Garry Knight – Outside Hudson’s is licensed under is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
OutHud Remix – A Stephens is cropped from Outside Hudson’s by Garry Knight, licensed under CC BY 2.0. OutHud Remix is licensed under CC BY 4.0
Title of the original photo is Outside Hudson’s. Hudson’s Old English Restaurant, as I’ve learned, is a restaurant located next to the Sherlock Holmes Museum in London. The storefront is the focal point of the original image, but the range of emotions of the seated people is more interesting to me. I chose the couple looking at their phone as the focal point of my image for two reasons. First, the storefront windows and shelving created interesting shapes – kind of a makeshift grid for people. Also, making the couple the focal point allows you to see books in the storefront about Sherlock Holmes. In a way, this image shares a better understanding of Hudson’s association with the museum. The seated patron’s pleasant demeanor is also a bonus. With that in mind, I cropped the image following the rule of thirds and played with the coloring a little. None of the auto color features did anything, but it didn’t really matter because the colors were already very vivid.
Note: If I had any actual skill in this software, I would have LOVED to edit in such a way merged the seated individuals together. If I could cut the person on the left of the original and position her to the right of the girl dressed in yellow… I think THAT would have been a fun image. You’d have two people happy looking at the phone and the other completely disinterested and unamused.
Hi Astra! When looking at the original photo, my eyes were immediately drawn to the signs for the Sherlock Holmes Museum and Hudson’s Restaurant (I love them). The other thing that stood out to me was the clear difference in mood between the two parties in the photo. The woman on the left does not appear to be having a good time, especially compared to the smiling couple on the right side of the photo. There is so much going on in the original photo, that I missed a lot of the details that were highlighted in your cropped image! The outfits alone are interesting enough, but I’m also now really curious what’s on their phone for some reason. I’m also really impressed that the titles of the books in the windows are still legible considering the distance the photo was taken from. If the image hadn’t been cropped, I don’t think I could have noticed those titles.
Hi Astra!
I think it’s really interesting how the Sherlock books become a lot clearer in your crop. Not only does the focal point change, but as you said the connection of the restaurant to the Sherlock Holmes Museum becomes unknowingly clearer.
An interesting narrative also arises with your crop. It has me wondering what the couple is looking at on the phone and what they may have recently purchased that’s in that bag on the ground. Maybe they just came from the Sherlock Holmes Museum?
A little technical comment, I noticed you licensed your remix as CC BY 4.0 but the link brings me to the 2.0 deed. Great work!
Hey Astra! There is so much going on in the original picture that it’s almost impossible to focus on the couple in the picture. In the original picture I could see the statue inside the shop I could see the people inside the shop and I guess I could also see the photographer clicking the picture in the reflection of the glass (look at the extreme right glass, guy in white shirt). I think the cropping does bring the focus to the couple looking at the phone. Even though the part of the board that has written Sherlock Holmes Museum on it has been cropped out the cropping somehow still manages to tell you the theme of the image is still Sherlock Holmes maybe because we could see the books and the sculptures of Sherlock Holmes inside the shop clearly.
Hi Astra,
Upon first glance at the photo, my attention was immediately drawn to Hudson’s Restaurant, momentarily disregarding the presence of the people in the image. Your choice in selecting the couple looking at their phone as the new focal point is an interesting approach. The emotions exhibited by the seated individuals adds a layer of depth and human connection to the image, compared to the woman on the left who looks unhappy. This decision also cleverly highlights the Sherlock Holmes books, that become more visible with the crop.
Hello Astra
I like it much, the atmosphere and style of both the restaurant and the museum matches totally, on the contrary the lady on the left is more of a “museum mood” and the couple (or friends) its seems that they are waiting to be seated for a great meal and they are looking at the (online) menu to decide what are they going to order 🙂 The cropping of the photo to focus on the couple and the Sherlock Holmes books is a smart move. It narrows down the story to a personal moment, which is interesting. If you were able to photoshop it will be nice to lighten up the shadows a bit so we can see their faces clearer. But the way you do it, by focusing on the couple and the Sherlock Holmes books in the background is very effective in creating a new narrative centered on the characters and the literary connection. it is a smart and a creative choice and I would love to see more of your work as the class is moving forward.