JPG: Photos: "Pearl, Pineville, Kentucky" by John Edwin May

Pearl, Pineville, Kentucky

Hot! In Photo Challenge: Black & White Sponsored by Canon

by John Edwin May

Uploaded 17 Jul 2008 — 200 favorites

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Film scan from a 120mm negative.

95 responses

Eric Finster gave props (17 Jul 2008):
What an intriguing capture! Where was it taken?
Timothy Little said (18 Jul 2008):
my question is when? It looks like it could be 1920. Great capture.
John Edwin May said (18 Jul 2008):
This family lived in south east Kentucky in their log cabin. They had electricity, one bare bulb hanging in the kitchen. I visited them three times way back when I was in college. This image was made with a 500 CM with TX film... best I remember. Made in the spring of 1982. This image has been very special to me... It has traveled around the world. I will never forget the look in their eyes when I would give them photos from my past visit. In the photograph here, she was telling me where her husband and son were. I was taken the way she was holding her pet cat Snowball. I'll try and post a few more soon... Thank you both for your comments and questions!
Ivailo Petkov said (18 Jul 2008):
beautifully WOW ............
karl gave props (18 Jul 2008):
Now this a great B&W photo, its hard to beat 120.
A M said (18 Jul 2008):
i don't know, maybe it's just my opinion, but i think this image shows how amazing film is... i think...
Brandy Amos said (18 Jul 2008):
John, this is simply phenomenal. This leaves me speechless. Even the thumbnail is riveting. I can't quit looking at it! Beautiful, beautiful work.
Will Brueggemann gave props (18 Jul 2008):
One of a kind very good
Keith Skinner gave props (18 Jul 2008):
John you have captured a masterpiece - this is such a strong and moving image!
Jason Platt gave props (18 Jul 2008):
this would make a great addition to the growing up theme john!
peggy gardner gave props (18 Jul 2008):
very emotional shot for me - says a thousand things.
Katrina Serene said (18 Jul 2008):
Wow, Awesome shot. SOO powerful!! The emotion in it is very strong. Great image
Henry Bowman gave props (18 Jul 2008):
Powerful, powerful! This image screams out in silence. Outstanding!
John Edwin May said (18 Jul 2008):
thanks everyone...had a Commercial shoot starting @ 10 AM and just got home @ 11:02 PM to these wonderful comments! thanks to all!
Juliann Langeheine said (19 Jul 2008):
A view into a much different world than most of us are accustomed to. Looks to be a very hard life. Incredible portrait. Congrats!
Dmytro said (24 Jul 2008):
absolutely great!!
Magalhães Maria De said (24 Jul 2008):
Strong and beautiful pic!
May Lattanzio gave props (24 Jul 2008):
John, this is incredible. Have you enough for an essay or a photoessay book? www.createspace.com, for all of you who want to do something like this, is the best venue - better than Lulu.com - for this.
laurent bourlier said (24 Jul 2008):
bravo/congratulations
the way you shoot this photo, like in the mid 20th century,
is still powerful !
william zimpel said (24 Jul 2008):
great shot sincere mood congratulations william
Lanora Mueller said (24 Jul 2008):
Stopped me cold... and took me back to my grandmother's front porch. Beautiful is not a strong enough descriptor. Thank you.
new weird said (24 Jul 2008):
i just can't help but wonder what these people might be doing right now; whether they're still alive or not.. have you got any news from them later on? and the cat! my parents used to have a cat named Snowball back in 82 - the year i was born. amazing, really..
Jim Goodin said (24 Jul 2008):
John that's a really great image, like a cross between grapes of wrath and I don't know but so much the edge of Appalachia... so much life so much heartache and feeling...
Adrienne Darnell said (24 Jul 2008):
wow, this is brilliant.
Robert Duncan said (24 Jul 2008):
This work, especiallyl, could very easily be a Dorthea Lange.
Victoria Amato said (24 Jul 2008):
ok. I love Pearl ad Snowball. This photo has so much heart. It is beautiful and humanistic. One of the best portrait photos I have ever seen. Also it reminds me of some of the "salt of the earth" people I met in the hills of North Carolina when I would visit my Grandmother. Thank you for sharig this image.
