Keeping a Lid on Things Photo

Photographer’s Note

In English, the metaphorical expression, "Keep a lid on things", is often used to suppress a sense of excitement about an apparently imminent event, and the accompanying feelings of what might be false optimism. One shouldn't let things "get out of hand" - if I might explain one metaphor by means of another. In other words, keep your mouth shut until the mission is accomplished.

Quite obviously, in this photo, there is a more literal meaning to my title. The small blue plastic box with its lid firmly kept in place, is what we call an "Esky" here in Australia. It's a brand name for a portable or car "fridge", which has become a generic term for any such cooling device, just as the verb "to hoover" originated in the famous brand name of a vacuum cleaner. The Esky, as you can see, is strongly built, and no doubt full of beer cans.

Anyway, the picture suddenly appealed to me as the Sorrento to Queenscliff car ferry passed by in the background.

Charo, saxo042, pablominto, Sistercosmo, danos, hispic, AiresSantos, jaywalker, alftrek, papagolf21, Jean-Luc, daddo, Bugraa, Bartolomeus, besnard, gildasjan, cherryripe, fanni, riclopes, phwall, kmr13777, azaf1, mikolaj_kawa, JCG, meltemi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Bartolomeus (681) 2008-10-31 4:31

Hey Andrew,
Great piece of Australian every day life :)
Well composed!
Thanks for sharing
Bartosz

besnard (30676) 2008-10-31 4:47

Bonjour Andrew
Un joli cliché avec ces amateurs de pèche qui surveillent le bouchon avec attention et le bâteau de croisière qui s'en va.
Merci pour le partage et bonne journée.
Nicole

snunney (34914) 2008-10-31 4:51

Hello Andrew,
A very good daily life shot with a great balance to it. Everything is well placed in the frame and the scene has a very appealing relaxing atmosphere to it. Good strong lids as well by the looks of it ;-)

gildasjan (23787) 2008-10-31 5:15

Bonjour Andrew
Des tonalités douces pour cette image avec cette scène dont les éléments sont bien disposés dans la composition.Incitation à partir avec ce bateau et incitation à rester en voyant cette partie de pêche.
Bonne journée
Amicalement
Gildas

Longroute (9355) 2008-10-31 5:30

Hello Andrew,

This Sorrento series is quite curious: there is a special light, strong but not to the point to give overcontrast or hard colours, on the contrary we have here gentle soft colours, like this light blue which this photo has in common with the other ones. This light blue colour, both in the sea and sky, is responsible for my liking the picture. A good effect with the grey of the pontoon and the white of the ferry. A simple and fine composition.
Best regards,
Donato

holmertz (9671) 2008-10-31 5:41

Hello Andrew,
Excellent composition with the people forming a triangle along the sides of the quay and radiating a highly relaxed attitude. Considering that virtually the only colours are grey and blue there is a remarkable range of tones. The ferry entered the picture very appropriately and fits the composition perfectly.
Regards,
Gert

MarcT (21099) 2008-10-31 10:03

Salut AZndrew,
Jolie lumière et une explication bien... profonde pour ton sujet du jour :o)
Bon WE
Marc

jimkilgallon (0) 2008-10-31 11:56

Hello Andrew
This is brilliant simply because I like the the first human element on the right appearing bigger than the boat. Love the cloud formations and exceptional natural colours. Great note to accompany, very well done.
Regards
Jim

cherryripe (18973) 2008-10-31 12:50

Hi Andrew
This photo is so funny, especially with the unthin lady sitting on the esky. The 2 fisherman create a triangle and are also well balanced with the ferry. The wispy clouds are well placed and add depth.
Regards
Nikki

fanni (8737) 2008-10-31 14:16

Hello Andrew,
very refreshing picture! Very good composition and very nice bright, and yet quiet, colours! I like this bluish-silver colour gamma. And the boat (ferry) in the distance, with the llouds over it, looks beautiful and a bit romantic... whereas these guys in the FG look very "earthly" while busy fishing :)
best greetings from Moscow,
Elena

wolf38 (12823) 2008-10-31 22:08

Hello Andrew. A good shot, which lets itself interpret also psychologically. Very beautifully and worth seeing. Best regards, Wolfgang.

riclopes (33003) 2008-11-01 1:27

hehe, I like your note and the subtil humorous it gives to the image, Andrew. The scene is actually funny and the placement of elements in the composition is very effective for the reading of the image. And the ferry is a nice bonus as an outsider and observer of the scene - just like me :) Very well seen and captured.
regards,
ricardo

phwall (5570) 2008-11-01 1:58

Hi Andrew,
Very good capture, so many good lines spring to mind, I'll have to keep them to myself otherwise I'm sure I'd get banned from TE for life.
Well done.
Regards
peter

kschanna (6) 2008-11-01 3:25

Hi Andrew

The composition is very good with the esky, the people and the boat aligned very well. The CPL has worked very well in rendering the beautiful sky.

