Portrait of a Real Life, a photo from Bitola, West

Photographer's Note

This is my first portrait photography that I'm posting here.

Couple of days ago, I went to a village (Radovo) near my town. This village, believe it or not, had population of mostly 10 people during the winter season!!! This woman was the oldest resident there, 80 years old. She invited us inside her poor house where she was living with her daughter and son-in-law.

She was so shy in front of the camera, she was saying to me all the time: "Stop shooting me, stop shooting me, I'll die soon, I don't need photographs at this age". I promised her I'll give her one photo the next time I visit this village.

I've never experienced such an authentic village life, they were baking a home bread and offered us some bread and a home made salty pie filled with leek, very delicious one, a traditional Macedonian pie. U can see the pie and a part of the stove in the back .

I couldn't decide which version to post, the color or the b&w, a hard choice. U can see the b&w version in workshop. I guess with this photo, I'll start a small village life series ...

faubry, BennyV, Vasa, Dyerco, syd1946, Mondaychild, AROBN54 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

adelune (0) 2008-02-07 0:40 [Comment]

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faubry (35447) 2008-02-07 1:02

wowwww, wonderful portrait, you have caught a very good moment.... superb to see her enjoy. bravo
francine

BennyV (34746) 2008-02-07 1:05

A great human portrait. A good idea to include the bl/w in the workshop. Actually I slightly prefer that one, because it looks 'softer'. Thanks, Gordana.

Benny

molika (211) 2008-02-07 7:03

Gledajki ja ovaa baba, kako da go gledam celiot nejzin zivot preku nejzinite brcki na liceto. Zivotot tezok, macen poln so nemastija i mnogu rabota, no taa se smee, iako nema zabi, se smee pred kamerata a vopozdina se oseka mirizok od presno peceniot leb na sporeto. Selska idila ... no polna so vistinski zivot. Ubav naslov i uste poubava realizacija na celata zamisla. Mi se dopaga mnogu
Golem pozdrav, Igor

Merline (0) 2008-02-07 11:13

Hello Gordana,
this is a very good start for that series to come. Looking forward to it. I prefer the b/w for the visual impact and softer look. I like the way you cropped her so close, head bent, and that bit of kitchen one can see in the bg. What a piece of life, compliments !

TFs
Regards, Mich鋩e

Vasa (515) 2008-02-07 15:59

Zdravo Gordana,

draga mi je ova baka, kao da je iz mog 𨉖pca. U očima je more dobrote. Napravila si pravu stvar i za nju i za nas. Puno te pozdravljam.......Branko

Dyerco (10185) 2008-02-07 20:04

Such character in her face. I think I like the colour version better simply because it shows the texture of her face a little better.
Nicely done.
Phil

indraajeet (1912) 2008-02-08 3:36

wonderful portrait. her smile rains peace. good job - both the shot and your visit. keep posting your series
indrajit

syd1946 (1167) 2008-02-08 3:45

It couldn't be more real Gordana...sometimes I think that all the old women living in villages are the same woman...our grand mother ;)
Very nice portrait,excellent for the first try!I like both of the pictures,the bw one is more timeless and close to clasic photos and the color one,more impressive more real...

enjoy your weekend,
Thomas

tafa (1183) 2008-02-08 4:15 [Comment]

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polter (7239) 2008-02-08 12:56

Hi Gordana !
Lovely portrait of old charming old lady. Like very much a point of view you've chosen. Perfect composition. And like very much the bread (cake ?) seen in the background.
Greetings T.

ocskaymarci (2832) 2008-02-08 13:45

Hi Gordana,
I prefer to the B&W version but that doesn't mean that I don't like this one. Why? Because I think her face is more powerful there.
Your first portrait became very good, I like the horizontal formation, the DOF, the details of her face and her emotion you caught.
TFS!
Cheers,
marci

Isa-M (4026) 2008-02-12 13:26

Hi Gordana...
...I'm so impressed this photo...
Amazing, revealing about real life...

pozdrawiam,
Iza

Mondaychild (378) 2008-02-22 7:34

Hi Gordana,

first of all: keep on taking portraits! The angle of this one is very appealing. She may have said that she doesn愒 want to be "shooted", but I think she looks quite happy and pleased by your demand. It was a good idea to include the pie and the oven; however, I think the thick black frame is a bit too hard.

tulemarcius (10) 2008-02-22 20:26

La composition et les couleurs sont superbes!

AROBN54 (11475) 2008-03-05 5:57

Hello, Gordana,
I love portraits and this one is beautiful. Perfect light and contrast and I love the tilt of her head and that wonderful smile. Great sharp detail and excellent DOF. This is a great shot! Many thanks and kindest regards,
Shelly

Nina (5099) 2008-05-10 14:16

Nice one Gordana! The b&w works well too. Congratulations!