Submitter's name:	Morgan Sparks
Title:	Untitled
Gear used:	OM-2S and Zuiko 100 2.8 SC and a reflector.
Diaphragm:	f2.8
Shutter speed:	Probably at 1/60
Film used:	Ilford XP2 Super
Technical information:	Window light with reflector. This was my first roll of the then-new Ilford XP2 Super. I had the lens wide open, probably at 1/60, with some kind of diffuser.
Subject information:	I was disappointed at first because it was hard to get any tonality on her face. I was able to get some mood by darkening, and the result has left a lot of detail black. The pale facial image did give me something that looks a bit like a marble sculpture... an unintended result. Also an accident is this image. On the first few frames she was just looking out of the window while I metered. This model engages the camera fully when "on", and I got the best image while she was "off". Next time I'll try a light green filter with this film.
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Comment left by: Olaf Greve (no e-mail specified)

Shot out of the official shooting interval, but it's a good picture. In this case I would have liked just a tiny bit more DOF so the other eye would also be in focus, still a good shot with nice framing.

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

Arguably the best composition of the lot. Tremendous cropping. Like Olaf, I would have liked just a hair more DOF - but I'm not bothered by the lighting of exposure. A very nice portrait.

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

Sometimes the "grab shots" during even a formal sitting are the best ones! This has a very relaxed, introspective look to it. The tonality in gray scale is timeless; if you told me it was shot in 1935 I wouldn't be able to dispute it unless I knew and recognized the model. I might wish for just a little more DOF, but with so little you got the critical focus where it needs to be, on the nearer eye and nose. It very much mitigates the lack of DOF and lets this perspective work.

Comment left by: Simon E. (no e-mail specified)

Jane Bown would be proud of you :-) I like this portrait very much, wouldn't change a thing.

Comment left by: Ian Nichols (i.a.nichols@bris.ac.uk)

Lovely. I've always been crap at directing models to pose so I'm naturally biased towards more candid portraits. In any case, when a model "engages the camera fully" you don't get a portrait of the person but of the image that person is trying to project. Focusing couldn't have been better and the dark background outlines the face well. The hairline, neckline and shoulder lead in to the picture too.

Comment left by: Matt BenDaniel (matt@starmatt.com)

Well done. Captures the look of a real person, not a fake.

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