Thanks for sharing

Kamran

Bugraa (752) 2008-11-01 10:41

Hi Andrew;
A wonderful place with a really great view, composition is superb and depht also great. The lighting and color choosing are fine.
Sensational clouds in a deep blue sky.
Congratulations.
Oguzhan...

daddo (11365) 2008-11-01 16:51

Hi Andrew. Nice use of the colloquialism. Well balanced with the substantial presences placed at either end. A very "light" atmosphere throughout.One senses the oncoming summer. regards. Klaudio.

SteveH (3911) 2008-11-01 19:42

Hi Andrew, a quintessentially Australian scene, men fishing, women looking on, and of course an esky. The triangular composition works too. but tell me, what is the strange bright area in the middle of the sky, almost directly above the guy in the white T? There also seems to be a similar area on the far RHS in the top corner. cheers, Steve

Jean-Luc (5488) 2008-11-02 2:32

Bonjour Andrew,
Beaucoup d'humour dans cette scène de pêche!
Les hommes attendent le poisson...et la femme attend les hommes...
Une belle composition soulignée par le passage du ferry!
Amicalement
Jean-Luc

papagolf21 (56421) 2008-11-02 2:35

Bonjour, mon ami Andrew,
Une image du bout du monde ! Grâce à internet (une très bonne invention pour pouvoir partager dans le monde) nous pouvons découvrir ces images insolites, pleines d'humour ou d'intérêt !
La réussite est bien présente à travers cette composition. J'ai beaucoup aimé votre note parfaitement rédigée à l'humour distingué.
Amitiés.
Philippe

alftrek (2799) 2008-11-02 7:22

Hi Andrew,
This photo conveyed a very relax mood, I love the variance in the cloud formation. The lighting on the timber deck brings out the details, and the ferry adds interest to this composition.

Regards
Alfred

jaywalker (12190) 2008-11-02 11:56

Hi Andrew, Beautiful light & brilliant composition, the ship sailing into frame is a wonderful feature of the photo & the sky sweeping towards the horizon is fabulous, the two fishermen are a great foreground focal point & the lady enjoying the lazy day is a perfect finish to the picture, kind regards Wilson.

AiresSantos (42156) 2008-11-03 2:00

Hi Andrew
Fine view of the fishermen working and the woman resting. Excellent POV, well caught the yacht and the lovely sky with nice clouds
TFS and have a nice week
Aires

hispic (7399) 2008-11-03 2:29

Hi Andrew,
The blue box might have been deformed with a wide-angle lens. The tonality that reduced saturation emphasizes expertly the white of the ferry, and it's put at very nice point indeed. Good choice of the categories.
Have a nice evening, Hisashi

Royaldevon (5934) 2008-11-03 6:58

Thank you for these explanatory notes, Andrew.
I'm beginning to feel more like a Sheila every day!
Is the 'Esky' used for keeping the captured fish cool when the beer has been drunk? Or, does the consumption of the beer make the catching of fish less likely?

I love this shot! The shape and the boards of the quay, give a good lead to the fishermen. (There is something eternally relaxing about looking at fishermen: maybe it's their commitment, maybe it's the slowness of the action, maybe it's some deep routed sentiment!)
The combination of three sets up a wonderful scenario:
Mmm ... this is the life.
What a technique! I wonder if I can emulate that! Let me see, rod parallel to the waves!
For God's sake! I wish something would happen!

Now, who is saying what!!

The ferry adds a reality and a context to the proceedings.
Excellent details!

Kind regards,
Bev :-)

danos (32512) 2008-11-03 14:32

Hello Andrew,
nice the snapshot of this daily scene with the fishermen on the wooden jetty, to try to catch fishes.The moving ferry and the superb sky add nice elements in the shot.The triangle of the three people, create dimension in the scenery.Well done.