N said (24 Jul 2008):
I hope she is in a good place. In the simple surroundings I can sense love in the way she touches Snowball and hope and spirituality in the way she looks to at the horizon, lost in he rthoughts.
This picture tells a true story and that is what good photography is about.
Congratulations. You leave me wanting to know more about her and her family. What is the complete story?
Esme Wright gave props (24 Jul 2008):
I cannot believe this is real. Gorgeous.
Marie (Rhe) Harris said (24 Jul 2008):
A lot of sadness can be seen in the eyes. A true depicition of many a people I knew. This lady has seen many a year of hard living. Great photo.
Anne Brisco said (24 Jul 2008):
This is one of the most powerful shots I have seen since Life mag's Dust storm shots back in the day. I think you know which one I mean. I rarely see this style of photography anymore , but when I do it doesn't have what this does. This is the type of photography I long to do . Absolutely Awe Inspiring . Thank you for sharing.
Raymond Guido said (24 Jul 2008):
This photo is great. The thing I love about it is that you can see in one instant the inner life of this woman who has had to struggle, probably her whole life, just to survive. There is so much character their, and love, and vividness about the grit of life that most of us rarely if ever experience.
lotsohats said (24 Jul 2008):
Walker Evans, Dorthea Lange- anyway you look at it, it's just a beautiful image.
I was also taken by the juxtaposition of the overall grit of the photo and the tenderness of the hands holding the cat.
Thanks for sharing- can't wait to see the others.
Piero Cauduro gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Grande fotografia - Great photo
Thomas Henry gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Wow! One of the most impressive and moving portraits I've ever seen!
Franziska Funke gave props (24 Jul 2008):
wow :)
Karl Browne gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Phenomenal shot. Reminds me of Walker Evans
profanArte said (24 Jul 2008):
Remarkable!
Debbie Cannaday gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Amazing shot, so full of emotion..
Sara Lee McK gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Reminds me of dear old mom.....awesome!
Guy with a camera gave props (24 Jul 2008):
wow that is a haunting image!!
Martie Last said (24 Jul 2008):
This is as fine a photo as Dorothea Lang shot during the Great Depression. Please make sure that you protect your copyright of this photo. What an extraordinary documentation of time and place in America! This is a masterpiece.
Leanna Lomanski gave props (24 Jul 2008):
Not much to say that hasn't already been said here.........this is a stellar piece of work. A great great portrait in the largest sense of the word.
Joseph H. Dalton said (25 Jul 2008):
Agree with Leanne...this is so damn good. Plus how beautiful of you to give them photos you've taken on your return visits...
Vicki Koch said (27 Jul 2008):
Thank you for sharing this, we will never meet that family but through your photos - and may I say we are richer for it! Thank you!!
Bless Santonia said (27 Jul 2008):
interesting!great photo!
Lois Elling said (27 Jul 2008):
I was also drawn to this photo. It's very powerful. My mother-in-law came from Pineville, Kentucky, so it was especially interesting. I'd love to see more of your visits there.
Lisa Slifko gave props (27 Jul 2008):
Is there anything else left to be said about this image?? Wow!! Stirs the emotions, provoking such a deep thought surrounded with compassion.
Rosana Prada said (28 Jul 2008):
It's a wonderful and beautiful capture!
allison sullivan said (28 Jul 2008):
Beautiful... Reminds me of Shelby Lee Adams...
Christophe Le Canne gave props (29 Jul 2008):
Stunning !
Laura Boston-Thek gave props (29 Jul 2008):
Absolutely moving image!!
Abby White said (29 Oct 2008):
John, I have looked at a great many photos in my life and could see the beauty in all of them but this one stands out from them all. Through this photograph you made me see it with my heart as well as with my eyes. None better. Would love to see them all. Thank you for sharing this moment in time.
elfriede fulda gave props (19 Nov 2008):
