Pictures of the Week: Jan. 19-25

 

There is a compelling photo that appears in this week's Pictures of the Week gallery that is a well composed image of what seems to be a portrait of a woman standing by a corner of a wall.

 

The color of the wall stands out against the bright background and it, in turn, provides a stark contrast to the subject in the foreground. I love the way the angle of the corner provides a visual cue and directs the viewers eye to the subject, a nice touch.

 

 

However, it is the story behind this image that makes it truly compelling. The subject, Naomi Kering, is a member of the Kalenjin tribe and the wall behind her is all that remains of her house that was destroyed in the recent violence that has erupted in Kenya. Sadly, that is not all she has lost. As a result of the ethnic unrest in her country, her husband of 17 years, Issac Guthua, a member of the Kikuyu tribe, was forced to leave her as communities shun the Kikuyu tribe of President Mwai Kibaki.

 

Take a look at all of this week's compelling images from around the world in this week's Pictures of the Week gallery. Which image do you think was the best this week? Let us know your opinion.

 

-Lee Van Grack

Tags: Pictures of the Week

Pictures of the Week: Jan. 12-18

This week I came across a wonderfully amusing image of two doe mule deer in the deep snow of the Gunnison Basin east of Gunnison, Colo., photographed by George Kochaniec Jr. of the Rocky Mountain News. In the photograph, one doe mule deer is seen poking its head out of the deep snow as another deer is seen bent over with its head tucked down as it forages for food beneath the snow. The result is a humorous image of what appears to be one doe mule deer with an extremely long neck.

Since the photograph was taken by a member paper of the Associated Press, I contacted the paper directly in order to obtain permission to include the photograph in this week's Pictures of the Week gallery.

 

When I spoke with Dean Krakel, Deputy Director of Photography at the Rocky Mountain News, he mentioned that there was a second image available as well. I asked him to provide both, and that I would choose one to include in the gallery.

 

The second image was equally intriguing. It again showed two doe mule deer in the deep snow of the Gunnison Basin, but where the first image was humorous, this one was serene. It showed one dear about to leap through the snow, just as the other was about to land. It looks like a before and after sequence or a zoetrope. However, I think the starkness of the two lone shapes as they move against the white blanket of snow, conveys an incredible sense of serenity.

So what do you think? Which fits best with the other images in this week's gallery, humor or serenity? Take a look at all of this week's best images from around the world in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery.

- Lee Van Grack

Tags: Pictures of the Week

Fotofestivus XIV

We said our blog would be about chronicling what we do here as photo editors at AOL -- highlighting and discussing great images, bringing you useful information, and having some fun, too. And here's the fun part: Fotofestivus.

 

It's an idea we came up with as a staff a while ago. It's pretty simple: we identify a theme and shoot a photo for it. Some themes will be straightforward, some wacky. We'd like to invite you to join in, too. Our theme this time around: REFLECTION. If you don't have any photos you've already shot that might work into this theme, head out there and go make a picture. You can interpret it literally, or have some fun with the idea. And to help your ideas along, here are a few photos by some of the AOL photo editors for a little inspiration:

Please send us links to your photos wherever they are -- AOL Pictures, Flickr, Snapfish, anywhere they might be -- in the comments area below when you respond. Thanks!

And for some additional inspiration, take a look at some of our previous Fotofestivus entries:

Fotofestivus VIII

Fotofestivus VII

Fotofestivus VI 

Fotofestivus V

Fotofestivus IV

Fotofestivus III

Fotofestivus II

Fotofestivus

 

- Gary

Tags: reflection, fotofestivus

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Pictures of the Week: Jan. 5-11

Yes, I know ... I should have blogged about the photo of Hillary Clinton looking as if she were just as surprised as the political pundits at the primary results in New Hampshire, or maybe I should have written about the artistic eye that captured the wake of the Montenegrin fisherman and the symmetrical perfection of the rippling wake on the still waters. But the photograph of the penguins as the zoo keeper took stock of them during the annual stocktake at London Zoo brought a smile to my face.

The way the penguin has his head bent to look as if it's examining the information on the clipboard and the way the other penguin has his wing outstretched, they appear to be communicating with the zoo keeper. It's a funny image that screams for a "write a funny caption." So, let's have it. Post your captions and let's see what we come up with.



Take a look at all of this week's best images from around the world in our latest Pictures of the Week gallery.

- Lee Van Grack

Tags: Pictures of the Week

Pictures of the Week: Dec. 29-Jan. 4

The photograph of Republican presidential hopeful and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee with the razor blade hovering just above his face as he receives a shave at the Executive Forum Barbershop in Des Moines, Iowa appears to depict the candidate in a vulnerable position. However, following the results in Iowa, he is anything but. The photo only tells part of the story though, because he was not merely receiving a shave, but like most everything the candidates do in Iowa, he was doing it with an audience. In this case, a roomful of journalists, looking for a photo op:

I debated which image to include in this week's gallery, but decided to go with the "close shave" image because it was the image that originally caught my eye and made me curious to read the caption to find out what was going on.

 

What do you think? Do you agree? Got a favorite in the gallery? Let us know.

 

Please take a look at all of this week's compelling images in our Pictures of the Week gallery.

 

-Lee Van Grack

Tags: Pictures of the Week

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