Submitter's name:	B.B. Bean
Title:	Self Portrait at the Office
Gear used:	OM-4Ti + 85/2, Bogen 3221+3265
Diaphragm:	F5.6
Shutter speed:	1/4 or 1/8
Film used:	Kodak Tri-X @320
Technical information:	Developed in D-76 - the 6th roll of film I've developed!
Subject information:	Exposure was tricky for this one - there was strong light coming from my office window, but my office was comparatively dark. So I set a white envelope in my chair (in the light), spot metered it, and used highlight to set white balance. For framing, I set my tenor sax in my chair and set a hat on top of it. The hat approximated where my face would be, but 1-2 feet back. I wanted as wide an aperture as possible, but needed room for error. With the 85mm, f/5.6 set the range of 6-8 feet in focus, and my best guess was that my face would be 7 feet from the camera.
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Comment left by: Olaf Greve (ogreve@web-wizards.com)

This looks like a strong classical composition; I noticed you used a similar style for your ADITL2 submission. I think it looks really interesting, and it somehow looks like the picture was taken somewhere in the 1950s, rather than in 2000! Nice!

Comment left by: Dave Bulger (dbulger@austin.rr.com)

Great portrait! Strong visual image, great balance on the high key lighting. I've always loved Tri-X and portraits.

Comment left by: Giles (cnocbui@indigo.ie)

I like the composition, the lighting, the contrast, the timelesness of it. Great stuff.

Comment left by: Ron Spolarich (caesar2@mediaone.net)

A very reflective pose. (There go those puns again!) I especially like the grainyness of this image. It's a good picture of ya'!

Comment left by: John A. Lind (jlind@netusa1.net)

The chair; the pose; the film. Looks like one of the classic portraits of the "rich and famous" out of a magazine like "Life." It's timeless, especially the contemplative pose which tells part of the story but leaves the rest a mystery. Very well done!

Comment left by: Jodi Jakeway (jjakeway@iserv.net)

Love the lighting and the grain. Looks like a shot you'd put on the back of a book....are you an author? Great look!

Comment left by: Siddiq (siddim01@student.ucr.edu)

Ooooh, nice! Wished for a tad less JPEG compression, but very classy and elegantly done. Why the large aperture needed? There's nothing in the background that could distract even with a small aperture?

Comment left by: Joel Wilcox (jowilcox@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu)

Outstanding image!

Comment left by: B.B. Bean (bbbean@beancotton.com)

Thanks - you're all too kind. Of course, the reason the picture looks "timeless" or like it is out of the 1950s, is that Peach Orchard has yet to evolve much past that era. I've spend many an afternoon looking out this window wondering how long it'd be before I saw another car or tractor come down the road.

Comment left by: Chuck Norcutt (norcutt@attglobal.net)

You apparently had to use natural light after selling me your flash. :) Seriously, a great, classical portrait. Wish I'd done it.

Comment left by: Philip D. Lee (leepd@leedesigngroup.com)

Outstanding shot! I love the classic look of it, the graininess is a real thriller. Nice job Mr. Bean... see you on Harp-L!

Comment left by: Charles Sdunek (csdunek@ismi.net)

Every so often I come and look over the photos in the gallery, and every time I see this one, I think to myself. What a great photograph. The comments made so far on the lighting and composition pretty well sum up my own thoughts so I'll leave it at that.

Comment left by: Bill Barber (nsurit@aol.com)

Really nice portrait. Nice range of tones. This one reminds me of a hundred years ago when I was a child and an avid stamp collector. One of the series was of famous people. A couple I remember are Alexander Graham Bell and Walt Whitman. This portriat would have fit very nicely in that series. I would certainly be proud to be able to say this was my work.

Comment left by: John Duggan (john.duggan1@btinternet.com)

Timeless......Great atmospheric shot, Love to see a glass of bourbon and cigar smoke...You can't beat B+W...But why not ILFORD HP5 ?? :-))

Comment left by: laurence (laurence@xim.co.uk)

very good use of light and film speed. Looks very cool! An inspiring shot.

Comment left by: Pat Webb (canobeans900@lnett.com)

Tough way to shoot these. Are you a member of Clan MacBean? I am (was adopted, so lost 'Bean'). Using the paper in your lap was interesting. I don't try these under f11, and hold my breath. :) The grain appears excellent, though a little contrasty. Have you tried any Technical Pan 25 yet? It blows me away the softness of the contrast and depth of detail. And it renders splendid atmosperics. I'm still tinkering with this film (Kodak).

Comment left by: Barry Bean (no e-mail specified)

Thanks for the comments, Pat. I'm pretty sure we are MacBeans, but its been a while since anyone in the family wore a kilt.

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