Critique #7 (5p,1i/)

[remrf]

An interesting and (for me) more difficult series of photo's to critique in this group.

Ampguy: Good work imo. I like photo's such as this one. Photo's that draw the eye into the scene and deliver interesting detail as one travels through the image. A suggestion which has nothing to do with this photo would be to resize your images for threads such as this to 800x600 which fits nicely on my and probably other screens in full screen mode. As it is I am forced to view a much smaller image or enlarge it to a size that requires me to wander through small sections of the photo at a time thus losing the effect of the full image.
As to any suggestions for improvement of this effort I have little to say. The exposure seems perfect for a difficult scene to capture. The composition is all that I could wish for. The entire image is tilting slightly to the right which could be fixed in ps quickly as I doubt it was intentional.


Chuck A.: I had a hard time with this one as my tastes are apparently more plebian than some here on RF. I am not a fan of the school of photographic thought which encourages the photographer to shoot subjects in this manner. However as I looked at your photo for a while I could plainly see the skill required to make this photo. Strong compositional lines created by first the bike rack in the upper left. On to the centered "subject" and then continued by the brick work on the right. The exposure seems spot on although on my screen there is a small bit of burnout on the fender of the bike to the right. This could be merely in the translation to my screen however.

An obviously skilled effort by an equally skilled photographer. An excellent photograph though not one that rings my bell. To each his dagnab blue eyed own I say. My avatar is another example of personal taste. I like it just the way it is but when I first showed it to a friend he complained that I had cut off some of the motorcycle. I replied that I was the subject not the motorcycle and that I found the composition very balanced just the way it is. Different strokes.


Ray Pa: This is another photo that took me a while to get into and experience. My first two sessions of viewing it left me with little to say one way or another. However just now as I was reviewing the image yet again I got a different sense of it. This time I was getting a very droll sense of humor from the image. The sign on the wall states what can and cannot be done in the vicinity and I imagined the small print saying "and have a GOOD TIME, DAMN YOU"!

I have no suggestions for improvement. The exposure seems right, the framing seems fine and the subjects are where they should be imo. Good job.


ManGo: A detail rich image. Great tonal range and dof. The right moment. I am with whoever suggested cropping to feature the couple kissing. They almost get lost in the plethora of detail. The scene is also tilting to the right which would not be an issue in a tighter crop. Good eye for the decisive moment.

 

[RayPA]

An interesting and (for me) more difficult series of photo's to critique in this group.

Ampguy: Good work imo. I like photo's such as this one. Photo's that draw the eye into the scene and deliver interesting detail as one travels through the image. A suggestion which has nothing to do with this photo would be to resize your images for threads such as this to 800x600 which fits nicely on my and probably other screens in full screen mode. As it is I am forced to view a much smaller image or enlarge it to a size that requires me to wander through small sections of the photo at a time thus losing the effect of the full image.
As to any suggestions for improvement of this effort I have little to say. The exposure seems perfect for a difficult scene to capture. The composition is all that I could wish for. The entire image is tilting slightly to the right which could be fixed in ps quickly as I doubt it was intentioanal.

....

I agree with this Ted. Your images are coming in very big and require that I download and resize. 🙂


🙂

 

[ampguy]

Got it

Got it

I will upload future images for critiques at 800 x 600. Thanks.

I agree with this Ted. Your images are coming in very big and require that I download and resize. 🙂


🙂

 

[remrf]

Beautiful capture. The curves and tones are very nice. The image has a wonderfully calm, zen-like quality. I kind of want to see more of the bottom "loop," but more than that I think I'd like to see this in a fully square format. The right side doesn't do as much for me as the left side. I can see why you went this way. The image feels balalnced, but I think taking that little bit off to make the square would add even more calm and elegance and add to the abstractness, while not losing balance. The tint is fine for me, maybe a little lighter overall. All-in-all it's gorgeous and shows consideration and a professional touch. Excellent work!


.

Well thank you. Images such as this are probably an aquired taste. I was inspired by some macro-abstracts I had seen elsewhere online and wanted to try my hand at it. The subject is a 4" wide roll of backing paper from a long roll of lables folded in a flower like design if seen on end. Where each loops narrows just out of frame is the paper clip holding them together. As I recall I used a soft box and very low levels of flash together with a maglite and colored filters.

I tried your suggestion of the square crop and will have to live with it a while to see how I like it. Below are the others in the series.

 

[RayPA]

...

I tried your suggestion of the square crop and will have to live with it a while to see how I like it. Below are the others in the series.

Nice. Inspiring work. I've got to get back to trying some abstracts and macro work. Seeing these remind how much fun is was to spend the time shooting subject matter like this. One can get deep into the variations. The one on the far right is very similar to what I was suggesting for the image you submitted here. The orange-ish coloring is a nice variation.

🙂

 

[remrf]

I could only post three images per post or I would have included the new crop on the first image. Here it is

 

[RayPA]

I could only post three images per post or I would have included the new crop on the first image. Here it is

I kind of like that! It looks brighter, too. Both are good crops. 🙂 You have the makings of a nice series there!

.

 

[RayPA]

thanks for the critique everyone. These have been very enlightening, both the give and the receive. The image I posted was one that went through the gallery without a comment, and I was curious about the response here. I have a couple other shots from this location, but chose this one because I liked the calmness of the ocean. The other has some rougher surf behind it. I also tried a different angle. Thanks again!



ray


.

