Okay, okay, I know the year isn’t quite perfect, but we’re close! And let’s be honest, after the last couple of years I’ve had, I think we deserve to celebrate the little wins. That brings me to this photo—my absolute favorite of 2025!
Honestly, just looking at it gives me a lot of satisfaction. I can instantly time-travel back to that day, not long ago. I remember the air; was it thick? Was it crisp? The lovely heat on my skin, and the whole vibe of the moment. Everything just clicked into place to gift me this one keeper!
Now, I’m my own harshest critic, so I’ll admit it’s not technically perfect. I might have fudged the exposure value a tiny bit, and yep, I got a little bit of cheeky flare. But hey, here it is, it’s the one for me! It has that magic, and that’s all that matters.
For the gear nerds out there (like me!), I was happily wielding my M2 paired with a beautiful 50 Cron APO lens. We fed it some classic Ilford HP5 film, shooting it at box speed, 400 ISO. What a dreamy combo!
I would love to hear what you all think! Any comments, critiques, or just random thoughts are totally welcome.
Cheers to the keepers!
Alex
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Geoff Chaplin on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
Marco Andrés on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
¿Is the exposure correct? Depends on what the photographer wants to emphasise or the mood they want to invoke.
Here are three points from «Three things Daidō Moriyama has taught me: street photography » [https://www.santiniphotography.com/blog/three-things-daido-moriyama-has-taught-me-street-photography/]
1. The spontaneity of the soul : snapshots
2. Style is everything
3. Break the rules
The image illustrates the phrase embodied in this book title – « The decisive moment », Cartier Bresson.
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
Kary Schumpert on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
Comment posted: 30/11/2025
Hannah Gimblett on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 01/12/2025
Comment posted: 01/12/2025
Scott Ferguson on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 01/12/2025
Very cool photo -- I love the passion and energy of the moment you capture. I'm intrigued by the way the lone figure stands out in a completely black void in what appears to be very bright light -- it looks like daylight to me but hard to tell with no context from the rest of the image. I'm curious about that aspect -- was he performing in front of an extremely light absorbent black drape with no light on it, or did the image get some 'help' in post? That's not a criticism as much as a question -- I thin it's perfectly valid creative choice whether it was achieved 100% in camera or boosted a bit in post. I'm also curious about who the musician is and if you remember what he was playing at the time of the shot? I can imagine that the inspiration that suffused the moment of performance, both for you and the guitarist, that you capture very well here is a significant element of your experience of the shot. I know I feel the same way when I think of the moment of capturing many of my favorite images.
In any event, thanks so much for sharing and looking forward to seeing more of your amazing photography in the near future, I hope!
Alexandre Kreisman on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 03/12/2025
Critique all you like, I love it! (and thank you for your kind words)
To answer your question, it was plain sunny day, the stage was indeed covered in black drapes.
As for the shot, the guitarist was in a part of the scene with less light, i just speed up 2 stops, added 30 seconds to the dev time and pushed a the black on layer without touching him. Thus he looks a little pale/underexposed.
It was a complete day of different group so unfortunately i do not remember the shot, but like you I can remember almost every detail of my favorites ones!
Cheers
Alex
Ibraar Hussain on A Guitarist – My photo of the year 2025
Comment posted: 09/12/2025
Superb
Comment posted: 09/12/2025