Will,
What great images. I wish I'd had the opportunity to create such a powerful image of my father. In my opinion, the 3/4 (2nd) view is best. You have more information to work with in the face and I like the tilt of the head more than the more down looking pose of the first image. I also like the way the hand is described in the second image. But, if I'd only had the first image, I'd be thrilled.
I also think the composition could work without the lamp or any further explanation of the light. Much of the power of your image is in its simplicity.
I too am a compulsive cropper. I cropped your image slightly and made a slight change to that portion of the table closest to us. I hope you don't mind, these little puzzles are just too tempting for me.
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Mike McCarty
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