Need large scale critique... residential photo essay

[gmacmt]

This set is weird. I like it and absolutely hate it at the same time. Some shots I am fond of and some of them are **** and I know it. I am posting this set for critique to try to bump this into a proper direction as I think I am going with the vintage residential life in spokane. I want to make images that tell a story, within a photo essay. This project is routed in Walker Evans-ness but I will agree with plato in saying the things I can make are only shadows of the real thing.

So yeah, if that last sentence confused you, I just need direction with this. I want to do an essay on residential life. Tear these photos (but more just the concept) apart so I can rebuild it into something stronger.

1.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3551/3305689422_6c1c0a2dbf.jpg

2.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3430/3304137105_776f485f30_b.jpg

3.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3504/3301059629_183dd674ce_b.jpg

4.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3337/3300891329_f6216b8766_b.jpg

5.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3433/3305688614_ab14ddf212_b.jpg

6.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3486/3305688008_2597e0380e_b.jpg

7.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3588/3304858583_8571098f13_b.jpg

8.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3625/3304856985_976d35ec19_b.jpg


So, a little more background. Spokane is just starting to get into the 1980's. I want to document that in terms of residential stuff. I dont know what I need to do differently quite yet, but I know this isn't successful work. I shot this all though in about an hour, so this is all preliminary "blueprinting." Should I include people? Maybe knock on the doors and ask them to pose on the porch? Can I do that without looking or sounding like a child molester?

Yeah, your input would be much appreciated.'

[ddave]

IMO No.2 (needs a better crop) and No.6(misleading, emphasis on car or house?) can be left out for the project. The rest seem to be well suited for your story :)

[Nathan]

If you're taking photos documenting people's private homes, you might want to ask permission.

Other than that... you have the opportunity to tell stories about these neighborhoods. If you're preserving these images for posterity, you need to figure out what story you want to tell people with each image... not just show the a photo and say, "Hey, so this was the house that used to be here." Whether you include people would be up to you... is this a purely architectural endeavor? People help to add life to the photos, but there are other creative ways too... for example, evidence that people were there... say footprints in the mud or something. I don't think you're merely trying to photograph houses... you're trying to capture life within these homes.

[gmacmt]

I think I am leaning towards trying to represent the culture around these houses. I might give walking around the neighborhood and just shooting everything that catches my fancy to get that. Thanks for your input.

And legally, as long as I am no closer than their sidewalk with less than 300mm of zoom, I am good to go in terms of photographing their houses. But I think the most tactful approach might be to travel with a partner and ask for permission to photograph them saying we are doing a photographic study of the spokane area, which is a legitimate claim. I just wonder how many people would actually be okay with that.

[Carerra]

Nice style, love number 4

[Carerra]

If you want to do this kind of photography, the camera has to be perfectly straight, No tilts at all, Make everything medically centre, Id try to bring in the sky little, Just make sure nothing clips the end of the Frame, you can also crop so good, but allot need to be straightened.

Also you can do that with the people, if your dare, I wouldn't make them smile, But just stand to the right or left of there door, arms down etc, make the feeling really deadpan,

But i know what your getting at and its nice work so far, Good luck

[Nathan]

Also you can do that with the people, if your dare, I wouldn't make them smile, But just stand to the right or left of there door, arms down etc, make the feeling really deadpan,

I wouldn't limit him to that. It all depends on execution and what he is trying to convey.

[gmacmt]

Thanks for the input. If I bring people into this, I would just ask them to stand on their porch or steps or whatever. Let them do what they want.

[madhatter04]

According to one of my photography professors, who has been a praised art photographer for a number of years, anything that's within public view requires no sort of permission if you are not looking to use these photos commercially. However, it would be a different story if you shot these houses and they were surrounded by tall walls, which would assume the owners wanted complete privacy. Anything within public view is fair game.

[Bill Boehme]

I think that your concept will take a while -- maybe several months to evolve into an idea. As you build up your collection of images, it will probably lead you into a better defined concept.

For me, simple pictures of houses and cars seem too ordinary and don't convey much about life in the area. Some thoughts would be to include activities such as traffic at intersections, a busy street scene, a local market, playground, signs, people in parks, liquor store, fire and police activity, a soup kitchen, -- in other words: the people going about their lives. The houses and cars are just incidental background stuff.

[gmacmt]

Bill, point taken. The thing is, I am trying to document those things. Not so much the lifestyle, but a few basic aspects of the lives of these residents. It might make sense to document stores in the area though. Basically, I want to show the view from the sidewalk.

Plus, I dont have several months. This is for my photography course, and it isn't quite so lenient in terms of time. But thank you for your input, it is really helpful.

[Bill Boehme]

I vaguely remember deadlines -- something back in the days before retirement. Nowadays, it is more like -- maybe, mañana.