Wonderfull, seriously, I like it

I like these simple shots.
Maybe it's the fact that the grass obscures the detail of the feet that is the missing thing........just my observation.

This shot has a really cool feel to it. I like the tones and it's simplicity

Kevin: yep, that's one of the things I thought of.

I think this is a pretty good example of all the things you just mentioned, tbh. I like it. The colouring is driving me crazy though. I can't work out if it's slightly green or slightly brown or what. Spill the beans please, Dave.

It's simple but it's a great shot for me... and a good B&W.

sweeet!!!

I like this one, simple, natural, walking on grass...

Oh, I know what I meant to ask. Have you actually found any decent online photo printing service that will do 16x9 aspect shots? That goes to everyone, actually. I really like the aspect ratio but Photobox don't seem to have any print sizes in that aspect ratio. Unless I'm blind, which is possible.

I must admit - I was happy to see that last shot retired in the abyss of the archives.

sean's comment cuts me -- but as a photoblog with this much traffic you must have worked up to a fairly thick skin. anyway. i liked yesterday's shot, and i'm not overly fond of this. wish i could say why. perhaps to do with the near lack of color, for a photo of a boy in grass playing a game.

Something bothers me about this image as well. Over all there is quite a bit of contrast from darkest to lightest, but it seems like the local contrast is very low. Makes the image look kinda flat in a way. If that makes any sense.

The red leather ball would have added some further interest, like it though.

i dont know if it a real strong image, but the flow of the legs, shadow and bat work well in my eyes to make it successful picture.

I think the viewer's background has as almost as much to do with the success of the shot as the image itself. Barring the cut-off feet, an American such as myself may not relate as strongly to the cricket bat as a baseball bat.

The beauty is the implied action. You see one tiny fragment of time, and your mind fills in the rest. If you can't relate to the bat, you're going to have a harder time constructing the rest of the images.

I agree that something doesn't quite work with this photo. I think that part of it is that the photo requires the additional information (kid with cricket bat) to take it this far.

I think I would have liked to see more of his body and the bat, partly because it would make the bat more obvious (without being told what it is). The disparity between the size of the child and the size of the bat might also be more pronounced, adding to the interest. And, finally, it would allow the eye to travel along the body or bat until they converged (instead of being abruptly stopped right now).

This would also, I think, put less emphasis on the feet, which appear to be a focal point at the moment.

cool mood u bring here..great job on skin.......really nice and simple.

Hello David – I've been following your photoblog with interest for some time, and this is my very first comment.

When I first looked at the photo I, too, had the feeling that something was missing. My eyes were hunting throughout the subject and details, and still I couldn't find anything. Then I realised that the point was exactly this: my sight, when observing the photo, looks for something to hook up to, a detail to hang on, and does not find it. It's weird and perhaps my comment doesn't sound much "technical"... It's weird because I find this photograph to be generally very good and not uninteresting at all, yet I feel my eyes wandering aimlessly when I observe it. Perhaps that's what makes this photo interesting... Perhaps the beauty of it lies in its not being somewhat definite, conclusive.

I think the black and white makes this shot. For some reason I get the feeling that if this was in colour it would be... blah.

This looks really good. Kudos!

Ah, something is missing, wonderfully so. This young batsman, probably someone each of us thinks we know, steps through the grass barefoot. There is so much mssing in this shot that our minds instantly spring to start filling the gaps. We are given just enough kindling to start a bonfire of memories: picnics probably forgotten, the smell and feel of grass between our toes, sports challenges and glories to be won. A nostalgic mnemonic you have posted. I absolutely love it!

How about...wow look how little white his legs are! And there I was thinking it was coming into summertime for you. Must still be the start of the season.

On the shot specifically, it nice and sharp for 140mm, but I expect that shutter speed helped.

I like your thinking but agree it's not quite there.

I think the problem is with the positive and negative space. With a simple approach like this, I think it's a bit like shooting sillhouettes - it's imperative that the shapes are distinct and interesting in themselves (good positive and negative space). In this shot I find the shapes of the bat and his legs are a little indistinct and therefore disconnected.

Thanks for opening it to debate!

But this simple shot works :-) How do you process your B/W-images? Did you ever use the LAB-Mode?

I guess what is missing is action. It seems that your nephew is leaning on the bat and not actually playing with it. I also have a cricket shot that I would like to share with you.

BTW, get your newphew a bat that is right for his height as using a bigger bat will develop wrong batting habbits difficult to get rif of later. The advise comes from Geoffery Boycott.

nice shot
maybe would be cool to see the bat - legs - ground triangle in full

I really don't know what to make of it. The fact that the grass covering up much of his toes makes them look very perculior. I definatley think more more of his body should have been included. Maybe even a shot of his whole body showing the concentration on his face as the ball is bowled.

Anyhow, its far better than I could muster:-)

good pose. seems a bit dark overall to me though.

This is beautiful. Simple photograhs such as these tend to tell a powerful story.

dave, as usual, nice shot and great toning.

Im curious about your workflow. You show that you use Capture One, but wondering if you use any "Profiles" for skin tones and such. Also, do you usually end up opening your photos in Photoshop for other curve adjustments, or do you do them in C1?

I like you artwork, but I LOVE your photography. You're right -- simplicity is what makes a good photograph great. I think the prevelance of over post-processing in todays day and age detracts from the true art of photography.

I think a giant earthworm has got hold of his foot and has started to drag him underground he is starting to yell for help but nobody believes him. The style of photo is excellent its just the pose is a little odd in the long grass and the bat is not obviously a bat to a non cricketer.

Thanks everyone, though I do think, in this instance, that you've been a little over-generous in your comments ;-)

I totally agree about the simplicity appeal. This shot is right on in that category. It's great, there's nothing striking, but yet it's great.

Original shot, great black and white.

maybe it's a lack of perspective. if the camera's position would have been lower, its view would have been larger. because of the depth of filed the focus would have stayed on the important thing (the boy's feet) but maybe some parts of the environment would unsharply been visible.

Nice crop and nice B & W processing for the image, I think the lightness on his legs does something not right to it for some reason..

Thats a beautiful image, very boys own adventure, but with a lot more heart. I really like this