Out Of Touch?

Silv’rymoon/Sh(y)n’

Superficially these images fit the conventional story line of the PA primary aftermath — there was a winner (happy!) and a loser (sad?). ‘Bout as good as it gets from the media gatekeepers, not that they’re elitist or anything, just that they have to break it down into tiny pieces for us. I’m sure they’d do a better job of telling the story if they had any assurance that we’d be able to keep up.
But looking closer, maybe there is some real story in these images. Sen Clinton’s bright face looks more than a little forced, the months of playing to a 24/7 public exacting their toll. Her problem is the same as the media’s, the public has certain expectations that one is loathe to disappoint. The last thing HRC needs is for people to see that she understands that the math of delegate counts is overwhelmingly against her.
On the other hand Sen Obama’s loneliness looks therapeutic or productive. He’s not brooding, he’s studying. He looks engaged. We can’t tell whether those around him are giving him space because they were told or because they could figure it out. It doesn’t really matter. It looks like BHO understands delegate math.

I agree with the commenters above. This act of reading into one click of a camera’s shutter all this “meaning” is total crap. As a longtime photographer, I know I can make or break anyone just by watching and waiting and taking the most incriminating image or the most uplifting one. Then, the editor picks his favorite image and it’s almost always the worst one that the shooter would never have picked. Senator Obama is writing one of his great speeches. Hillary is trying to find the john.

as a person with more experience as a consumer than as a producer of photographs, the first thing that springs to mind looking at this photo of Obama is that it reminds me of the photo essays in Time magazine during the 60’s and 70’s, where a recurring theme was that of the lonely but noble world leader bearing the burdens of a troubled time. i saw photos exactly like this one of kennedy, johnson, nixon, ford, carter…it’s a shot press photographers seem to love. the one of HRC looks (forgive me if you’ve been employed by them) like something out of People or Us.

I agree that BAG missed the mark this time. (Not a bad track record overall though.)
I think Hillary has that peppy cheerleader look…very forced…sort of “you’ll surely like me if I smile a lot” …and also very tired at the same time. She is running on fumes in this one and trying to smile her way to victory.
Obama looks calm, collected, thoughtful and above the fray. All qualities I like in my president.

BAG could be onto visual trend that is still in formative stage.
BAG could be projecting the impact of the kitchen sink onto what was likely yesterday’s best set of shots (enhanced by their on-board symmetry).
BAG could be working too hard.
BAG could be too defensive on part of Obama.
BAG could be eliciting some pro-Obama push back here in lending substance to Hillary’s poison (and the visual media’s susceptibility to it).
(BAG has removed reference to “idle young woman sitting alone in the left aisle” as heightening BHO isolation, btw.)

Hillary:president of the student council
Obama: president of the United States

Thank you for noticing that asinine pointing routine, where she gets a look of delighted surprise on her face and points to someone she is “surprised” to see in the audience. The pointee must be equally surprised to be singled out. Just one small part of a total package of falsity.

Huh.
When I saw Hillary, I thought of the Energizer Bunny. And then I thought, I sure hope I have that kind of energy when I get to her age.
Obama just looks as tired as I feel.