two images I mention have that they don't have now?
 
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