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Alone on the Play Ground
Alone on the Play Ground
Neuferland


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: All Alone (Classic Editing)
Camera: Olympus D-380
Location: Playground in upstate NY
Date: Oct 16, 2003
Aperture: 4.0
ISO: 100
Shutter: 1/80
Galleries: Emotive, Black and White
Date Uploaded: Oct 16, 2003

This was a lucky shot for me. This is my daughter Ellie on a field trip. We had stopped at a park for lunch and then turned all the kids loose for play time. As I was walking over I noticed my daughter standing there, looking dejected, alone and sad. I asked her what was wrong and she said, "All the stuff is overcrowded and there's no one to play with."

I didn't want to pose her or let her know what I had in mind so I told her to decide what she wanted to play on and get in line with the other kids. I walked away, pulling my camera out of my pocket, turned around and shot. Right after I took this shot she looked over and then pretty much clung to me, didn't get another chance.

I cropped just a tad, desaturated, resized, sharpened just a bit and here you have it.

Statistics
Place: 138 out of 319
Avg (all users): 5.1588
Avg (commenters): 7.5000
Avg (participants): 5.0543
Avg (non-participants): 5.2885
Views since voting: 1600
Votes: 233
Comments: 16
Favorites: 0


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AuthorThread
 Comments Made During the Challenge
10/28/2003 07:25:59 PM
She certainly looks alone and lonely; the other kids are just part of the background. The black and white adds to the feeling, but I think the conversion made the image a little flat and blends the subject's into the background.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/28/2003 06:37:29 AM
Very nice contrast between the groups of kids and the one who's alone. This captures the essence of the challenge. I think cropping out some of the tree tops would better direct attention to the children.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/27/2003 10:43:57 AM
I like the story of this photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/26/2003 09:36:44 PM
Nice use of light and b&w. Gives a good darker mood to the image. Though the subject isn't alone, I do get a feeling of solitude. Focus helps remove the girl from the background, which enhances that feeling. Very well done. 7
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/24/2003 03:23:39 PM
I don't like the crop all that much, but I assume there was stuff on the left and right that would have detracted from the photo. Perhaps cutting some off the top would have helped. I like the b&w. Nice job showing "alone" even though there's more than one person in the frame.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/23/2003 10:27:52 PM
been there, nice work
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/23/2003 09:25:50 PM
Being alone on the playground is the worst...you've captured the theme very well!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/23/2003 05:25:28 PM
What a sad story this paints. In my opinion I would have tossed out the 1/3 and cropped it as much the children's heads as it is from the alone girl's feet. The trees add nothing but space to the top. Still a 7.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/23/2003 04:31:50 AM
Actually looks like the group of three on the right hand side are talking about her. Good shot.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 04:51:18 PM
Wonderful composition, really stay close to me! Worth a 10 points at least. :-)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 12:04:54 PM
This is a great example of 'alone amongst others'. It almost looks as if the threesome in the back right are talking about the blonde girl. Excellent job. I can almost feel the subject's loneliness.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 09:23:56 AM
I didn't enter for this challenge, but this was also the idea I first thought of. The B & W is a good choice. Maybe having it in landscape format might have placed more impact on "alone" factor. Some more empty space around her, you know? Maybe shooting from a different position might have also benifited this photo, as it is difficult to comprehend the distance between the girl and the group. Other than that a good pic.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 04:40:41 AM
nice, i like the expression, maybe a little less treetop to bring the eye back onto the girl?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 12:28:28 AM
oh man, this is bringing back memories of being tormented on the playground
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 12:27:55 AM
good take on the category - i wouldn't have thought there was a way to convey "alone" with more than one person...but you proved me wrong - great idea. My only suggestion would be to use a higher shutter speed to freeze the action of the moving kids. Nice idea to use b/w, that always conveys more of an emotion. nice work.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
10/22/2003 12:25:26 AM
I think this photo would have been more effective if the other kids had been further off in the background, I don't really get the sense of aloness in this photo as much as the feeling that she was just passing but, she doesn't really appear to being left out...if that makes any sense. :-)
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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