Regards,Danos

Sistercosmo (2573) 2008-11-03 15:35

Hi Andrew,
how envious I am of the daily life in Australia! Here in Germany we're preparing for the snow... This is a wonderful shot of the way things are. The light is amazing, how it captures the ship and the white t-shirt. Great work!
Thanks and see you around TE
Linda

pablominto (40732) 2008-11-03 23:57

Hello Andrew,

The situation is fun and probably universal, in Norway we have something we call "salmon widows" which I won't waste time on explaining!
A fine composition with good details, however the impact is in the scene itself!

Greetings,
Pablo -

saxo042 (15694) 2008-11-04 5:19

Hi Andrew,
A very pleasant and relaxed atmosphere here! The ferry makes another participation on TE. I hope the lady will stand up often enough so the fisherman can have their well-deserved beer.
Regards
Gunnar

Charo (31671) 2008-11-04 13:40

Hello Andrew,
Superb composition with a fantastic light and very good detail and perspective. A picture is very attractive and with a beautiful sky. Bravo!
Best regards,
Charo

kmr13777 (23) 2008-11-06 23:05

Excellent capture Andrew!!!
I really like this picture for it's life, colors and excellent exposure.
I think what really works for this picture is a good blend of soft cloud patterns with the sharp subjects in the FG.

Excellent!!

TFS

Kirti

Giorgio (8710) 2008-11-07 10:34

- Funny picture and incredible meetings, excellent also the background with the boat, very successful, well done!
Have a good weekend.
giorgio

azaf1 (15547) 2008-11-10 1:58

Hi Andrew
What I really like is the playful sky, the theme I prefer, and the well composed frame with the Esky and the anticipation for a good beer break!
Have a nice week
Argiris

skippy007 (7053) 2008-11-13 1:08

Hello Andrew, Glad to see you & Klaudio caught up with Kamran & Steve, sorry I missed it but I had bigger fish to fry, metaphorically speaking that is ;-))),
As we know the Esky has more than one use as your photo very clearly shows us. A very good Aussie daily life shot in your usual high standard finish.
Lovely note
Thanks
Santo

kensimage (8541) 2008-11-14 23:18

Strongly built, indeed, Andrew. I would swear that Esky is bulging outward, though. Outside of the poor Esky, though, this really captures well the feeling of a relaxed, aimless day. Somehow I doubt there are going to be many fish caught, or that any of them really care.

The image is a bit washed-out, meaning the polarizer cannot overcome the effects of midday light, especially with the glare off the wood dock. But in a way, that's all part of the atmosphere. Regards, Ken.

mikolaj_kawa (30201) 2008-12-04 0:57

Hello Andrew! Amazing POV, wonderful composition. Funny scene with anglers and woman. Beautiful ship and seascape. Good colours. Very good shot. Original job. Good luck!

JCG (25343) 2008-12-21 3:20

Hi Andrew,

A small first impression of my holidays of Christmas in Brittany, but we do not have, still, of steamers sailing with broad of Saint-Quay-Portrieux !!! I hope to have such a beautiful lighting to bring back good photographs of Brittany… Beautiful and original composition, I love much this woman sitting on the refrigerator box which seems to await fish impatiently. Well seen Andrew.

With all my friendships, by wishing you thus that with all your family of excellent festivals of Christmas,

Jean-Charles

meltemi (9746) 2008-12-22 11:32

Hello Andrew,
very beautiful view at the beach.Very nice natural colours and the details. Super capture of the sky. You have conveyed a sense of calm and peace with the soft blue colors and the sense of relax of all the people in the scene, and thanks for vey good interesting note.
All the best.
Stella

mjdundee (3516) 2009-04-05 9:32

Hallo Andrew,
Not bad chosen - and very metaphorical.I find it nice to see the 'main' subject looking in an opposote direction as the ferry disappears to the other direction. A really well composed scenery. A painter would have done it very similarly. Good to see the Esky has a shady place.
Cheers,
Thomas

Photo Information

Copyright: Andrew McRae (macondo) (13117)
Genre: People
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2008-10-12
Categories: Daily Life, Humorous, Transportation
Camera: Pentax K200D, Tamron 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DiII, Cokin 62mm Circular Polarizer
Exposure: f/14.0, 1/60 seconds
More Photo Info: view
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2008-10-31 4:29