It’s going to take two comment boxes to get through everything. Here goes.
First, nice job on the photo essay overall. It’s very clear in terms of what your “story” is, and leads the viewer through it well. Now, some specifics:
I like the opening of the door for your first image, but wish it was a bit more clear what the door is leading to. I’m guessing it’s the service entry to the restaurant, but it looks like it could also be to a storage room. If it were a bit more obvious, it would possibly do a better job of welcoming the viewer into this often-hidden world. I realize that could be tricky. I also had trouble getting everything I needed into my opening shot to set the stage. But this does a pretty good job of inviting us in. On a purely aesthetic note, it might have more visual interest if the interior and the man weren’t right in the center of the image. You could shift to your right a bit and eliminate some of the blank space on the left.
I really like the next one, with one small suggestion for improvement. It’s full of life and color, and your focus and depth of field are fabulous. But I wish it didn’t feel quite so much like you cut the head off of the person doing the slicing. If you had maybe gotten closer or reframed a bit so it was more on his lower torso and arms, with less of his upper chest and shoulders, it would focus our attention to the right place a little bit better. Even just cropping it down some would probably work, since you have to capture the moments when they present themselves. But I still like the shot. I even like that we can see his earphone cord, so we know that he’s doing something else – possibly listening to music – as he works. I also love the way you captured the guy further back, and he’s framed so well.
The next one helps build the overall story, but there’s a lot less going on. In a way it’s nice to go from the busy-ness of the kitchen to this quieter scene, but it’s not quite as dynamic.
I’d say the same thing about the one after that. Your camera work is quite good – nice focus and framing – but it’s just a less dramatic scene. That’s not to say that every image has to be dramatic, and these two help show that there are lots of mundane tasks that go into running a successful restaurant.
I quite like the next one, with the glasses and plates on the tray. Again, your technique is good, with the shallow depth of field and the framing and focus that bring the eye first to the tray, and then to the fuzzier background. It also shows the aftermath, when the customers have had their meal and drinks, but the staff still has work to do. I also suggest cropping this one a bit, to eliminate at least some of the visual distractions of the two red signs / lights and whatever is hanging on the wall with the blue label. I would move it to later in the sequence (see my final few comments).
The next one, with the bartender, is also quite nice. I kind of like the way his black clothes almost disappear into the background, making his hands and face the real focus. And the fact that part of his face is obscured by the black mask is a visual reminder of the moment we’re living through. This isn’t just a bartender making a drink, but someone working through a pandemic and trying to make the best of the situation. You did a fabulous job of freezing the motion of the liquid going into the glass. The lighting on that one bunch of bottles behind him works well, too.
In the next one we’re seeing the kitchen again, though this time as the food is about to be delivered to the customer. It’s that same nice framing you had on the guy in the background on the first image, but up close and in focus. I think it works well, and the reflection on the metal countertop is especially nice. You’ve used the extended depth of field again, which shows the organized clutter behind the scenes, and another worker. The pops of red throughout help give it a bit more visual interest and tie the scene together really well.
On the next one, we’re back to the behind-the-scenes tasks that few people see other than those working at the restaurant. It’s a reminder that more happens than customers ever think about. It works to help tell that story, but isn’t as impactful as some of the others, maybe because it’s not entirely clear what the man is doing.
The image with the money is good. The focus is right on the hands and the cash, reminding us that this is why the business exists in the first place, and what it depends on to keep going. And again thinking about the current pandemic situation, it’s also kind of emotional because so many restaurants and food service workers are struggling right now. The only suggestion would be to crop in a bit closer. Maybe just cropping to eliminate the thing that’s causing the reflection on the right would be enough, because the receipts and the light are nice touches.
The one of the two workers is composed nicely, but it’s not completely clear what’s going on. As the story is winding down at this point, it would be nice if they were locking up for the night or doing some other activity that shows that their shift is just about over. Maybe just taking off the ties and unbuttoning the vests – something to give the feeling that they’re through for the night. The happy expressions are good, so tying that to another night’s work completed would have a bit more impact.
The final shot is great. The hands may belong to customers, but the way you’ve laid out the sequence I’m reading it as workers having a drink together to celebrate another night of work well done. Very nice framing and focus here.
One suggestion for the overall sequence: I would move the one with the guy at the register/monitor and one with the glasses and plates on the tray to just before the final three images. That way you would be moving through a particular set of activities from beginning to end: staff arrival, food prep, serving, cleaning up, finishing the shift, celebrating.
But generally speaking, I think this essay works well and you’ve captured the behind-the-scenes look and feel quite nicely. My son and his girlfriend both worked at restaurants before things closed down (she’s a bartender, he was just helping out with whatever needed to be done), so I can really relate to this topic. They’re both still out of work at this point, so this essay is a poignant snapshot of one business trying to hang on and people trying to get through this pandemic as best they can.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHannah –
ReplyDeleteIt’s going to take two comment boxes to get through everything. Here goes.
