Seeing through the eyes of age: A 94yo WWII veteran at the Remagen Bridge reenactment in Tidioute, Pa. this past weekend.

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

A 94yo WWII veteran at the Remagen Bridge reenactment in Tidioute, Pa. this past weekend.

(Download)

AndyH Loc: Massachusetts and New Hampshire

I'm not sure what to call this, "street", portrait, or something else entirely, but it's a really moving image, Sue. Thanks for sharing it. This is definitely one where black and white is the medium of choice.

Well done.

Andy

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

AndyH wrote:

I'm not sure what to call this, "street", portrait, or something else entirely, but it's a really moving image, Sue. Thanks for sharing it. This is definitely one where black and white is the medium of choice.

Well done.

Andy

Thank you Andy. This man, while not at the actual battle, was part of the "mop-up" operation shortly afterward. There were eight WWII vets at Saturday's event and every year there are fewer.

iDoc Loc: Knoxville,Tennessee

Excellent image which certainly tell a story.

Charlie'smom

Another strong “a picture is worth a thousand words” capture.

Voss

Very good.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

An example of street at its best, I’d say--story, emotion, composition, etc.

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

Thank you!

Voss

Was just taking another look. What about a vertical crop just a hair to the right of what looks like a McDonald's arches. It would get rid of almost everything anachronistic about the photo (although it might squeezes the old guy too much)?

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

Voss wrote:

Was just taking another look. What about a vertical crop just a hair to the right of what looks like a McDonald's arches. It would get rid of almost everything anachronistic about the photo (although it might squeezes the old guy too much)?

The "McDonald's arches" are actually the top details of an old brick building. I would like to make a print of this to send to the daughter of this gentleman and really need to do something about the men to the left of the man's head - maybe "fuzzing it out" in Photoshop? Cropping might work - I'll have to give it a try.

AndyH Loc: Massachusetts and New Hampshire

SueScott wrote:

The "McDonald's arches" are actually the top details of an old brick building. I would like to make a print of this to send to the daughter of this gentleman and really need to do something about the men to the left of the man's head - maybe "fuzzing it out" in Photoshop? Cropping might work - I'll have to give it a try.

Yes, I think you're on the right track. Crop in a little bit from behind the subject, clone stamp or blur those guys behind his shoulder, and don't forget to remove the words "propane filled" from the sign. A plain white sign board would not look out of place. The men to the left are the only anachronistic features that couldn't be ambiguous, at least unless you want to pixel peep the soldiers to see if any of them are wearing a digital watch!

I love the idea of giving this to the veteran and his family. Well done, you!

Andy

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

AndyH wrote:

Yes, I think you're on the right track. Crop in a ... (show quote)

So it looks like I'm going to finally have to try my hand at photoshop! The lady on the porch as well as the small roof to her right could be replaced with foliage and the propane sign could be easily cloned out. The men to the left of the vet's head are much more problematic, so cropping might be the answer. Here's another shot from this angle which doesn't have the distracting elements but I like how the Germans are lined up in the first image. I also prefer the angle of the old gentleman's head in the first one where you can see one of his glasses lenses.

(Download)

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

I really don’t think any of the cloning suggestions would help at all, since this is a re-encatment and obviously not the real thing. These extraneous objects add to the reality of its being a re-encatment, at least to me.

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

jaymatt wrote:

I really don’t think any of the cloning suggestions would help at all, since this is a re-encatment and obviously not the real thing. These extraneous objects add to the reality of its being a re-encatment, at least to me.

That's a good point. Actually, I had to really look for the propane sign and the aforementioned woman is very minor. But, the two men to the left of the vet definitely need to go away.

AndyH Loc: Massachusetts and New Hampshire

Sue, you're right. I like the angles of the first one much better. I think you can do it with any pixel based editor.

jaymatt wrote:

I really don’t think any of the cloning suggestions would help at all, since this is a re-encatment and obviously not the real thing. These extraneous objects add to the reality of its being a re-encatment, at least to me.

jaymatt,

What I love about Sue's image is that you are seeing two images at the same time, both through the veteran's eyes, and the reality playing out in front of him. To me, the illusion is the more important image, the one through his eyes. In my mind, making the "current" scene as ambiguous as possible helps create that mood, so removing or blurring the elements that he is not seeing "through the filter of his memory" helps. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's the way I'm seeing the scene play out.

Reality is greatly overrated anyway!

Andy