I grew up on the outskirts of Klagenfurt, basically in the country. At the age of four I roamed the forest behind our house, together with my cousin. I didn’t know such things as playgrounds. Everything was a vast playground, and danger was unknown to us. Yes, there was a street, but we didn’t need to cross it. The forest was on our side, and everything else that was interesting was as well. There were two forests, two ponds and a small creek, animals, fields, it was paradise.
Urban playgrounds depress me, but my paradise is gone as well. The street is now very busy, almost a highway, our old house is behind a noise barrier, most of the forest is gone and the fields gave way to houses. Change can be harsh.
Where I live now, far outside of Klagenfurt, there is paradise again. I wonder.
Sigma 70/2.8 Macro at f2.8, 1/40s at ISO 200.
The Song of the Day is “I Don’t Want To Play In Your Yard” from Mary Coughlan’s 2001 album “Long Honeymoon”.
There are 5 comments
andreas (2008-01-10)
It's spooky, yes. When I'm in Vienna, I pass by this place almost daily. I even have taken one or the other image, but it took this 70/2.8 to create something usable. I think it's the compression that contributes to the strange feeling. Some images simply need a fast telephoto lens. I have seen this here and many times more. I wonder what a 70-200/2.8 would do to me :-?
Eeeek! That would be a major investment!
Bill Birtch (2008-01-11)
I visited this image earlier today and I spent a very long time staring into it, trying to figure out why I found it so intriguing but I had no answers. I knew it was moody and it made me uneasy but there was more to it than that. Now, revisiting it I was immediately struck by its cinematic quality. Maybe that's because I watched a 2 1/2 hour film about Stanley Kubrick, or maybe not. Anyway, like good cinema, this is evocative and I love it.
Ted Byrne (2008-01-11)
No, it is not spooky... it is ominous. What a sinister cinematic quality you've captured. It is deep story telling. I like it when you do that.
Hmmm... just read Birtch's comments. Great minds and all of that... Glad he agrees that I am dead-on in my feelings. You've made me wonder here.
Wonder is a good thing.
Thanks...
mcmurma (2008-01-10)
A delightfully haunting image. It all comes together so well, and the disjointed figures are especially interesting (they arent playing ball and one seems to be addressing the guy that is moving away while a third man stands behind him...odd). But its when you add the ball court, the draped nets, the urban setting at night. Wow, what a package.
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