Chess Club

Took this when I was up in the city on Saturday, further down market. A bunch of people had set up tables to play chess, which I happen to think is all kinds of great photographically. Lots of tension, lots of contrast, lots of intense gazing back and forth -- and, of course, I was in chess club in high school.

I'm very happy with the character on display in this scene -- a bunch of guys who clearly enjoy each other's company and chess, and a lot of this written on their faces. I'm pretty unhappy with the composition, which is pretty mediocre. I think if I'd known these guys better, I would have wanted to get up and in their faces and the boards and gone really wide -- preferably without them knowing I was there so I could capture what we see here. That wouldn't be possible, but this goes to my theory that the reason I like using my 28mm so much is that it forces me into making a decent composition if the photo is going to work at all -- whereas the 35mm is just close enough that I can focus on character and get away with things. I keep using terms like "character" and "scene", but maybe it's really more about "form" and "content". That's how I think about it though -- and it guides (maybe incorrectly?) my choice of perspective.