Father and Daughter in traffic jam; "How the hell...?"

I took this picture through the window of a taxi in a busy Cairo traffic jam. Still very much the newbie, however, I absolutely LOVE this picture and think it tells so many stories.

I am wondering if you could give me some feedback but more importantly if you could suggest any PP I could carry out to make it POP and catch others minds.

HTTP response: NOT FOUND | MIME changed to 'image/png'

could you post up the data? aperature, shutter speed, etc.

Sure!

f 5.6
1/60
ISO-250
55mm

sorry but i don't get how this is anything special, but it'd be probably better if you used a lower aperture to blow everything else out

Colors look dull and washed out to me - maybe a boost of contrast and saturation. The composition is something I would change - the background elements do not not say "busy traffic" to me so IMO, they are not adding to the photo. Part of photography is knowing what to leave out. Possibly position the subjects to one side of the picture to add more environment?

The real story here is the lack of respect for their heads in case of an accident, hence the helmet hanging on the handle bars....

Probably more dangerous having the helmet block the brake lever dangling like that trying to maneuver around traffic.

I ride dirt bikes and I wear every piece of safety equipment I can get my hands on, even when it is 100 degrees!

RangersForever wrote in post #11321367
I took this picture through the window of a taxi in a busy Cairo traffic jam. Still very much the newbie, however, I absolutely LOVE this picture and think it tells so many stories.

I don't know. The only "story" that I see is the father's disregard for his child's safety. Other than that, its a bit flat...

I'm curious to know if argyle or Allscape have ever been to Africa (or Asia)...a scene like this (not wearing helmets) is completely unremarkable on those continents, and I'm not sure that was the input the OP was looking for...

OP, it's a funny little moment you've captured, and while I don't agree that it tells "so many stories" (I can only see one!), I can certainly see why you like it.

I think it could certainly benefit from some processing to make it pop.

You don't have IMAGE EDITING OK turned on, but seeing you're new (and my not know about the setting) and have specifically asked for PP suggestions, I hope you don't mind me posting a quick edit. Please let me know if you want me to remove it.

For reference, all I did was;

1. Increase contrast using curves
   
2. Bump saturation
   
3. Slight unsharp mask on the faces
   
4. Slight vignette to water down the bright peripheries of the image

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SOK wrote in post #11323027
I'm curious to know if argyle or Allscape have ever been to Africa (or Asia)...a scene like this (not wearing helmets) is completely unremarkable on those continents, and I'm not sure that was the input the OP was looking for...

Hi Sok, I sure have. My wife is Vietnamese, and I have been to Vietnam twice. Always amazes me the slew of scooters flying around with hardly anyone following any set rules if there is any. Her cousin died of head trauma about two years ago, so the "story" that I saw in this picture was a little close to me. I have even seen four people on one scooter flying down the road, one father, his wife and two kids.

Vietnam is working on enforcing a helmet law to some degree and there have been some improvements. All I was saying is, I choose personally to look like a geeky looking overly protected Power Ranger with all the protection I wear when I ride. And the dangling helmet hanging on the handle bars just bothered me. The OP presented a photo and that was the "story" that was presented to me.

So, I hope this satisfied your curiosity now.

G-day Mate!

What the hell, I gave it a shot. I did a black and white interpretation. In Photoshop I increased the contrast and saturation. Then I converted it to black and white and increased the sharpness of the edges. Then in PhotoImpact I used a spot color filter to make the background darker than the subject matter. Then in Photoshop I used the Alien Skin Bokeh plugin to add a little bokeh, then used the blur tool to clean up where the plugin wasn't quite right. Finally, I felt they were too centered and it would be better to rule of thirds it a bit via a crop.

Just my interpretation. There are a lot of ways this photo could have gone. I do think you've captured something interesting. I like the way father and son are focusing together forward in concentration. I didn't feel as much danger as you did, but there was a little.

Byte size: ZERO | Content warning: NOT AN IMAGE

Allscape wrote in post #11324472
My wife is Vietnamese, and I have been to Vietnam twice...the "story" that I saw in this picture was a little close to me.

G'Day Allscape...thanks for following up and sharing.

