Submitter's name:	John Hudson
Title:	I am looking at you!
Gear used:	OM4T + 85mm / f 2
Aperture:	~ f 5.6
Shutter speed:	~ 1 / 1000 second
Film used:	Kodak Portra 160NC
Technical information:	The 85mm / f 2 lens allowed me to get in close and fill the frame while throwing the background out of focus.
Subject information:	This young lady was seen at a playground with an elderly couple who I took to be her grandparents. She was smartly dressed and very outgoing and I thought perhaps it was her birthday. I asked the elderly couple whether they would object to me taking a few photographs and they responded enthusiastically that I could. This one of the best spur of the moment portraits I have taken in a long time.
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Comment left by: Olaf Greve (no e-mail specified)

Normally I don't like it when I can't see a person's eyes in a picture, but in this case the sunglasses are funny and add a lot to the "I am looking at you!" attitude ;)

Comment left by: Oben (dunya@one.net.au)

Interesting exposure here. It looks perhaps 2/3 overexposed when some highlighted features are examined. However there are nicely defined shadows aswell.. car tyres in the background, the black in the chain and strap. The 85/2 demonstrates its value in portraits and its sharpness. I think the shot would have been enhanced by smoother bokeh with a bigger aperture (esp since it is available with this lens). The brightness may have limited this. I find a ND filter or even a polariser helps to get a larger aperture in situations like this. Interesting photo nevertheless.

Comment left by: Mike Lazzari (watershed@interisland.net)

Nicely composed, great subject but a bit overexposed perhaps that is my monitor. I find the red truck a bit distracting but then this adds to the candid nature of the shot.

Comment left by: Mike Cormier (ronaldcormier@hotmail.com)

Yes! It's all there. Beautiful use of Portra 160. This is truly a wonderful portrait film matched to a beautiful lens. The sharpness is surpassed only by the excellent color definition of the glasses and the quaint little red pick-up in the green bokeh background works so well, as they are on the opposite of the color spectrum from each other. You can almost feel the texture of the steel swing chains found in parks all over the world. Bravo!

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