Newbie in SF saying hello/Random encounter on the street...

[Brandon Rice]

I was wandering around Noe Valley in SF this morning trying to be inconspicuous and i get approached by a fellow photg. My cover was blown... It turns out to be Asher and we chat and he refers me to this forum.
I look forward to benefiting from the vast experience of the members of this forum. Greetings to all and thanks in advance for your help and critiques.
Asher: Thanks for being friendly and spotting me as a photo nerd. I will definitely be taking advantage of your site.
Cheers!
Brandon Rice

 

[Asher Kelman]

I was wandering around Noe Valley in SF this morning trying to be inconspicuous and i get approached by a fellow photg. My cover was blown... It turns out to be Asher and we chat and he refers me to this forum.
I look forward to benefiting from the vast experience of the members of this forum. Greetings to all and thanks in advance for your help and critiques.
Asher: Thanks for being friendly and spotting me as a photo nerd. I will definitely be taking advantage of your site.

Hi Brandon,

Seeing I guy aiming a little black camera that looked very much like a Ricoh* suggested you might really be interested in photography. Well, it was a pleasure to meet you and even more to welcome you here now that I've visited you Flikr monumental stack of pictures!

I'm looking forward to seeing your favorites posted here. For anything just for fun, it would go to Layback Café. Specialty sections for various types of photography are available. Sometimes things get moved to the place it fits best. We have Still Photo for discussing the art and aesthetics of photography.

Riskit! forum is place you can have a thread for just your own project under development where the final version is not yet achieved and ready for prime time. Under one thread one can continue post under that theme and get comments as the concept progresses.

So jump in and also feel free to wonder around and search for things you might wish to see.

Enjoy OPF!

Asher

*I have a special liking for these Ricoh cameras, first in film now the digital versions. Ricoh gives manual controls and sharp lenses. Rainer Viertlboek, a distinguished architectural photographer based in Munich, made a slow shutter series of images in Venice with the Ricoh Caplio GX8 and it's written up here.

 

[Brandon Rice]

Thanks for the tips. My work is pretty raw so I'm very anxious to get some real feedback. Very rarely do I get any worthwhile feedback from Flickr.
Also, I'm new to SF so if you ever do any photo-walks or things fun like that, send me a PM.
B

 

[Asher Kelman]

Brandon,

Just a little guidance. To enable critique that's meaningful, post each shot with a different theme or idea on its own. Tell us why it's important. If we don't know what's on your mind, we have no guide to give worthwhile feedback.

So if you have picture of a trailer park with snow capped mountains in the b.g., tell us about it and your style so we can think "Yes I get it!" or "This is just a messy %$%$ snapshot". You'll find we are direct but nurturing. You have such a lot to choose from so write down for yourself your reasons for sharing a picture, so you'll pick the ones that are more important to you.

Thanks for joining us. We'll have fun.

Asher

 

[Brandon Rice]

Thanks Asher. Good points and I agree. This is my first time putting my stuff out there. Flickr started for me just to show my stuff to friends and family when i was on the road.
I really just shoot for myself, so this is a very helpful exercise. Pitching my images and describing why I was compelled to stop and take them is important to develop my skills and artistic taste.
I will be more detailed and specific in the future, and thanks for letting me know before I get too far posting.
Cheers,
B