|
| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Thanks. Like you when I look at this I can feel the damp air and hears the waves lapping on the shore. I've played with the warp and other tools and for me it just makes it look worse. I'm going to stick to my theory that it is the fog. :-) |
Mar 27th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Thanks for commenting. I like the moody, dreamlike feel. Also the limited color palette. I'm a big fan of using limited colors. |
Mar 27th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
I've always thought that it is the fog, but who knows. Thanks for commenting. |
Mar 27th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Just a test message to see if the IT adjustments are working, |
Mar 26th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Hi Michale
This is just a test to see if messaging is working. Tom Pickering asked me to see it the adjustments from IT are working. |
Mar 26th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Glad you liked this image. I love these types of mornings. The world is silent, the waves just lap at the shore, you hear the gulls crying. Makes you feel alive and as if the cares of the world fall away. Hope your South Carolina trip yields good results. Thanks for commenting. |
Mar 12th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
As noted there are a lot of elements in the image that individually are interesting. For me there is just too much blank sky that makes everything else in the image small and somewhat featureless. |
Mar 11th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
I feel the diagonal lines of the composition work well and there seems to be some interesting buildings. However I find the sun reflecting off the one building seems to be more of a distraction than a plus. I also feel the entire scene seems flat with a lot of muted and faded colors. |
Mar 11th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
The scene is certainly colorful. But as Michael noted shooting at midday is not the ideal time for shooting landscapes. Usually the fringes of the day work best. For me this is quite cluttered and perhaps you might consider that when the sky is empty cropping it to reduce the empty blank space. |
Mar 11th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Thanks Michael
I'm glad you spotted the sun position, that was intentional. You are correct about the sky color reflection in the water. It shows in my test shot which was taken at a faster shutter speed but vanishes with the longer shutter speed. Since i wanted the "look" of the water I didn't mind losing the reflection. Thanks also for the info on the barrel distortion. That horizon drives me nuts. |
Mar 10th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Of the five elements e that PSA claims produce strong impact in an image the least used is creating an emotional response. Even when I judge in competitions it is seldom that I feel a strong emotional response to an image and the feeling is even less in a landscape image. So when I felt the jolt when viewing this image it was both a surprise and a pleasure.
The image vaguely reminds me of some of the images I've seen of the dead trees in Nambia. |
Mar 9th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Thanks for the thoughts. I looked at the image on my monitor and the blacks seem stronger than when shown on the PSA site. No matter, I pushed the black a bit more and added a bit of contrast. The results are shown below.
As for that horizon. It bugs me also but according to the crop guide in Lightroom it is straight. If I fix the left the right looks worse. I think the issue is the fog along the horizon but who knows. |
Mar 9th |
 |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
I really like the soft, comforting tones of the orange sky and blue water. To me the water make the image seem cold, not bone chilling, but there seems to be a chill in the air. The normally soothing blue and orange may set the stage but the both black silhouettes of the trees and like a slap in the face, that suddenly jolts me wide awake. In the end I feel a sense of foreboding. The image seems to generate a wide range of emotions that leaves me on the edge of my chair. |
Mar 8th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Ok, I'll agree that this image has cooler "natural" colors than the image from last month. But the thing I noticed the most is how much those red banners dominate the scene. Even the green tower on the right has become an attention grabber. The image is, of course, technically sound and I like the natural colors. But between the two I believe the image from February feels more like winter even with the warmer colors. I enjoy seeing both images and if I had not seen last month's I would likely rate this as excellent. But I'm going back to February so I can feel cold since it is getting warm here in Florida. |
Mar 8th |
| 36 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
First, I think you did a really fine job with the wooden area structure as it pops out easily from the background. Still I think the wood could be a bit sharper. I asked for the color because it is the area of the sky below the heavy upper clouds and the water that bothers me. There is a squall in those clouds and I feel if the the tonal ranger were a bit wider that rain would be really dramatic. Because it is right against the brighter water it is more easily seen and just seem flat. I'm not sure this is the best choice for monochrome. I really do like the receding run of the water across the sand on the right side. |
Mar 8th |
9 comments - 6 replies for Group 36
|
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Now that you mention it I don't recall being notified either. I'll check into it.
This is supposed to be a discussion group. I try to throw in a few things to make folks think. |
Mar 21st |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
OK Bud. All I can say is "Wait until next month"!!!