Better late than never with this shot, it just reeks of life...very amazing shot...
Hector rtiz gave props (24 Nov 2008):
OMG...THIS IS A MASTERPIECE...
Patricia Shanahan gave props (26 Nov 2008):
This photo is unbelievable ! It sturs up so much visually & the sense of time in the past is unreal ! Although it's not from too long ago! BEAUTIFUL shot and stunning capture ! Love it in B&W ! AWESOME job !
Martie Last said (27 Nov 2008):
This should have made publication. It is a classic, enduring photo! The image has played through my mind many times since I first saw it on JPG. Nice to see it recognized here.
nema' etebar said (2 Dec 2008):
kentucky..
peggy gardner gave props (8 Dec 2008):
congrats just seeing this on the blog...don't know how I missed the feedbag in the back and the cat...guess I was so struck by the woman before. Perfection supported with an editorial, nice job.!
Jon Williams said (24 Dec 2008):
her eyes carry her beauty
melletios kyriakidis said (27 Dec 2008):
surreal... sublime. yum...
hey if you want to ever swap a foto.. hit me up...
i love this one!
melletios.
Regenia Brabham gave props (3 Jun 2009):
This is fantastic! I like to imagine her young, on her wedding day, so pretty and full or dreams.
Cleo Glover gave props (4 Jun 2009):
This image is unbelievably striking, really makes you think about life and its harsh reality and how unfair this world is- its just incredible and powerful, very very perfect photography in my eyes.
James Stegeman gave props (4 Jun 2009):
thats incredible!
Dan Wetmore said (5 Jun 2009):
Right down to the pattern on the shirt, absolutely incredible.
Dirk Essl gave props (5 Jun 2009):
Amazing! looks so real!
peggy gardner gave props (5 Jun 2009):
saw you up on display on the main page - of course this is such a dramatic and beautifully endearing shot, how could it not me selected.
valerie g said (5 Jun 2009):
A great lady in a hard life but probably more content than the botox/breast implant fake everything women!. I wonder how old she was?
Josef Vital gave props (5 Jun 2009):
Fantastic candid portrait
Liz Van Den Berg gave props (6 Jun 2009):
this photo to me epitomises exactly what photography is all about, thank you for such a beautiful sensitive portrait.
Michael Fitzgerald said (6 Jun 2009):
WOW!
Patricio Fontes said (7 Jun 2009):
moving, mesmerizing, humbling.
Leslie Granda-Hill gave props (8 Jun 2009):
Really wonderful!
Jason Campbell gave props (8 Jun 2009):
This is an example of work I would love to be able to produce. Great in every way..
G Richard Anderson gave props (8 Jun 2009):
damn, that is nice.
Paul Soso gave props (9 Jun 2009):
superb.
Bruce Baker gave props (10 Jun 2009):
Incredibly powerful image. Amazing.
John Edwin May gave props (12 Jun 2009):
FABULOUS ART!!! WOW!!
Francois Angers gave props (12 Jun 2009):
What a striking picture.
Adam Reilly said (12 Jun 2009):
Fantastic portrait
Peter McLaughlin said (14 Jun 2009):
Pictures really do tell a story. This is a wonderful portrait.
Erika Pisu gave props (16 Jun 2009):
Unbelievable pic.
Ron Lodi gave props (17 Jun 2009):
all I can say is WOW WOW WOW ron
Sabrina Jones gave props (19 Jun 2009):
wow. Just wow, beautiful.
Wendy A Perry gave props (20 Jun 2009):
Amazing image!!!
peter said (22 Jun 2009):
a masterpiece!
Kelly Roper gave props (25 Jun 2009):
This is the most powerful image I have seen on JPG.
Molly . gave props (25 Jun 2009):
this is truly phenomenal.
simina pitur gave props (26 Jun 2009):
breathtaking.
Paul Andrews said (1 Jul 2009):
breathtaking. Like an old master.
chip scheuer said (4 Jul 2009):
sweet thankxx
Peter Hauri said (9 Jul 2009):
woderful, these belong to the dust bowl collecction by Dorothea Lange and others...When's your book out?
Karen Zimmerman gave props (19 Jul 2009):
This is beyond words. Please do a photo essay on this family!
N. Chaplin gave props (19 Jul 2009):
I can't remember the last time anything, in an facet of life, moved me the way this image has just now. Thank you for sharing this with the world. We are in your debt, Sir.
((pigotta08)) said (13 Aug 2009):
super!
judy fouse gave props (24 Aug 2009):
So glad I took the time to peruse your gallery. And that you took the time to scan and post your photos. Bet you got an A in class for these.