Vietnam is an incredible country. I've been a motorbike passenger in and around Nha Trang - it was a thrilling experience (but I did wear a helmet! )

They were talking about making helmets mandatory back then (late '07)...

I hope I didn't come across all high and mighty earlier...I just know what it's like when you're after C&C and people start focusing on the 'what' rather the the 'how' and 'why'!

SOK wrote in post #11323027
I'm curious to know if argyle or Allscape have ever been to Africa (or Asia)...a scene like this (not wearing helmets) is completely unremarkable on those continents, and I'm not sure that was the input the OP was looking for...

I was responding to the fact that the OP thought that the image "tells so many stories". Maybe the OP should have stated what those stories were, no? My post was the "story" that I got out of it. I wasn't even concerned about the lack of a helmet, it had to do with the guy having his kid straddle the gas tank...that definitely wouldn't fly over here, and would likely get you a ticket or a stiff warning. I also said the picture was flat (didn't feel a need to expound on that...should be an easy enough fix that didn't need a lot of explanation). In addition, it could have benefited from a little more careful framing without the distracting vehicle in the left rear and the subject dead-centered in the middle. That's a new one...critiquing the critique.

argyle wrote in post #11328467
I was responding to the fact that the OP thought that the image "tells so many stories". Maybe the OP should have stated what those stories were, no? My post was the "story" that I got out of it. I wasn't even concerned about the lack of a helmet, it had to do with the guy having his kid straddle the gas tank...that definitely wouldn't fly over here, and would likely get you a ticket or a stiff warning. I also said the picture was flat (didn't feel a need to expound on that...should be an easy enough fix that didn't need a lot of explanation). In addition, it could have benefited from a little more careful framing without the distracting vehicle in the left rear and the subject dead-centered in the middle. That's a new one...critiquing the critique.

Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by argyle, it's much appreciated.

I agree it could have done with a little more framing as you put it but I'm sure you will agree it was hard to give it serious thought when in the back seat of a taxi and having to snap a quick shot. A snapshot which i am sure it looks like to everyone else but me

The stories I think it tell are now obviously only stories I see because I relate the picture to the experience I had at that time;

1. The story of crazy traffic and no regard for lanes, signalling, give ways... anything really.
2. The story of the small child mimicking it's fathers expression and thoughts of "how the hell are we gonna get past this traffic?" coupled with trying to work out why such a small child would even be bothered about it.
3. The story of safety for the child and driver with the helmet laying on the handlebars.

I realise now that the picture is merely a memory for me and not something other people can take anything from. The people I showed it to loved it and all talked about the situation in depth afterward but maybe that's because I was there in person with them!

Regardless, thanks a lot for your detailed and constructive feedback.

ThomasOwenM wrote in post #11324814
What the hell, I gave it a shot. I did a black and white interpretation. In Photoshop I increased the contrast and saturation. Then I converted it to black and white and increased the sharpness of the edges. Then in PhotoImpact I used a spot color filter to make the background darker than the subject matter. Then in Photoshop I used the Alien Skin Bokeh plugin to add a little bokeh, then used the blur tool to clean up where the plugin wasn't quite right. Finally, I felt they were too centered and it would be better to rule of thirds it a bit via a crop.

Just my interpretation. There are a lot of ways this photo could have gone. I do think you've captured something interesting. I like the way father and son are focusing together forward in concentration. I didn't feel as much danger as you did, but there was a little.

| Byte size: ZERO | Content warning: NOT AN IMAGE

That's fantastic! Thanks so much for taking the time to do that... I will need to read up on PP and how to carry out these techniques as you have done a terrific job that you didn't have to bother at all to do!

Thanks!

Hey mate,

I like the photo, i love it how the father stretch his head out to look further and it seems like the kid is doing just the same thing

the image itself will look flat as it lacks interesting light, probably blocked by the bus they are stationed next to, the colors are a bit dead, try playing with the colors some more, contrast will also add to the pop,

i can see editing was already done here, but ill still have to ask you to turn on your "Image editing OK" option for me to give it a go myself (yeah i know... i know :P )

keep up the good work, learn and improve!
good luck and happy shooting