Street Stripes

[rvanr]

A few Sundays ago I went out in the town where I live and photographed the signs and stripes on the street. I like 'graphic simplicity', a very useful phrase I nicked from Michael and which applies to a lot of my work. I also enjoy finding patterns, rythms, balanced compositions and contrasts on the street (literally in this case.) I look for the beauty that surrounds us and that we sometimes fail to spot. I like the different colours and textures of these lines. Sometimes they compete for attention, sometimes new signs are painted over old ones, sometimes they almost disappear.

I took these pictures in the late afternoon after a rain shower. As a result the light was quite 'warm' and the wet tarmac looked very contrasty because the light hit it at an angle. I further boosted the contrast to stress the grittiness. I hope you like this series, I am thinking of organising an exhibition, or showing them in local restaurants or coffee shops.

I would like to hear what you think of them. Don't worry about being too honest, I can take it! I have include two of the 26 here and a link to an article about the series on my website.

Street Stripes article

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

Hi Ruud,

I'm afraid I can't offer the objective, honest critique you are asking for, because this subject is one of my own favorites. If you look at my web gallery (see link below my signature), go to the 2004 New England School of Photography, Black and White section and you will see that nine of my images are of pavement, including one "Stop" sign. Mine are B&W instead of color, and I have mostly done drips of tar that were put down to patch cracks in the pavement, but I like to include stripes, manholes, drains, etc., when they seem to fit in. My avatar is one of those, too.

I like yours a lot, and I think it's a great subject. I'm sure you'll find lots more to add to your collection. Thanks for sharing. I've bookmarked your site so I can check out the rest of your work when I have some time.

Regards,

Eric

[rvanr]

Thanks Eric. I had a look at your site and I see what you mean about not being able to give an objective critique. We seem to have chosen a very similar subject independently. I found it interesting to see that our different approaches to this subject have led to some very different results.

Your Black & White treatment helps to make yours more abstract, fitting in with other work on your site. What I like very much about them is the 'dreamy' atmosphere and the fact that the viewer is totally free to interpret what can be seen. Another difference is that I have emphasized the 'deliberate' straight lines and regular curves, whereas you went for the free flowing 'mistakes.'

Happy New Year

Ruud

[gfabbri]

I really like #1 -- very strong use of line and color, and I like the geometric simplicity of the subject.

In a perfect world, I would get rid of the leaves at the bottom left, and perhaps the cigarette butts.  I find these elements a bit distracting from the core of your image.  Also, for whatever reason the image appears stronger to me as a 4x5 crop of the left side of the frame -- I guess the rightmost portions just don't add much for me.

Nice job, though -- the color and geometry are really very interesting!

Best,

Gian