So some did not like the chandelier!!

12/02/2009 04:55:49 AM · #1

I knew when I entered with such a subject and photo

that it will come under some unfair pressures; I was certain, however, that there will be people who will be able to part themselves from stereotype visions and opinions, and there was.

But I thought to myself maybe the few just didn't like the chandelier, or that is what I like to believe.

Tareq

Message edited by author 2009-12-02 04:57:58.

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 ED

12/02/2009 04:57:02 AM · #2

Message edited by author 2009-12-02 04:57:25.

Apple iPhone 5

12/02/2009 04:57:16 AM · #3

What are you talking about? - I hate all religions equally.

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF-ED

12/02/2009 05:00:04 AM · #4

Originally posted by JH:

What are you talking about? - I hate all religions equally.

No problem there! I guess you did not vote on this challenge then?

ericwoo

Nikon D800

12/02/2009 05:35:40 AM · #5

Unfair pressures? It looks like a room full of conference goers rather than anything religion based. The photo is nice with great tones, but it relied solely on the title to shoehorn itself into the challenge. Cool shot, but just not on for this particular ~~shot~~CHALLENGE.

edited because words seem to repeat themselves this late in my day...

Message edited by author 2009-12-02 05:37:44.

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

12/02/2009 05:37:49 AM · #6

On one of my monitors, it is a bit dark - hard to see the people well at all. But this is a very difficult lighting situation to shoot well - if you shoot to get detail in the people, you'll completely blow the light on the chandelier.

I'm assuming this is a Muslim prayer service, based on that I can see only men and that they are aligned in straight rows. I could be wrong, though. If this is the case, I do have a question - why is it that men of the Muslim faith tend to dress in more traditional "western" style clothing while the women adhere to the stricter dress code of the Arabic regions? I've noticed that a lot here in Germany. It is rare to see Muslim men dressed in anything other than the local standard, whereas the women do dress in the more traditional clothing. Just curious!

Canon EF-M 22mm f/2.0 STM Lens

12/02/2009 05:49:57 AM · #7

Originally posted by Melethia:

Choice I would guess, I dress in both plus other countries clothing is I like it. And you are right about the prayer!

Spork99

Canon EOS M6 Mk II

12/02/2009 05:57:18 AM · #8

Are you upset about the score?

Personally, I don't think it has anything to do with anti-Muslim sentiment, but the photo itself. IMO, it scored about where I would have predicted. I would have given it a 4, maybe a 5. There's too much space at the top of the image, which places the chandelier at the center of the frame. The chandelier is also the brightest thing in the frame, those two facts immediately make it the main focus of the photo. That would have been great for the Chandelier challenge, but this is the Religion challenge. The people, lined up to pray, should have been the main subject of the image, but they're relegated to the darkness and buried at the bottom of the frame.

Azrifel

Fujifilm X100 VI

12/02/2009 05:59:35 AM · #9

I liked the photo but not the lighting. It is dark. And the chandelier is not about religion. It is the people praying, and they are in the dark.

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

12/02/2009 06:43:58 AM · #10

Originally posted by HighNooner:

Choice I would guess, I dress in both plus other countries clothing is I like it. And you are right about the prayer!

Are the women as free to choose, I wonder? If a Muslim woman lives in Germany, may she wear slacks and a long sleeved blouse, for instance? I did notice in Kuwait that the younger women dressed more "Western" but retained the head scarf. I would expect to see that more here (in Germany) as well. I can see why the older women would retain their traditions - it is more comfortable for them, I am sure - but I am surprised that the older gentlemen do not do that as well.

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR

12/02/2009 07:12:34 AM · #11

Originally posted by Melethia:

Originally posted by HighNooner:

Choice I would guess, I dress in both plus other countries clothing is I like it. And you are right about the prayer!

Are the women as free to choose, I wonder? If a Muslim woman lives in Germany, may she wear slacks and a long sleeved blouse, for instance? I did notice in Kuwait that the younger women dressed more "Western" but retained the head scarf. I would expect to see that more here (in Germany) as well. I can see why the older women would retain their traditions - it is more comfortable for them, I am sure - but I am surprised that the older gentlemen do not do that as well.

