Woman On A Train

[Tuna]

[gahspidy]

Tuna, I'm not sure if the vertical grab rail in the foreground is effective, for this particuliar composition. Perhaps if it were in focus, and the rest of the scene were slightly soft it would feel like i was standing there right next to it.
As for the rest of the scene, the Woman for me is not looking like a strong subject and i think it would have been more interesting/impactful if she were sitting in the first row of seats looking out the window or something to the effect.
Looking at the pole again in the foreground, I think it might have worked better for me if it were not so near the other vertical beam in the background, perhaps using the foreground beam to block the one right next to it in the bg.
I'm not sure if I'm making any sense here, but I'm just trying to give you some immediate thoughts I have when viewing this image and why it might not be working for me.

[Overbeyond]

The vertical posts almost create a picture of two (unequal ) halfs. On the bright side we have a woman deep in thought (unhappy?) and on the dark side perhaps some person asleep. What if the man in the dark side was happy?
I wonder if it would be better with equal halfs (the post in the middle) and then maybe we could see more of the person standing at the far end of the dark half.
I'm finding this difficult.
Tuna will you tell us how you read this please?
Tom

[Seb]

Tuna, this is a challenging photograph for sure. The lighting is so different from left to right that I almost get the impression of two pictures stitched together. Your choice of dof with the foreground pole being blury isn't obvious. Moreover, this picture make me feel uncomfortable yet I still enjoy it for the most part. I get the feel that you put significant thought into your composition. The end result is odd and intriguing.

Seb

[mtbbrian]

Not sure here Tuna...
As the others have said, this is a very unusal photograph in regards to the composition.
My eye sees the woman first, goes to the pole next and and kind of stops.
Did you burn in the right half?
I have seen much better from you.
Brian

[Tuna]

This was the view from my seat. As much as the post is a rule-breaker (focused or not), it serves the purpose of giving us the two seperate views, which I had. The right, darker side is caused by darkened plexiglass.

What I see in an image isn't always what will be seen - so, Gary, Tom, Seb and Brian - I really appreciate your in-depth critique of the image. In a few recent images, I have tried to break my own natural patterns in seeing, capturing and presenting an image - "Detroit", "Umbrellas" and this one. Shooting around the post would have been easily possible but, at the time of capture, it was never an option.

As for my "read" or interpretation - I usually shy away from stating such so as not to point in a direction - rather to leave the image to speak however it may. In this case, I will say that the apparent dozing of the woman, the depth perception caused by the presence of the pole and the dark (dream) v. light (real) all are elements that attract me to the shot.

Tuna