Women sitting by the sidewalk in Hanoi, Vietnam

[metal sandwich]

This is my first C&C sought, but please go ahead and shoot me down if necessary.

This photo was taken when I was in Hanoi, Vietnam, taking the daily life of an average Vietnamese. In this photo I seek to give a glimpse of their more laid back lifestyle, especially by their older generation, by showing two old ladies conversing by the sidewalk on low stools. With their bodies leaning slightly inwards, I hope to suggest that both ladies are deeply engaged in the conversation.

The other theme that I seek to explore is actually the shapes. In this photo there are three very distinct triangles, two are the hats worn by the women and one is the fan that one of the women is using. The triangle hats are a very common hat worn by traditional Vietnamese and I wanted to highlight its symmetry and how the hat very comfortably fits into nature.

I did not employ any post process in this photo because well, first of all, I am not very good with post processing; and, secondly, I felt that this photo did not need any.

With that, I hope you guys can help me especially with three things:

1. At first glance, does the photo suggest what I am hoping to convey?

2. Is the photo well framed? I am actually still rather new to photography and my framing is still a rather hit-and-miss affair, so I hope someone can give me more advice.

3. Is any post processing necessary? As I said, I did not employ any post processing but if someone believes that certain types of post processing will help with the photo, please go ahead and shoot.

Thanks a lot in advance for all your critiques and comments.

 

[zac08]

First off, I find the sharpness lacking. And I guess it could have been due to the fact that you shot wide open on your kit lens. Stopping down the aperture by one stop might help.

And secondly, I find a lot of distracting elements in the picture, like the sole of one of the lady, the black edge at the bottom right, etc...

Since you wanted to isolate the 3 triangles, I would suggest a tighter crop. And if you dun mind, here's my idea on the crop :

PS : if you mind, let me know and I'll remove it.

 

[metal sandwich]

Nah I don't mind, Zac.

Anyway, I don't believe the lack of sharpness is caused by aperture because I was shooting at F5.6 at 55mm. I believe it is more likely caused by motion blur, because the shutter is 1/50 seconds.

 

[zac08]

Nah I don't mind, Zac.

Anyway, I don't believe the lack of sharpness is caused by aperture because I was shooting at F5.6 at 55mm. I believe it is more likely caused by motion blur, because the shutter is 1/50 seconds.

Well... at 1/50, you should still be able to get a decent shot. But wide-open, it's hard to do so... I shoot at f4 for a f2.8 or f1.8 lens and if I use a kit lens, I'd have to stop it down to f8 before I get anything acceptable in my own standards. Try out the difference yourself with a tripod.