As someone mentioned, it does seem that alot of the mandate was missed
here, but on many I'm not so sure. There are a few that just scream
'local culture', but I think if one looks deeper into many of the
images that things about the place can be picked out. I'm going to try
and relate what I read into, or get out of, each picture. Some points
that I make will probably have been made by others, or answered when
others brought them up. I'm just going to make my own as I see them.

JIM KRAMER - Small town atmosphere. I think this one does tell alot.
I like it, but then I'm partial to rural scenes, anyway. Not much
happens in this town. Not that that's a bad thing, of course. Slow,
easy paced. Informal, as indicated by the traffic signals on the
wires. It's an old town, obviously, but there's a mix of remodeling
and redevelopment, so the area is on the move, so to speak. It's not
stuck in time. I can't put my finger on why, but the traffic lights
really make this one.

AL DENELSBECK - Another pictures that indicates a slow-paced lifestyle.
I start at the sun, then my eye wanders toward the 'smoothness' of the
water, but the silhouettes of the fishermen draws my eye to them in the
end. It seems to denote an area where water sports is very popular and
common. Were you standing in the water when you took it?

BOWSER - This one I don't think fits the mandate well. I like the
picture, but it could be pretty much anywhere. Who doesn't have kids
in generic soccer uniforms? What makes me like it, though, is the kid
under the chairs. His disinterest in the game and expression make it.

ALAN BROWNE - The shadows seem dark, but I'm presently viewing this at
work on an old monitor, so that's probably not a fair statement. Is
this an old neighborhood? I like the house very much, though I'm not
sure what it says about the culture or area.

DOUG PAYNE - I thought Amish when I first saw it, but then wondered
about the utility hook-ups to the building. My knowledge of the many
variations of Amishness is lacking, though. I think it does say alot
about the area. Again, slow-paced, serious, studious. The people here
aren't lazy, they take care of their land and surroundings. They're
not pretentious, either.

PICH POS - Low-budget touristy area? Is that someone's home? Are the
stairs in disrepair, or are the owners tired of strangers invading
their space?

KEN NADVORNICK - This could easily be the gold rush foothills in
California, also. It has the same feel to it. An area that either
time has passed by, or in this case, maybe it never caught up to begin
with.

JOSEPH KEWFI - Is this a regular outdoor market or a one-time event?
The casual interaction makes it interesting. The framing is a little
too tight to get a feel for what is happening beyond the transaction.

VIC MASON - Unless the culture is sewage or inner-city neglect, I'm not
sure I get this one. I think it's visually strong, as it leads the eye
around the corners and gets me involved looking at it and wondering,
though.

MIKE HENLEY - I like this one. Ever see the movie "The Commitments"?
This reminds me of that movie, though not quite as 'desperate'.
Lower-class neighborhood, but not a slum. The people here are probably
hard-working and basically honest and decent. Home ain't much, but
it's home, and they treat it with the respect it deserves for being
home. It helps that there are no people in the shot. In this case, I
think that would've detracted from the feeling.

MICHAEL J. HOFFMAN - Crabs. Someone said Maryland, I think. This
screams 'local culture' to me. Framed very well, and really captures
the atmosphere and mood. We have a local Crawdad Festival every year
and I thought of taking pictures of something similar to this shot,
with the crawdads being eaten and/or cooked, but decided against it.
The timing of our festival and the mandate worked well, too.

COLM GALLAGHER - Just my tastes, but for me, a deeper depth of field
would've been better. I'm picturing a somewhat urban area, in spite of
the surrounding trees, grass, etc.

THE DAVE - More of an explanation and an answer to some other's
comments. This is the main street of the town I live in. It is an old
farming community in the California Delta. All of the buildings on
this street were built in 1926 after a large fire destroyed everything,
and virtually all are spaced 8 feet apart and have metal siding as a
cheap way to ensure against another big fire. They are all in various
states of (dis)repair. Someone mentioned one building looking as if it
might fall over. It just might. There are half a dozen like that.
The neighborhood is an old Chinatown district, from farm laborers and
levee builders We can get beautiful sunsets here, and this one I
grabbed, handheld, at f5.6, on a spur-of-the-moment. It disappeared
quickly after I got this, and if I had set up my tripod in an attempt
to get a better exposure I would have missed it completely. In spite
of the darkness of some of it, I still find myself liking this shot. I
have no illusions that it's technically perfect, but it speaks to me,
if that makes sense. I feel like it catches the aire of the area.
Casual. Old. Out of place and odd in today's world.

BRET DOUGLAS - Very old. Very informal, but still in use and cared
for. Personally, I don't mind the wires. I probably never would've
thought about it had they been erased, but they are there, and I'm not
so sure that trying too hard to erase reality is a good thing, anyway.
I like the randomness of the markers.

MATT CLARA - The big city. Not sure what to say, unless the intent was
to show either the lack of culture, or maybe, the fast paced and
faceless culture that we have really come into, whether we want to
acknowledge it, or not. Actually a very nice contrast with Bret's
picture, showing where we were and where we are now.

PARV - I want to say bay area. Maybe Oakland? The street looks very
familiar. The casual weekend hobbies of American enthusiasts, whatever
their particular interest may be. This does say alot about where we
are as a culture today. In the US, at least. Almost everybody's
wearing shorts. I remember watching old movies from the 30s and 40s
and virtually everybody wore suits. Even in Abbot and Costello movies,
and Three Stooges clips, they wore suits on a day-to-day basis. We
have changed alot in that regard, and this shows that.

Ok, that's it. These are my thoughts. I hope I have not insulted
anybody, as that was not my intent. I will say one thing, though...
Damn! This was harder than I thought.

--
Always borrow money from a pessimist, he doesn't expect to be paid back.
~Author Unknown