I like it but if it were me shooting it, I would do away with the shadow on the right and just have the figure in shadow, but that's just me Jack

very sensitive, i like it just as it is... i suppose the social issue would be to find oneself & join the human race?

I like the Image...but...am at a loss to give Feedback ;]

Hmmm...to me, this image makes it seem like you are comin' out of the dark! There's a "loneliness" feelin' to it! It could symbolize a phobia in some ways (IMO). Joe

wonderful and poetic mood. i like this kind of art,Sheila.there are so deep emotions in it. a true work. #:O)

hi, i like it as is. i do find the two vertical marks, one to the left and a darker one to the right distracting though.

Very nice and moody image. Not sure what the social message is. What I am deeming from it, is that it looks like the subject is holding a cigarette with the right hand. So maybe smoking? Good job with the photo.

A very thoughtful image, but I'm not getting the message, sorry.

Ah Haaa! Its your Brother in law!!!!!! No? Haunting atmosphere, you could try cropping a bit off the top.

Has a very wistful, melancholy mood to it Sheila.... poignant and wonderfully done.... hate to say it but I don't understand the social issue portrayed here either.... I get a more personal message from it. Were it mine I'd probably crop some of the top off.....

Good photo and thought provoking image. This image like most art evokes various responses according to the end viewers personal perpective. Perhaps this image represents a social phobia or even a sence of a privacy violation. It could also represent those illusionary defensive walls ('defence mechanisms' as the western head shrinkers called them back when they accused me of such tactics) we learn to build within our minds, perhaps as a result of societies many influences that people perceive as hurtful. I am probably totally off the wall on this, but cool photography regardless. -Peace/Jeff :-)

thanks ya'all for your feedback!! i posted this image my gallery last night. I called it: "Into the Abyss: The Naked Truth." I had this quotation under the image to try to explain the image a bit and how it related to social issues: "Whoever battles monsters should take care not to become a monster too, for if you stare long enough into the Abyss, the Abyss stares also into you." Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil, chapter 4, no. 146 The social issue portrayed in this image is child abuse. It has an affect, not only on individuals but society as a whole. The statistics on child abuse in just the U.S. alone are unbelievable. Click Here! And the effects of child abuse on society can be staggering as ya'all know. (read above article or Google for more information). A child who has been abused can sometimes grow up to be an abusive and/or violent person; however, this is certainly NOT always the case. The effects of child abuse has also led to genocide in our society. Adolf Hitler is an example. He was severely abused by his parents, and his way of coping with what he was unable to face was to take out his anger, his shame, and his unprocessed feelings on others. This is my opinion which i've based on research. The following links will provide you with more information about this topic. Alice Miller has written several incredible books, and she goes in-depth about Hitler's childhood and how & why he got an entire nation to support the mass murder of innocent people. She's written many eye-opening books about child abuse and its effect on society, as well as books that go into depth about Hitler's childhood and how genocide was a direct result of a NATION that had been abused as children. Here's a link to a short article she wrote to explain this: Click Here! In Hitler's attempt to battle his monsters, he became one himself. So why do i post an image of myself? How does it relate to the social issues of child abuse, violence, and genocide? Well, i was abused as a child too. I've had my own monsters to face, and I've stared into the Abyss...pretty scary. I wanted to make an image which showed that Abyss that Nietzsche was talking about. About the image: i was in my bedroom. i was facing the window. the horizontal lines you see are the blinds. the light was off in the bedroom. the light source was coming from the bathroom which is opposite the bedroom. Cindy, you certainly seemed to get it!!! Joe, i show light & dark in this image, and for me, yes, it's been about coming out of the dark. Randy, what i'm holding is my camera. What you guys are seeing is my front side. firestorm...good eyes! Michelle...you saw the message! some of you mentioned cropping. i think cropping some off the top would be good. thank you. jack, the part to the right...well it doesn't look aesthetically pleasing, but i wanted it there because it represents the Abyss. If not for that, you're right, it would be better to crop it. thanks I appreciate ya'all taking the time to give me feedback and suggestions. i could hardly sleep last night after making this. It was a HUGE emotional release for me!!! i couldn't talk about this in my gallery...not last night anyway. i wanted to let my image speak for me. well, that's something i need to work on!!! :) p.s. sorry the the length of this...LOL! I should use that as a disclaimer!! LOL!

jeff...we crossed. You definitely were NOT off the wall! you got it right too!!! yes, definitely privacy violation...and boy, have i had the defenses walls built up around me!!! they're coming down though!!

Thanks for the explanation. I admire your courage for sharing this...I am glad your walls are coming down...Sounds like a good idea...I have walls that I must destroy or navigate somehow...If I can find the courage. -Peace/Jeff :-)

thanks for saying that, Jeff!!! the walls are mostly down now, but i don't talk about it much. as for your walls, you'll find the courage...when the time is right! just knowing they're there and what they're all about...well, that's a start! hugz peace for sure.

takes a strong person to overcome abuse, you're not alone :]

thanks, cindy! hugz

I knew not coming on the computer last night was a mistake. Great pic, my only comment agrees with firestorm about the 2 marks. As for your reason for taking and posting the picture, bravo! While we all have issues and closet skeletons, some are trivial compared to others; while child abuse is so common, it's also one that can have drastically different effects on different people. For you to help exorcise your feelings in this way is, imo, very brave, and nice to know you find the trust in us to be able to do that :-) Mike.

Thanks for explaining, it certainly puts the image in perspective! You are very brave to expose a piece of your darker side like this, but cyn is right, you are most definately not alone! I know a number of people who experience vary amounts of abuse as children, and they either find a way to exercise those demons or it ruins their lives. In regards to the image, while I think it is very powerful, I don't see it as specific enough to be a commentary for child abuse. It could be used for any number of circustances where one feels alone, isolated, and struggling towards the light. But maybe that is what you want. Do you see what I mean? (zoon)

mike, kort...thanks guys! i realize this photo doesn't stand by itself. but when i did it, i looked at it and saw myself as a scared kid. ya know. i thought the image said it all. i still look at that image and see that terrified kid. but i wasn't able to be objective. anyway, i have ideas on how to do it so others will know what i'm talking about when they look at the image. i was working on it last night, but i dunno...we'll see. thanks for looking, listening, and also for the feeback ya'all!!!!! :)