Hello Ed: With this image you're on the trail of a genre of photography that's quite challenging but potentially quite rewarding. To my eye this was a very good scene to capture. It offers many little details to be noticed but does not require close study to leave an impression. In my opinion, the best photographs are the ones we would remember seeing years from now, whether or not they struck an emotional chord with us. Of course you could inverse this opinion (i.e. we remember the best) but you're left at the same destination, eh?
I will refer you to the work of two contemporary photographers that have carved some impressive paths along the lines of this genre.
First,
Ben Gest has carved a notable niche by creating such scenes of everyday life slices. His images, which are usually printed and exhibited rather large, at first glance seem like common snapshots. But there's always something that draws you deeper, usually the nuance of a head tilt, the direction of a glance, or something quite subtle. Before you know it you've been staring at the image for several minutes. There is more than a little digital chicanery behind Ben's work. He actually creates many of his scenes by compositing pieces of other frames. But he's a real master of this. You would never know it, even inspecting his images (as I have) with nose nearly touching.
Ben teaches here in Chicago at Columbia College, where he received his MFA, and his work can be seen at the
Museum of Contemporary Photography, which is part of Columbia.
The other contemporary photographer in this genre is
Julie Blackmon. Her "Domestic Vacations" images, recently displayed here at Edelman, are every bit as hypnotic as Ben's although themed more along the lines of home with kids. It's no accident, as Julie is a very busy mom who had been an active photographer. Being bound-up with her kids she decided to make the kids useful as subjects. Unlike Ben, most of Julie's scenes are captured as is with a medium format camera and only a tiny bit of Photoshop work. She's really a master of lighting and it's remarkable to see what she's been able to accomplish with relatively simple techniques and equipment particularly considering that she's relatively new to color photography! She has, deservedly, recently won accolades at the annual Santa Fe competitions.
Perhaps the above will provide you with some new ideas and directions.
Keep clicking and have fun!
