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| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Very interesting. I agree with you for EXACTLY the same reasons. I really like the reflected sky in the water in the main image. Still the image look like something is missing. I the long reach of the bridge in the thumbnail and those trees, I feel, add a lot to the total image.
Thanks for commenting. |
Sep 13th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks for posting this. It is much appreciated. I enjoy looking at how others see something I have photographed. I find it interesting so see and figure out their intent and then think about how I might have worked from the angle of view they attempted. Just looking at you image has given me an idea to try when I get back to the islands. |
Sep 8th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
First, the settings used to capture of this image are quite adequate. The post work (which is really what this image is all about) is what makes the image interesting. The removal of the wires was absolutely necessary and well done. I reviewed the original and noted that you have dark building on both sides of the three structures you are showcasing. You left a little space on the right side, that I feel is necessary but you cropped the left side really tight. I wish you had left at least as much space on the left as you did on the right. As shown the building just seem to be squeezed into the frame. If possible I would have liked a little more on the right and at least that much added to the left.
I like the warming and the increased golden hour feel but I do think the sharpening has become a little but "crunchy" especially on the framing around the doors and windows. I realize there is peeling paint there, but it still look over sharpened.
Your Photoshop work is done quite well (minus the crunch) but I like last month image a whole lot more. That image had some character while this one feels like more of an image of "record" and less like a trip to the past. |
Sep 8th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
First, in this day and age I fully agree that the best camera to use is the one you have with you at the moment. Displayed in this format one cannot really tell this is an Iphone original. I've seen a lot worse coming from high end DSLR and Mirrorless cameras. I found the setting the camera chose to be quite interesting. From what I've seen the phone cameras seem to favor faster shutter speeds. May I assume you used the widest focal length the camera allows?
For me my only wish/suggestion is that you would have backed up about two steps as I really wish the largest and more important, brightest buildings in the scene are exactly on the very edges left and right.
The rainbow and the clouds are quite compelling especially as the clouds appear to be streaking. I can't help but wonder if you had a better camera and tripod, along with a ND filter if using a long exposure those clouds could have been really turned into long streaks. Just my musings, clearly in this situation it was impossible.
Overall, this is a quite interesting and impactful image. |
Sep 8th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Barbara
My wife likes the one I posted as the main image. i prefer the thumbnail. It is the tree and the long line of the bridge for me and of course the golden glow. The light was fading fast and I lost the color in the water, but then you can't have everything. |
Sep 5th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Michael. I struggled with the composition. In both cases I am sitting on the ground with my tripod ball head about 15 inches above the ground. The camera would be several inches above that. I have one leg of the tripod in the water on the main image but all three legs on land on the thumbnail image (the water was deeper on that side) I tried raising and lowering everything I could on both images to get as much of the gazebo into the image as possible. The problem of angles and the top of the arch frustrated me. I though about just standing in the water but it was just too deep I really wanted to be in the middle.
What area looks truncated to you? is it that stuff on the water surface under the main arch? That is something growing in the water, I thought about cloning it out, but didn't. There is also a circle on the left side by the post closest to the bottom edge is is annoying---that also something growing there. Guess I could clone that out as well. Or is it something else I'm missing. In the thumbnail image I really hate that building on the left edge being the bridge I thought about cropping it out and ending with the bridge on the left, but I thought that looked weird. What would be your preference with that building.
I would love to see your image of this bridge |
Sep 5th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
OK Michael. Now you have me worried. I will carefully recalibrate my monitor today. I did the recalibration about 3 weeks ago before judging a PSA exhibition, but now you have me worried. No couch time for me today!! :-) |
Sep 5th |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
One of the first things I noticed about this image is the DIRT road leading to and through the bridge. I think that looks so much better than the usual paved roadway.
I do like the crop used for this, it does not need a sky you have pulled some green out of the trees (adding yellow) and the remaining reds, oranges, browns and yellow create a very unified color scheme that really adds strength to the image. The inclusion of the large rock in the lower left corner closes in the roadway and I think adds a great deal to the image. I'm glad you left it in. To me the image just feels to lack of bit of sharpness. But in this case I like it as it creates a feeling of timelessness and seems to belong to the image.
A parting thought is that I hope you have just a bit of space on the original to the right of the fence post. If you were to frame or matte this you would likely cut off part of the post and that would be sad. |
Sep 3rd |
| 36 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
With the current heat waves I appreciate you showing me an image of a location I am very glad not to be visiting right now.
I do like your camera placement and the strong foreground. Your severe crop of the sky is also a fine choice as that sky was certainly not going to do you any great favors along the lines of image enhancement. The small white mound of rocks in the center work quite well as an eye catcher to draw the viewer into the image and create an interesting focal point. I find that the pano crop makes the scene feel quite vast and that gives some impact to the image as well.
