Criticism kindly welcomed

L

Lilserenity

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I'll be up front, I have never offered my photos for proper critique before, and my first pleasure is producing photos that I enjoy and like. Therefore, this is a first for me. But I would like to hear perhaps a more open and critical appraisal of a recent photo that I personally love but which perhaps if I am to improve, other people's thoughts might help me.

It's a straight landscape, nothing special, nothing other worldly and nothing to change the universe on its axis. Shot with a Canon EOS 3, 35mm SMC Takumar, Hoya 25A and CPL, Kodak Tri-X 400 developed in Ilford DDX 1+4 and the only post processing is to leave the photo in RGB mode from the scan as it had a nice tone to me.

I'll only introduce this as my half way mark on the South Downs Way when this summer I walked the full 100 mile distance by myself...


ChanctonburyRingSDW.jpg

​

Thanks.
 
Beautiful picture, both aesthetically and technically. Nice range of tones. I can offer no suggestions for improvement to this picture as none are needed.

But then on second look, the earth and sky each occupy 1/2 of the picture space. Usually one decides to give predominance to one or the other. The way it is works too.

Congrats on your first picture post!
 
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Frank,
Wow! Well I wasn't expecting that, I am my worst critic (possibly, I may yet find out otherwise) -- point taken about the 50/50 to land and horizon, aside from the joke of the backpack was weighing me down and shrunk me by 3"; I have a feeling where this habit comes from. I used to work with children and I used to speak to them by kneeling so I would be at their level, and since then I have enjoyed that viewpoint, an almost fantastical sense of the wide world, the enormity of it, and me. A lot of my photos seem to bear this trait. But maybe rebalancing in future shots is something for me to experiment with. I'm always happy to learn and experiment!
 
Lived in Lewes and Brighton a bit over three decades ago. Plenty of picture material in the South Downs for those who do landscapes. The 50:50 does no harm in this photo.
 
I agree that the 50/50 split works in this photograph. I think that is primarily on account of the transition between the field and the hills behind which sits well below the halfway point of the frame. It's a very nicely composed photograph. I like it.
 
I like it. Dreamy mood. I think the 50/50 foreground sky split works because it is intersected by the hill and valley. Also the path is positioned very nicely to draw the eye in. One question: How did you put a Pentax lens on a Canon camera?
 
I agree that the 50:50 between sky and land works here. I also like the almost-infrared quality of the image. I realize that the you're on a hill, but to me, the incline toward the left seems to guide a viewer one way, while the path seems to guide the same viewer a different way. So, the composition does not work for me.

IMHO, this image works better as a square. I took the liberty of cropping the original to 6x6 (hope you don't mind). I personally prefer the resulting image, but that's just a personal opinion.


3078796756_376f5c7cea_o.jpg
 
I haven't had a chance to get up on the Downs the past couple of weekends, the weather has been pretty dire over the past weekend, and the weekend before that was quite good but was dogged with Christmas shopping. Would have much rather have been on top of Kithurst Hill (where the photo was taken) in the icy air looking out over the Downs and Chanctonbury Ring but alas... I'm hoping this weekend I will get a chance to do this with my Mamiya, which I have loaded up with some Delta 100 for a different look to a high speed traditional emulsion.

As for those who asked for more, I might just post another in a moment. At least browsing RFF is cheering me up today and giving me something to do! (not been very well! ugh)
 
absolutely beautiful photograph. has almost a platinotype feel to it. would like to see this on fibre based paper. good work.

you are to be commended on your 100 mile trek. congrats.
 
I'd like to see this shot with a 6x6 camera. I think the same spot with a square format would produce a stronger photo. The space on the left seems awkward to me, making the photo look more like an object than a window to me.
 
35mmdelux said:
absolutely beautiful photograph. has almost a platinotype feel to it. would like to see this on fibre based paper. good work.

you are to be commended on your 100 mile trek. congrats.
Click to expand...

Aww thanks, that is super nice of you. I have this printed now on Ilford Multigrade FB, 11x14" -- it is sitting very proudly on my living room wall! I'm thinking of doing a warmtone print as this tone really seems to suit is. (That wonderful sense of golden summer evening sun)

I'll be adding more to this collection over time and have fresh material from when I walk the North Downs Way this spring (132 miles that one!)
 
Fred Burton said:
I'd like to see this shot with a 6x6 camera. I think the same spot with a square format would produce a stronger photo. The space on the left seems awkward to me, making the photo look more like an object than a window to me.
Click to expand...

I have been meaning to shoot this for some weeks now but illness has precluded me from doing so. I have a Mamiya C330 so 6x6 of this will be done. I'm inclined to leave it until spring comes along and there is some vegetation in the fields again as it could look somewhat barren at the moment!
 
I for one would like to see some burning in of the sky, perhaps about 25-30%. It would certainly make the clouds stand out.

I like the composition (the 50/50 split doesn't bother me) and the deep tones of the hills.
 
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