First, nice job on the photo essay overall. It’s very clear in terms of what your “story” is, and leads the viewer through it well. Now, some specifics:
I like the opening of the door for your first image, but wish it was a bit more clear what the door is leading to. I’m guessing it’s the service entry to the restaurant, but it looks like it could also be to a storage room. If it were a bit more obvious, it would possibly do a better job of welcoming the viewer into this often-hidden world. I realize that could be tricky. I also had trouble getting everything I needed into my opening shot to set the stage. But this does a pretty good job of inviting us in. On a purely aesthetic note, it might have more visual interest if the interior and the man weren’t right in the center of the image. You could shift to your right a bit and eliminate some of the blank space on the left.
I really like the next one, with one small suggestion for improvement. It’s full of life and color, and your focus and depth of field are fabulous. But I wish it didn’t feel quite so much like you cut the head off of the person doing the slicing. If you had maybe gotten closer or reframed a bit so it was more on his lower torso and arms, with less of his upper chest and shoulders, it would focus our attention to the right place a little bit better. Even just cropping it down some would probably work, since you have to capture the moments when they present themselves. But I still like the shot. I even like that we can see his earphone cord, so we know that he’s doing something else – possibly listening to music – as he works. I also love the way you captured the guy further back, and he’s framed so well.
The next one helps build the overall story, but there’s a lot less going on. In a way it’s nice to go from the busy-ness of the kitchen to this quieter scene, but it’s not quite as dynamic.
I’d say the same thing about the one after that. Your camera work is quite good – nice focus and framing – but it’s just a less dramatic scene. That’s not to say that every image has to be dramatic, and these two help show that there are lots of mundane tasks that go into running a successful restaurant.
I quite like the next one, with the glasses and plates on the tray. Again, your technique is good, with the shallow depth of field and the framing and focus that bring the eye first to the tray, and then to the fuzzier background. It also shows the aftermath, when the customers have had their meal and drinks, but the staff still has work to do. I also suggest cropping this one a bit, to eliminate at least some of the visual distractions of the two red signs / lights and whatever is hanging on the wall with the blue label. I would move it to later in the sequence (see my final few comments).
The next one, with the bartender, is also quite nice. I kind of like the way his black clothes almost disappear into the background, making his hands and face the real focus. And the fact that part of his face is obscured by the black mask is a visual reminder of the moment we’re living through. This isn’t just a bartender making a drink, but someone working through a pandemic and trying to make the best of the situation. You did a fabulous job of freezing the motion of the liquid going into the glass. The lighting on that one bunch of bottles behind him works well, too.
In the next one we’re seeing the kitchen again, though this time as the food is about to be delivered to the customer. It’s that same nice framing you had on the guy in the background on the first image, but up close and in focus. I think it works well, and the reflection on the metal countertop is especially nice. You’ve used the extended depth of field again, which shows the organized clutter behind the scenes, and another worker. The pops of red throughout help give it a bit more visual interest and tie the scene together really well.
(continuing)
ReplyDeleteOn the next one, we’re back to the behind-the-scenes tasks that few people see other than those working at the restaurant. It’s a reminder that more happens than customers ever think about. It works to help tell that story, but isn’t as impactful as some of the others, maybe because it’s not entirely clear what the man is doing.
The image with the money is good. The focus is right on the hands and the cash, reminding us that this is why the business exists in the first place, and what it depends on to keep going. And again thinking about the current pandemic situation, it’s also kind of emotional because so many restaurants and food service workers are struggling right now. The only suggestion would be to crop in a bit closer. Maybe just cropping to eliminate the thing that’s causing the reflection on the right would be enough, because the receipts and the light are nice touches.
The one of the two workers is composed nicely, but it’s not completely clear what’s going on. As the story is winding down at this point, it would be nice if they were locking up for the night or doing some other activity that shows that their shift is just about over. Maybe just taking off the ties and unbuttoning the vests – something to give the feeling that they’re through for the night. The happy expressions are good, so tying that to another night’s work completed would have a bit more impact.
The final shot is great. The hands may belong to customers, but the way you’ve laid out the sequence I’m reading it as workers having a drink together to celebrate another night of work well done. Very nice framing and focus here.
One suggestion for the overall sequence: I would move the one with the guy at the register/monitor and one with the glasses and plates on the tray to just before the final three images. That way you would be moving through a particular set of activities from beginning to end: staff arrival, food prep, serving, cleaning up, finishing the shift, celebrating.
But generally speaking, I think this essay works well and you’ve captured the behind-the-scenes look and feel quite nicely. My son and his girlfriend both worked at restaurants before things closed down (she’s a bartender, he was just helping out with whatever needed to be done), so I can really relate to this topic. They’re both still out of work at this point, so this essay is a poignant snapshot of one business trying to hang on and people trying to get through this pandemic as best they can.
Well done.