Three Children on Swings is one image of a much larger project called "Pitt Street Series" by Walter Rosenblum. He shot this series of pictures in New York city, 1938. The moment really came together well in this photograph. The thought young and fun just entered my mind. What is it about a swing set that makes us want to test its/our outer limits? As young children, maybe it's our first chance to dare fate, I'm not sure. Why do we always want to swing higher than all the other kids? This shot takes me back to "the beginning." Doesn't everyone remember their first swing set?" What? you say you never had a swing set? Frown.
Sure, we could talk about everything that makes this picture a technical success (composition, print quality, content, etc), but we would be doing a huge disservice to a beautiful moment suspended in time. Yes, an exceptional photograph is comprised of these attributes, but ultimately it must entice us emotionally. Can we appreciate and enjoy a photograph that doesn't include an emotional facet? Yes, without doubt, but a picture without an emotional connection never really transcends its inherent two dimensional existence. Or, maybe I'm just a big stupid blowhard who just turned 42 years old. This picture speaks to a simpler time in our lives - a time when we could swing high with abandon.
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