Just remember you asked for it. :-) |
Mar 21st |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Just so you know: It was the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Snagglepuss who usually exited "stage left"
You are so right. gator attacks are very sudden. It only takes a second and feathers fly. I'd glad you noticed the single tooth---it is one reason why I like this shot. This is a favorite hangout for birds and gators check it out quite often. I have yet to see a capture here, but I have seen several near misses. This has never won a PSA medal but it did score an acceptance. Probably looks too static compared to a cheetah grabbing an antelope. |
Mar 21st |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Reply |
Sorry for the omission, here is my suggested crop. |
Mar 16th |
 |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Well, you managed to recover some detail in the water so that pretty much eliminates the blown out areas. However, for me, the tonal range is q bit limited and the image is very cluttered and just feels busy. The water shapes on the right and the mounds of snow visually look about the same. I also do not think that adding the canvas at the top helped, it just added to the busy feeling. |
Mar 8th |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Sorry, but there ain't no one fast enough to reach out and pull that falcon's tail. By the time anyone started to reach out for that tail, he would be 6 miles away.
That said, anytime you can get a sharp shot of a free peregrine you have a good picture.. This has just a bit of drama due to the twisted body position resulting in the over the shoulder look. I feel your crop frames the bird quite well and the more or less square format also eliminates more of the distracting branches and makes the bird more dominate. The small size looks good but the expanded size show a bit of a halo on the left side of the bird. MATT K'S technique should get rid of that easy enough
This is a nice capture, no matter what camera you used.
As to your question about the noise it all comes down to the size of the sensor. Coolpix cameras use smaller sensor sizes, which means each pixel on the sensor is smaller and captures less light, this results in less noise when shooting in low-light conditions, but this comes at the cost of a shallower depth of field and less detail compared to a full-frame camera. Basically, the smaller sensor is "cropping" the image more, effectively magnifying the image and minimizing the overall appearance of noise. If you blow it up you will see the noise. |
Mar 8th |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Monochrome, because it eliminates the distraction of color, shows structure and shape to their greatest advantage This choice really adds drama the image. I feel the 1/90 shutter speed and your panning action was enough to keep the heads sharp yet allows the foreground, an background to show motion blur which in turn communicates the story of speed. In my opinion, to further the concept of speed I would crop a very small amount from the left side. This would move the cheetahs from the center of the image thus providing the illusion of more space in front of then into which they can run. Additionally I feel the conversion is just a bit flat and perhaps pushing the blacks just a bit will give the i mage a greater tonal range and thus add moire drama.. Have you considered processing this in Silver Efexs? Overall, a most exciting image to look at. I think you captured the right moment. |
Mar 8th |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
I going to have to agree with Butch on the crop. In the submitted version the left side just seems to be uninteresting. Additionally I feel that perhaps bringing some detail to the bottom of the image would help as there is just too much black in the lower third. The addition of the bird does introduce a bit of a story to the image. Over all it is a glorious sunset. |
Mar 8th |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
Thanks Butch.
I know the extended log doesn't really look great. But I just can't bring myself to crop or edit it out. If for not other reason than I know it is there. The part that really bothers me is the body of the Anhinga--- it just looks so black, almost artificial. I know the body is black, and the feathers are wet, but still. . .
I've been thinking about shadows the last few years, from a naturalists point of view---maybe we should get Cindy involved with this--you listening Cindy? Anyway, shadows are part of nature and while the new tools in Lightroom and Photoshop can easily eliminate them I think sometimes maybe we shouldn't do so. It can make the image look manipulated. Years ago that was what HDR did and for a while it was all the rage, now not so much. Maybe just lighten a bit, but keep the shadow. Shadows can be dramatic. Just something to think about. |
Mar 7th |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
First the subject is really cute. And cute does draw attention so that is a plus. I like that the subject has been bent (curved) into a sort of triangular shape that helps focus the eye. There is a nature story to the image as the Coati is clearly eating. The subject, based on color, is well separated from the background. The image also has a bit of an original look and that the coati is a seldom seen animal. |
Mar 2nd |
| 67 |
Mar 25 |
Comment |
I feel you did a good job of capturing the hummer as even with the large crop the bird is relatively sharp.
For me the image is about composition. As long as you are going to make the large crop just go ahead and crop for composition. As I look at the image there is a huge amount of red. Red draws the eye like a magnet draws iron. So the red dominates your image. Instead, consider my revised crop below. By reducing the top area focus is increased on the bird. By cropping the bottom I've used the red to frame the hummer. Since the eye is drawn to the red and the red surrounds the bird the bird is not much more dominate in the scene. |
Mar 2nd |
7 comments - 4 replies for Group 67
|
16 comments - 10 replies Total
|
