|
| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 39 |
May 25 |
Reply |
I have much to learn! |
May 21st |
| 39 |
May 25 |
Comment |
David - I am excited to be joining this group I have much to learn about Mono and a keen to learn from the experienced group members here.
This is a well taken wildlife shot with great feather detail in the original (was that as Raw, or after PP in colour?). I use Olympus too and the 300 is a fabulously sharp lens but I found I missed too many shots by not being able to zoom, so invested in the white 150-400 which is a Own for life lens! I am a member of 91 Birds and 72 Nature+.
Your shot works so well as a mono, with the great feather detail and eyes really shown off well. I'm here to learn, so forgive the question - does it matter that there are no whites? Could it be worth making the sky whiter to provide a different tone and contrast to the grey of the bird? |
May 21st |
| 39 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Paul - I am excited to be joining this group from June. This is a good, interesting Street shot. You seem to have positioned yourself on a corner of the tiles, which helps the effect and you left space at the bottom 1/3 for the water and wet tiles to add reflections - I do wonder whether adding Clarity to that area could further emphasise the shadows.
I love the look of the water columns. If you have any more at the top above the umbrellas, that may be worth looking at. The kids are clearly having run and this comes over well. A shot I would love to have taken. |
May 21st |
| 39 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Vincent - I am excited to be joining this group from June. This I think is a great opportunity for mono to work well, writhing interesting lines etc. your sky has obviously lost detail and you asked about darkening it. Paul's version adds good drama and interest with the starburst effect, but I find the top half a little too dark and it might be worth playing with a linear gradient in Lr from the top down to the top of the clouds and lighten the shadows (and poss blacks) a tad. I particularly like how the far column looks - it takes my eye in. Gook image. |
May 21st |
| 39 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Paul. I am excited to be joining this group from June. This is a good Street shot that appeals to the human interest side of us. A square shape works (although this has left your left side a little close to the man some might feel.
Yes the reddish face of the chap has left the mono version quite dark - I don't know if you also use Lightroom, but the masking tools make it seconds work to create the mask and lighten the face skin's shadows. Good title. |
May 21st |
4 comments - 1 reply for Group 39
|
| 64 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Stan - the contrasty look particularly re the paving slabs really look good here! |
May 29th |
1 comment - 0 replies for Group 64
|
| 72 |
May 25 |
Reply |
I'm surprised that doing that didn't alter the dragonfly as well. |
May 26th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Great capture Isaac and I'm surprised that 1/1,250 was fast enough to capture the sharp push the bird would have done to grab the fish - I have a number of blurred failures with them doing that. But this looks sharp enough.
I too would recommend a fraction more to the left. |
May 24th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Maria - great capture! Good reactions and the huge worm adds much interest. Cropping seems to be a very personal thing - I like your presentation with the robin left of centre.
I use Topaz Photo Ai a huge amount - especially for birds. With my Olympus 24Mb camera I can't crop much more than a 1/3 (depending how sharp the key subject is). For huge crops I use the above, entering it at the Raw stage from Lightroom via File > Plug-in-extras (better for Raw files than "Edit in" route....... and crop a bit within Topaz, then double the pixels > then on returning to Lightroom, I crop further and do other PP work. I've found that works very well well for many situations including where large crops are needed. |
May 24th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Richard - you captured this very well indeed - the concentration is clearly seen. Ignoring how much to crop - your presentation does in my view need the shadows (of the bird) lightening a bit and once done, the eye might need more treatment.
I think your motive for the tight crop was driven for viewing on a phone. I use my phone a huge amount for viewing images and as a mobile library - so I understand, but I do think the impact of your shot should be just as dramatic with Isaac's crop (after adjusting the PP) - up to you though. |
May 24th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Karen - Welcome and I look forward to enjoying more super images like this!
The two cranes are well positioned in the frame and wings perfectly in unison. It a lovely image and my only suggestion would be to see what the effect of lightening the shadows a bit on the birds only - this may make them stand out from the sky/clouds a little stronger. |
May 24th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Maria - Gosh this is stunning. Very artistic! I too wouldn't have thought of making the background so dark and will remember this technique - even for non-Nature Competitions. The LR mask did a good job round the hairy legs in selecting all items other than the subject! Stunning result and so different to a "normal" presentation. |
May 24th |
| 72 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Bruce - this is a lovely picture of an interesting bird - you had a perfect vantage point! Impressive that your shot require no real PP! |
May 24th |
6 comments - 1 reply for Group 72
|
| 91 |
May 25 |
Reply |
Thank you for visiting and your generous comments. |
May 27th |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Cindy - thank you for the 'how I took it' info - this help with the appreciation of your field-craft! The result is so much more interesting than the bird stationary on the plant. You don't show us the 'as taken' view, but the result of the lighting and/or your pp shows off the lovely feather pattern with good detail. Well done. |
May 24th |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Maria - welcome! Three of us 72'ers now!
You have chosen to present this (in my words) as a moody image, with an overall dark tone (replicating what you captured), with just the head and side of the main bird in reasonably bright light - so the viewer knows just where you intended. Love it! You don't say whether this was how you saw it, or whether this look is from underexposing (or spot metering on the bird). Either was, the effect is lovely and 'different'.
Cropping is a personal choice - I think it work work just as well as a portrait with the right edge reasonless close to the right bird. |
May 24th |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Lovely shot Steve - you seem to have caught its character well. Looks good on my screen. |
May 24th |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Wow Sunat, this is a lovely bird excellently captured. Your PP has emphasised the amazing array of colours while keeping the look at what I call realistic.
Yes, there is no need to retain so much sky and I always feel that flying birds should always have more space in front of it than behind - so remove a tiny bit on left, and add what feels right in front. V good image. |
May 21st |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Bruce - this is a lovely portrait of an impressive bird. It's very sharp with perfect feather detail and I love the sympathetic background that blends so well with your bird. |
May 21st |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Jerry - very nice indeed. Great feather detail, sharp and clear eye plus helpful background. I like the diagonal flight path and the water droplets add to the story - even without the river/lake being seen. |
May 21st |
| 91 |
May 25 |
Comment |
Thank you Jerry - No! my next shot was deleted (can't recall why, but likely because the Dad was ahead or behind the others) - but this was a few shots later (at 10 a second) ....The fish must have been too big for the youngsters! I also like this one - I was lucky there is no overlap of the heads.
I was shooting at 10 per sec - I am always surprised how much happens in nature in 1/10th of a sec! |
May 11th |
 |
7 comments - 1 reply for Group 91
|
18 comments - 3 replies Total
|
