Renault 4 still hanging on

[AndreasAM]

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Graça - Lisbon, Portugal

 

Leica T - ZM Distagon T* 18mm./f4

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[Guest Her Berger]

It's a story-teller.
A little step to the right and it would be an awesome pic.

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[John Basso]

Andreas.I like this picture and I don't think a step to the right might improve the photo as there is another car parked in front of it. However It can be done,because: in lets say Affinity Photo you could with their INPAINTING BRUSH eliminate this unwanted nuisance in front of it and henceforth get the entire Renault in the photo. This is a great composition made possible to this incredible Zeiss 18 mm f 4  WA lens.And the photographer keen eye.

Greetings: John Basso.

[stuny]

Very nice.

[AndreasAM]

It's a story-teller.

A little step to the right and it would be an awesome pic.

 

Thank you for your constructive comments!

As John stated there was a car just in front of the Renault, so I couldn't use it as foreground. Besides my aim with the composition of this picture was to show the steep slope of the street, going all the way up, with the building as Center of focus. The building has quite a nice atmosphere, slender, nicely detailed and a combination of old and new.

 

The Renault just fits in with the old, and the nice subdued yellow colour of the car goes well with the pastels of the building. It is so typical for this part of Lisbon.

 

More to come, if you all can take it!

[jaapv]

Correct. So step to the left and turn to the right. It would separate the R4 and take the house out of the center, which I find disturbing.

Basically this is a good wideangle shot, as it combines three aspects, the street, the house, the car. But one must be so careful combining the composition, The slightest shift of perspective can make a vast difference.

I could be more balanced.

[AndreasAM]

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Correct. So step to the left and turn to the right. It would separate the R4 and take the house out of the center, which I find disturbing.

 

Thanks Jaap, tried this.

But then the very ugly modern car behind the Renault became too much visible, totally ruining the atmosphere.  The diagonal of the street, with its dark Tarmac and cobbles, is unbalancing the center position of the building enough I think.

 

That and the fact that more time on the street for another shot, would have meant that would have been run over by a tram!

 

So yes it is a compromise, but I survived!

Edited January 23, 2016 by AndreasAM

[jaapv]

Andreas, the real problem you faced was that the main subject is on the righthand side and touching the edge, making the eye of the viewer wander from left to right over the image and losing it at the edge. If you could move the building  more or less into the strong left 1/3rd line, the attention would be held there and emphasize the interesting perspective of the person leading into the road, making the whole scene more balanced. Try cropping the left and the bottom.

[AndreasAM]

Jaap,

 

Here is the crop you suggest, it is just zoomed in more I think. Perhaps the building is better balanced in the frame, but you lose more of the desolate urban space in front of it. This space is important for me, because it is so typical for this neighborhood. It gives everything a "patina of the old days"

 

The discussion is interesting. Showing the picture here on the forum and perhaps triggered by the title I have given it, shifts the focus of the image to the importance of the Renault. But when I was on the scene my initial interest for the composition was just the juxtaposition of the street going up the hill and this interesting building "hovering" over all the cobbles and tarmac. The Renault did disguise the modern cars just nicely. 

 

I feel a bit limited in the "freedom" to crop the image like you suggest, by having experienced the location itself. Forum-viewers of the initial picture are just judging the balance within the given picture. After the first reactions and in hindsight, I can see that making the Renault important in the foreground, the composition of the picture gets more interesting. It is a wide angled view after all. I think my "architect's eye" were just drawn in by the position of the building and not so much by the combination Renault/building, when deciding how to frame it.

 

Learning every time I get a reaction on my pictures in the forum!

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[jaapv]

As always, these discussions are a matter of opinion and taste. I like the crop better, ( I noticed the interior of the shop now, which I missed on  the original version) and  would probably have stepped further back (if possible!) if I wanted to create an impression of space, going to landscape  orientation. But the guy on the spot has the last word

[AndreasAM]

........... But the guy on the spot has the last word

 

Okay, let me have it then.........

 

Landscape is in these cramped streets and places almost never my favorite orientation. This is, if you want to show, in overview, the architecture, especially with an wide angle. For street impressions or architectural details, yes, then it works.

 

In addition, on the right of the frame, there was a lot of scaffolding, which I wanted to leave out of this picture.

[Guest Her Berger]

I like this picture!
Please do not misunderstand!
It reminds me of a Luis Buñuel movie (Belle de jour)
An old french car, the tristesse, the guy parks his R4 and went
up the road…

Know what I mean?
 

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[AndreasAM]

I know exactly what you mean, although visiting Lisbon is more Joie de Vivre than Tristesse, except for the Fado of course.

 

Miss the hat, pipe and raincoat though!

[Guest )-(]

I like the the car and image (and the bolder contrast of the above), plus also discovering the shopkeeper (or customer) centre frame.

 

I've only been to Lisbon once, beautiful crumbling old City, tough on the knees with all the hills!

 

I've never been to such a den of thieves and rogues though! Pickpockets everywhere!

Would have me on high alert with Leica gear about my person.

 

Glad you got your shot without hassle and a tough place for 'complete' architecture for sure with such tiny wandering streets and steep hills.

[AndreasAM]

I like the the car and image (and the bolder contrast of the above), plus also discovering the shopkeeper (or customer) centre frame.

 

I've only been to Lisbon once, beautiful crumbling old City, tough on the knees with all the hills!

 

I've never been to such a den of thieves and rogues though! Pickpockets everywhere!

Would have me on high alert with Leica gear about my person.

 

Glad you got your shot without hassle and a tough place for 'complete' architecture for sure with such tiny wandering streets and steep hills.

 

Thank you for the comments. 

 

I had no problems whatsoever in this city. Nice friendly people, no hassle at all on the streets, but then it was Christmas. That is a very different time (not so crowded) then in full summer.

 

For taking pictures in these cramped streets, you need an FL of  28 mm. or wider and some patience to pick the right spot and perspective. You have to keep things as level as possible though, otherwise you can't correct the converging lines anymore in LR,or you lose to much resolution, downgrading the quality of the picture too much. In this respect the height differences are working in your advantage. The light was fantastic some times, being winter.

Edited February 5, 2016 by AndreasAM