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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Nine: Composition -- putting it together > Aboard the Kobe-Kyoto Express, Kyoto, Japan, 2006
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24-MAR-2006

Aboard the Kobe-Kyoto Express, Kyoto, Japan, 2006

The one hour commute from Kobe (by way of Osaka) to Kyoto was similar to rush hour rides elsewhere. Every seat was taken, and so were most of the straps. I shot this from my seat, holding the camera low and using my flip up LCD viewing screen to good advantage. I organized the image on an arc, beginning by emphasizing the woman at lower right, and then moving up and across the frame from there. The image came together for me when the woman at left lifted her head to look up, her gaze rhythmically repeating the upward thrust of the train's ceiling just over her head.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30
1/30s f/2.8 at 7.4mm iso80 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time24-Mar-2005 18:07:41
MakePanasonic
ModelDMC-FZ30
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length7.4 mm
Exposure Time1/30 sec
Aperturef/2.8
ISO Equivalent80
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance (10)
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality (6)
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis08-Feb-2008 23:46
Thanks, Kal, for defining the emotional content here as you see it. Disdain is a human value, and it certainly can be felt in the response of that woman on the right, along with a touch of resignation. All of them have no other choice but to be here and it shows.
Phil Douglis21-Jan-2008 19:21
Good observation, Vera. Personal space is at a premium on Japanese trains, and I wanted very much to make that point. By coming to within a few inches of her face, I make this clear. How did I do it? My flip-out viewfinder. The camera is down in my lap. The lady you mentioned was learning over, coming in to my own personal space. I tilted the lens up towards the ceiling, and looked down into my viewfinder. She never noticed me doing it. I don't think I could have made this image with a conventional camera pressed to my eye -- I never could have gotten down that low with it, and she certainly would have seen me making the picture.
Guest 21-Jan-2008 16:48
I drawn to this picture because it is not in the least bit staged. By that I mean these folks were just doing what they do everyday of their life. They have no personal space, and by taking the photo so the ladies face is so close emphasizes this.
Phil Douglis11-Sep-2006 16:29
Thanks, Jude, for commenting on the intimacy created through my vantage point and composition. I was shooting from directly below them. If I was using a DSLR, I never could have made this shot. I would have had to leave my seat and lie on floor and thereby called much attention to myself. But using the flip out viewfinder on my Lumix FZ-30 made it easy. The camera was sitting unobtrusively on my lap with the lens angled upwards. I was looking DOWN into the LCD viewfinder, away from these people, so nobody was paying any attention to me at all. And that is why nobody here was aware of me. I was able to make picture after picture, and then choose the one with the most expressive body language and facial responses.
Jude Marion11-Sep-2006 12:59
I like the way this composiiton forces our eye to sweep across the image, to take in the passengers faces. All four are focussed on something or someone else, apparently not aware of your camera. They appear bored and somewhat blase or accepting of the one hour ride and limited space. I find the perspective created by the ceiling panels heightens the sense of limited space. We see four people here, but we understand there are more people crowded in behind them, but they are not visible becuase of the low point of view. This makes these four looming, large and invading of the viewers space - the woman on the right is clearly 'in your face'.
Phil Douglis13-Jul-2006 04:59
Sun Han: Thank for saying "good" -- when you get a chance, come back and tell me why.
Guest 11-Jul-2006 14:36
good
Phil Douglis29-May-2006 20:47
Thanks, Roberto -- the point of view here is the key. I had to be low and close in order to shoot up at them and make them move through space as an arc of humanity. I made this image again and again, until the body language and expressions were just what I wanted.
Rob Rosetti29-May-2006 20:22
Excellent POW, great expressions. Love it so much. Roberto
Phil Douglis24-May-2006 17:45
And that was my purpose, Lorraine. I wanted you to sit next to me here and feel the press of humanity all around you. There is nothing like a Japanese train at rush hour, and I've tried to bring this travel experience to life here. Glad you enjoyed the ride.
Guest 24-May-2006 12:36
From this image I can imagine being there myself...you have captured the atmosphere wonderfully
Phil Douglis01-May-2006 21:37
You are right, Jenene -- this image is very much about the nature of personal space. In Asia, people do not have the same spatial boundaries as we do in the West.They are more comfortable than we are in situations like this. I detect no stress at all here -- they do not look at each other, but they are relatively comfortable in such close quarters. Glad this image made you think about personal space, Jenene -- it was one of my intentions, intensified by the way I composed the image.
JSWaters01-May-2006 17:57
This image takes me very clearly back to the five years I lived in SE Asia. Even growing up in a big US city, I had a sense of personal spatial boundaries that were severely tested in Asia. I can still feel the unease I had on my first ride on Singapore's MRT train - the claustrophobia you express in this image is palpable. Also, one notices that the commuters do not look at each other - a method of maintaining that tiny bit of personal space in a very crowded environment.
Phil Douglis22-Apr-2006 18:10
Glad to see you noticed the claustrophobic basis of this image, Ana. Japan is a very small country with a very large population. Everything is crowded because space is at a premium. These commuters are used to the pressure -- there is no sign of distress here. Only, as you say, boredom and daydreams. The reflection of the window in the woman's glasses is indeed the only safety valve. I composed it as an arc of layer piled upon layer of content, just as daily life in Japan comes neatly but tightly stacked -- layer upon layer. Thanks for sensing this.
Ana Carloto O'Shea22-Apr-2006 06:34
We do have a clear sense of the crowed space and mostly of the daily life boredom... I really like the way you've composed the photo. We focus primarily on the woman on the right and as the eyes move up is interesting to see how everyone is lost in their own little worls... We see no windows... this is really a closed claustrophobic composition unless we look at the woman on the right... the one who looks more bored, has the reflection of a window on her glasses :) Good thing that one can find a way out of this compo.
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