Personally I wish the mountain in the background were a bit sharper, but maybe it they were it would take some attention away from the dynamic foreground. |
Sep 3rd |
4 comments - 5 replies for Group 36
|
| 49 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
Love shots of the Milky Way and this is a very good one. Youhandled the stars quite well. Maybe you could darken the island just a bit. To me it looks over done. Just a thought. |
Sep 13th |
1 comment - 0 replies for Group 49
|
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Richard. The foreground thing is a maker's choice, I can see it either way. |
Sep 26th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Richard. Right you are about getting that shot when they skim the water surface for bugs. It is one of my favorite birds shots. i spend lots of time researching my subjects---it helps getting unusual shots. But I've never gotten a kettle shot like this. It is one of the toughest wildlife shots I've ever taken. Everything happends so fast and was so fluid |
Sep 26th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Welcome to the group Cindy. Thank you for you comment. The best images always have a strong, central and clear subject to which you can connect your story line. With out that singular strong subject the entire image will fall flat. When I first started trying to capture this I was intent on capturing the mass of birds, but I ended up with exactly that--a mass of birds. So I reevaluated the concept and went to basics---get a strong subject. |
Sep 20th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Bud
I've photographed the occasional single or a small group of 5-6 swallowtails before But I have never even dreamed of seeing so many at a single location. The sight was beyond imagination. I was sitting on the floor of the boat which keeps me low and allows for more twisting and turning without ending up in the water. I can turn about 180 degrees. I tried the hand holding but found I often fell over backwards chasing targets. The monopod allows me to keep the camera pointed at the target continuously thus gaining more opportunities. this works for me, but then I'm weird so it may not work for others.
Ithink I'll go with the crop youand Frank suggest. |
Sep 18th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Frank. I can see cropping the birds as you suggest. |
Sep 18th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Michael. Swallow tails are not uncommon in south Florida, but I've never seen them in a mass like this. I was hoping to get one or two skimming the surface but this turned out to be better. Sort of a go with the flow shot. |
Sep 16th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Reply |
Thanks David. The reason I shot at f5.6 was because according to the camera I was shooting at infinity. So if the lens is focused on infinity then in theory everything should be in focus. As for getting the separation of the birds, I tried to shoot on the edges of the kettle where the birds were a bit thinner. The center was a huge mass of birds much like your snow geese. I took hundreds of shots to get this and was not really sure I had until I got home.
Glad you liked this, I had no idea how this type of shot would be received. Thanks for your thoughts. |
Sep 16th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
I will largely agree with your assessment of the image, I still think is a a nice image and would be happy to have it. The subject is an unusual bird that most people will not be familiar with and that alone adds interest. The subject clearly pops out of the background and is quite sharp. Shutter speed was certainly your friend and even at 2000 ISO the bird looks clean.
For me there are a couple of adjustments I would consider. First I would reduce some of the sky from the top, there is too much space. I would also add just a bit of space to the right to give the bird some additional room in which to live.
I do agree that the light in the background is wrong. But that is because the bird itself is front lit and there is clearly a second sun behind the could in the background. There is a simple solution---just replace the current background background that does not show a bright spot revealing that the sun is in the background. Some neutral greys should do it.
It is a good image---and it is the subject that makes it good. |
Sep 11th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
I am probably the wrong person as ask about images such as this. In my opinion, and this is just my opinion, this type of shot does not work unless the sky is other worldly. Say there is a tornado or something similar. I tend to look for a subject and for me the sky alone is not enough. I agree that the treeline just isn't interesting enough to hold my attention. Also for me the mass of the sky is to dark. For me the best park is the little section of clouds in the lower right corner.
I used to take shots like this because, like you, I thought the sky was enough. But I gave up because when I looked back much later I just wonder why... Sorry |
Sep 11th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
Nothing wrong with hanging out at home if you are going to submit shots like this. It is one of the best butterfly images I've seen this year.
The plus is that you managed to get two sharp butterflies in the same image. You have a lovely soft background to top it all off as well. The yellow plants make a nice internal frame to help bring out the subjects.
You processing technique is well thought out and well done. I like the layers that you used in the editing. Best of all your vignette is really light and thus it looks much more natural and that is a must for a nature image.
If you could use Content Aware Fill and remove that yellow blur in the upper right corner this would be perfection. |
Sep 6th |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
Nice catch---you not the bird. He still seems to have an empty bill.
I well appreciate the idea of hanging on when in a little boat on a BIG sea.
There is so much to like about this shot. I love these bird alone on the beach shots. This one has a leg up on many others because you have the footprints and they are even laid out in a curve pattern! Shooting with a long lens at near eye level and a little target you often get that blurred foreground so my fist suggest is to just crop that off, especially when you have already cropped so much. It just cleans up the image. Then you have that wonderful shadow to add depth and interest. Your bird is looking to camera right and since you have so much space on the right I would suggest repositioning the bird so he has space to walk into. Since I put this in Lightroom to do the crop I did a quick Photoshop edit and removed some bright white areas in the water so clean up the background. Then I added a layer mask on the foreground and increased shadows added texture to add some detail to the sand.
These are just some suggestions but it is your image so what ever you decide is the way it should be. Hope you got some other birds as well while you were bobbing around in the boat. |
Sep 6th |
 |
| 67 |
Sep 22 |
Comment |
I've never attended any of the Tremont Photo workshops in the many years I've been going to Smoky NP but it certainly looks like they gave you some excellent tips. In this case the B/W treatment certainly proves the old saying, "if you don't have the light, make it black and white." The one second, along with the amount and speed of the water gave you some fine texture and a great deal of drama. I also like the tight crop, Generally I hate black holes (like the one on the right edge) but you have nicely balanced that with the white pool in the lower left. The two make a nice diagonal that implies movement. This image has a great deal of power.
Personally, I might crop just a bit from the right edge just to move the high point of the cascade off center a bit more. But that is entirely a maker's choice. The image is fine as it is.
Thanks for showing me a memory of a cascade I know quite well. |
Sep 3rd |
5 comments - 7 replies for Group 67
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10 comments - 12 replies Total
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