It all depends, some women are some aren't; some men are and some aren't; I do not think there is a "Muslim" per say clothing; the word (Chemises) is french for shirt and it is from Arabic Kamees, Kamees was used by Arabs in an older form of the shirt where it was wider and more loose. How did people dress like 100 or 200 years ago? Would all Europe be considered as one because they dress fairly the same these days? I would hardly think so. People copy things from each other adapt and develop; all and all I do not think clothing should be a big factor is the overall assessment.

rooum

12/02/2009 07:24:47 AM · #12

Originally posted by ericwoo:

Totally disagree with you on this Eric. It's obvious to anyone who looks at the photograph for more than a second or two that it is a room of people praying. Nothing like a room of 'conference goers' and easily meets the challenge.

I very much doubt that any low scores are the result of anti-muslim feeling (if that is what is being implied). I gave it a 5. For me, it's an ok image but didn't really do a huge amount for me. I think,perhaps, there could have been many more interesting compositions in that room. I certainly don't feel my voting had anything to do with my 'stereotype visions and opinions'.

Message edited by author 2009-12-02 07:27:30.

NikonJeb

Nikon D850

12/02/2009 07:28:18 AM · #13

I gave you a 10, so quitcherbitchin!!! LOL!!!

Seriously, I thought the image was spectacular both from a technical aspect, and the reverence and ceremony it conveyed.

Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS

12/02/2009 07:33:22 AM · #14

Originally posted by NikonJeb:

I gave you a 10, so quitcherbitchin!!! LOL!!!

LOOOOL

odriew

Fujifilm X-T5

Fujifilm XF 35mm f/1.4

12/02/2009 07:38:09 AM · #15

I think the vote for your image follows the typical distribution for this particular challenge, lots of 2s and 3s for a majority of the pictures...

vawendy

Sony Alpha 1

12/02/2009 07:45:17 AM · #16

It's actually a very intriguing picture, but I agree with the sentiments expressed here. The people are what says religion the most, yet they are very dark, and the person down front right that's blurry is distracting. The focus, in this instance, is on the fascinating architecture. Perhaps it is our lack of knowledge other than any unfair pressures. While a stain-glass window is very religious in many people's minds, because it depicts religious scenes, the chandelier and ceiling doesn't say religion to me. If this is a typical, primarily religious design, then you probably lost some points due to holes in people's knowledge.

I would think that photographers would be more open minded, as a whole. Not more anti-this or that. We look for the unusual and the unique. I find the non-christian shots to be interesting and intriguing because I haven't seen them many, many times before.

Don't let the few, narrow-minded idiots skew your thinking. I firmly believe it's the photograph, not the topic.

(btw, I would have given it a 6 -- didn't vote)

Message edited by author 2009-12-02 07:46:04.

ericwoo

Nikon D800

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF-ED

12/02/2009 12:13:37 PM · #17

Originally posted by clive_patric_nolan:

Originally posted by ericwoo:
Unfair pressures? It looks like a room full of conference goers rather than anything religion based. The photo is nice with great tones, but it relied solely on the title to shoehorn itself into the challenge. Cool shot, but just not on for this particular ~~shot~~CHALLENGE.

Totally disagree with you on this Eric. It's obvious to anyone who looks at the photograph for more than a second or two that it is a room of people praying. Nothing like a room of 'conference goers' and easily meets the challenge.

And how long do you think that the average voter looks at each entry? Either it hits the challenge or it doesn't. Period. This one, in my voting opinion, missed it by a lot. To me, it's a bunch of people getting up to go to lunch at a seminar. I rarely read titles during the challenge. If your image cannot convey the challenge topic to me, or grab my eye long enough to make me spend more than a second or two with it, then it usually gets hit with a low score. I am not an expert on the world's religions, nor do I care to be. FWIW, I also don't get the third place entry. It looks like a group of Asians peddling incense to me. With religion, I get the mosques, temples, churches, people praying, and some of the various religious symbols. A room full of people standing in a line misses it for me. It may have even been a concert. Who knows? Even still, I like the image. I just thought it missed the challenge.

MattO

Nikon D4

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II

12/02/2009 12:52:04 PM · #18

When I look at the photo it's pretty dark, the people are hard to make out, and all that really stands out is the chandelier, to me that could be any conference room in a hotel anywhere in the world. I don't relate what I see in the photo to any religion at all.

Matt

acg83

Nikon D80

Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5- 5.6G ED DX

12/02/2009 12:56:48 PM · #19

I knew when I entered with such a subject and photo

that it will come under some unfair pressures; I was certain, however, that there will be people who will be able to part themselves from stereotype visions and opinions, and there was.

But I thought to myself maybe the few just didn't like the Disco Alien, or that is what I like to believe.

Adam