I’m interested in how much visual blockage a photograph can carry before it stops feeling layered and starts feeling cluttered.
Here the foreground heads are dark and heavy, but they also place the viewer inside the crowd rather than outside the scene.
The black and white edit flattens the museum space a little, which may help connect the painted figures, the guide, and the visitors.
Would you crop or lift the foreground, or does the weight at the bottom make the image work?
Just because you wanted it :)
I can't help not feeling inside the crowd / the scene, but behind the crowd. I can't decide if I should watch the white haired man or the painting. I don't know either... it is somewhat meaningless...
Fair point. ‘Behind the crowd’ may be the problem here. I wanted the foreground blockage to pull the viewer into the audience, but if it reads more like a barrier, then the frame starts choking itself.