Activity for User 69 - Tom Pickering - info@photopicks.net

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1433 Comments / 1336 Replies Posted

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Group Round C/R Comment Date Image
53 Jul 21 Reply Thanks, but where's your variation? Huh? d;¬{D Jul 16th
53 Jul 21 Comment Great capture, as others have noted already. The detail in the dragonfly's head is fantastic.

Of course, the lesson learned here is that have such a wide-open aperture results in a very shallow DOF, especially when using a zoom lens. The solution is to choose a smaller aperture and raise your ISO slightly.

I think the solid color at the top and bottom, which is clearly not part of the original image, should go as it ends up being somewhat of a distraction.

I tool this image into Topaz Sharpen AI to try and bring a little more of the image into focus. Thoughts?		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Comment This tells a good story, showing in this man's hand the hidden treasure of this field.

Aside from the bright spots, I think the highlights on the man are a little harsh. I brought this into Aurora HDR to make a faux HDR image, applying the results only to the man and the radishes. Thoughts?		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Comment You know, Brenda, it's not nice to hit it out of the park so often - I'm getting an inferiority complex. d:¬{(

Seriously, though, this is an outstanding piece of art, telling a potent story of the cold and loneliness of winter. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be out in that myself, but I'm so glad you braved it. d;¬{D		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Comment I really enjoyed photographing the seals in California. Finding a pup on its own like this is rare and the look on its face tells a story of panic setting in.

Stuart was on the right track with his crop. The pup is rather lost in all that space.

A couple of other things I can suggest to take this to another level: straighten the horizon, darken the sand, and give some color to the water to help the pup pop a bit more. Following is my take on it. Thoughts?		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply I can sort of see what you're saying, but a close look reveals that it's only one pup. Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Comment When capturing a shot in the interior with a bright exterior, it's always important to underexpose so that the exterior light is not blown out. Shadows can be pulled up much easier than highlights can be pulled down without losing details.

I took a similar approach to Dan, adjusting the perspective, though I used Aurora HDR to produce a faux HDR to try and compensate for the bright window light and also pull up some shadow detail. Thoughts?		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Comment This is a gorgeous capture with amazing symmetry.

Not that it's really needed, but I saw a couple of things that could benefit with tweaking. The cutoff of mini domes on the top and bottom causes a small amount of visual discomfort. Also, the symmetry is broken at the top left of the main dome. Following is my crop and fix:		 Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply High praise from such an artist! d:¬{D Now you've made me hungry so I guess I'll go fix lunch! d;¬{D Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply This definitely puts the focus on the errant petal and the flower center, although there's a tendency for the eye to drop out of the image at the bottom. Hmmm. Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply That's very interesting. Kinda tells the story of that petal sneaking in or passing by. Hmmm. Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply Thank you. Do you really think it stands as is? Jul 15th
53 Jul 21 Reply I think I understand what you're saying. I wonder if focusing so tightly on the skewed petals is the answer, though. Jul 15th
6 comments - 7 replies for Group 53
95 Jul 21 Reply Thanks so much. d:¬{D

Yes, I use a focus rail all the time. It's part of my home-built macro rig.

The Mirror filter, built into Affinity Photo, does all the work creating the mandala look. I have an action I built in Photoshop to do the same.		 Jul 24th
95 Jul 21 Reply There's hope for me too - my grandma lived to 104. d;¬{D Jul 24th
95 Jul 21 Reply You must be old if your grandkids have moustaches. d;¬{D Jul 23rd
95 Jul 21 Reply I sorry d:¬{( Jul 23rd
95 Jul 21 Comment Dreamy is a great descriptive word for this image. I found myself becoming calmer while studying it. Lately, calmer is a good thing. d;¬{D

I think the level of noise goes beyond grain, so I decided this would be a good test image for On1's new NoNoise AI, and found the program's default settings worked well here.

I also agree about the "legs" that Bill talked about, but didn't want to affect the composition by cropping, so removed them. I also played with flipping the image horizontally and decided that your angle was better as it pulled the eye into the image more. Thoughts?		 Jul 17th
95 Jul 21 Comment While I agree with Bill about the aperture and the right side, you have the important parts of the fly well in focus.

I had a go at playing around with the composition and came up with the following. Thoughts?		 Jul 17th
95 Jul 21 Comment Welcome to our "little" band of macro experimenters on the outer edge of Digital Dialogue. You're starting off with "big" success. d;¬{D

Very unique capture. The lighting works quite well and you froze the action of the fly at work cleaning itself well so that it tells a story. I think Bill's crop helps to frame the scene better, but it works well enough without the crop.		 Jul 17th
95 Jul 21 Comment For me, this has a Medusa kind of effect, though it so far hasn't turned me to stone. d;¬{D

There is so much going on here that it's difficult to find a focal point. I took it in Topaz Gigapixel AI, then Topaz Sharpen AI, and finally an HSL adjustment in Affinity Photo to try and bring the heart of the bud into the limelight, so to speak. Thoughts?		 Jul 17th
95 Jul 21 Reply Look at Original 1 - definitely not the abdomen.

It was deceased - found by my wife accompanied with a shout.

Thanks. I wanted to do something very different. d;¬{D		 Jul 17th
95 Jul 21 Reply That means a lot coming from you, Carol. I certainly admire your creativity and am trying to learn from people like you. d;¬{D Jul 10th
95 Jul 21 Reply Well, I certainly never said anything about macro photographers not being creative, though I admit I've not put much effort into getting very creative with my macro images. Thanks for the acknowledgment, Stuart. d:¬{D Jul 10th
95 Jul 21 Reply Why thank you, Barbara! I'm glad you stopped by and took a look. certainly not your typical macro image, for sure. d;¬{D Jul 5th
4 comments - 8 replies for Group 95
10 comments - 15 replies Total

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