[Leica] To Crop or Not

[vroger at gmail.com (Victor Rubin)]

Hi all:
Once again having come to the discussion late, I saw Phillipe's comment
directed at "RS" and wanted to add a few thoughts. This amongst several
other topics is extremely close to my heart. For all the years (starting
with high school) that I did darkroom work, it has been my personal credo
that for me- the image is created in the darkroom rather than the camera.
Now, of course, this does not take away from the purists, it is just that
when I personally see an image, it doesn't jell for me until I have worked
on it for a while. Very often (not always, of course), the camera acts as a
"notebook" for me. I then take the raw notes (no reflection on RAW) and turn
them into something that moves me. Sometimes the finished product is not at
all the same as the original image. Sometimes, the final product has
required very little manipulation. Since the advent of the digital darkroom
and the good folks at Adobe, and "Alien Skin"- I sit down and play with the
images to my heart's content. My endeavour's have to be rewarding first and
foremost to me. Thereafter, if they bring pleasure to others- well, that's
an added benefit. Finally, having taken some time to view the Lug 2006
Yearbook, I am honored to be a part of this group. You all are one of the
joys of my life. Bests: vroger

Phillipe wrote:

If you care about the most perfect result imagewise, do not hesitiate
to crop, rework perspective, dodge, burn, tint, clone, erase, add, ...
If you're into the zen thing of getting it all right from the first
time on, don't.
It's just a different mental state.
Do bear in mind though that most viewers do not think: is this all of
the negative I'm seeing or not? They just react on what they see.
Unless you want to include a manual with every image you made.
And then the question rises: is it a good image when it needs
explanation?

Philippe



Op 9-feb-07, om 20:27 heeft R S het volgende geschreven:

> Original photo taken with a Leica M3 and Summicron 50/2 so slightly
> 'on'
> topic.
> After posting a cropping question on photo.net I asked myself 'when is
> cropping ok'?
> Who determines if there is a line to cross and in what circumstances
> (editorial vs personal appreciation of a photo).
> I summed up my ramblings here:
> http://silfver.blogspot.com/2007/02/to-crop-or-not.html
> and would be interested in others thoughts.
>
> Does the process matter - or is it just the final image that matters?
>
> _______________________________________________