 

[ampguy]

some history of this place

some history of this place

for those unfamiliar with this place where I took this photo, it used to be an old movie theatre called the Varsity, built in the '20s, then the New Varsity with restauraunt in the patio, as well as the theatre, and was a popular hang out in the '70s when I was a teen and the '80s as well.

They had midnight movies on weekends (rocky horror with dressed up actors up front, jimi plays berkeley, etc.) as well as free music outside on many evenings with Tuck & Patti, Michael Hedges, and others. During the winter months they stayed open with electric heaters in the patio area.

Off and on in the '80s and '90s when I returned to the area after college, I lived in this town (Palo Alto, Calif.), and once worked across the street, and another time a couple of blocks away, and got to know the manager, and his mother, as well as their friend and regular musician Michael Hedges, a great guitarist and musician who later signed with Windham Hill, and had an untimely death in an auto accident in 1997.

In the mid '90s the New Varsity succumbed to the chain store forces and became a Borders. I still visit there and read magazines, but I wonder where kids go to now to hang out or take dates or to see great free music or $1 midnight movies. It's not this place anymore.

hexar af.



.

 

[Chuck A]

Are we waiting for man-go to post critiques? I think he is the only one left to post.

 

[RayPA]

Are we waiting for man-go to post critiques? I think he is the only one left to post.

Ooops, I think you're right! We went into discussion too early! 🙂


🙂

 

[Chuck A]

No problem. I didn't want to break the rules or anything. 😉 LOL

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

We're also waiting for him on Critique #8. He's across The Pond, so our schedules are off.

 

[Chuck A]

This image of the old bikes with rain fenders, and the angle they are to each other gives the feeling of friendship. Maybe a little corny, but it gives an impresion that 2 friends biked somewhere and locked up their bikes together or something while they went to study or shop or whatever. ...

That is the feeling I had when I first looked at the shot but I couldn't put it into words.I was searching for a name for this photo and "Friendship" is appropriate.

When taking photos I try not to overthink them. I generally go out and take photos of what I like. I find that my first shot in a place is most often my best so I don't spend alot of time framing or taking lots of different angles. If the first shot works, so be it. With this shot my trigger was no more complicated than the shiny fender and the black fender. I liked how they looked together. The rest of it fell into place when I framed.

I really wasn't interested in taking a photo of bikes. Just the shiny parts.😉 LOL. What can I say, I am just an uncomplicated guy.


Thanks for the critique.

 

[Chuck A]

Chuck, first of all, excellent presentation. The framing (and the duotone) works well. I want to get around to doing this too, especially now with these critique threads. It feels "finished."

I believe in presentation. How I present mywork is very important to me. I spend alot of time finding the right toning and framing for my photos.

I like the realist element in this shot--the idea that an important part of this composition is the fact that something exists outside the frame. I think we all tend to think of composition as "closed" and complete within the frame, and when we view images we are restricted to what we see and seldom think beyond the frame--outside the box, if you will (if any of that makes sense).

With me this aspect was subconcious. I look at a subject, evaluate the light and the moment, set my exposure, compose and shoot. All of this happens very quickly and much of it is not a conscious effort.

The result is a looser, less formal composition, but the informality is just as pleasing. I think you've got all the elements working here. I like the diagonal of the bikes and that you've worked the brickwork nicely into the composition. Although the bikes are centralized in the composition your viewpoint adds some dynamics. I'm tempted to trim a little off the left side just to move the bicycles over a little off center and to tighten up the composition, and maybe trim the top down, but again I think part of the appeal is the looseness. Great shot, great presentation. It's ready for the wall!

I really just look around the frame, make sure it looks right to me and shoot. I don't spend alot of time placing elements. Actually, I find that my photographs are better the less that I think about them. I find lots of great surprise in them and that is what makes photography interesting to me. If that makes any sense.

 

[RayPA]

I believe in presentation. How I present mywork is very important to me. I spend alot of time finding the right toning and framing for my photos.

With me this aspect was subconcious. I look at a subject, evaluate the light and the moment, set my exposure, compose and shoot. All of this happens very quickly and much of it is not a conscious effort.

I really just look around the frame, make sure it looks right to me and shoot. I don't spend alot of time placing elements. Actually, I find that my photographs are better the less that I think about them. I find lots of great surprise in them and that is what makes photography interesting to me. If that makes any sense.

Makes PLENTY of sense to me. This is one of the reasons why I love photography, the sense of discovery.


.

 

[Chuck A]

An interesting and (for me) more difficult series of photo's to critique in this group.

Chuck A.: I had a hard time with this one as my tastes are apparently more plebian than some here on RF. I am not a fan of the school of photographic thought which encourages the photographer to shoot subjects in this manner. However as I looked at your photo for a while I could plainly see the skill required to make this photo. Strong compositional lines created by first the bike rack in the upper left. On to the centered "subject" and then continued by the brick work on the right. The exposure seems spot on although on my screen there is a small bit of burnout on the fender of the bike to the right. This could be merely in the translation to my screen however.

An obviously skilled effort by an equally skilled photographer. An excellent photograph though not one that rings my bell. To each his dagnab blue eyed own I say. My avatar is another example of personal taste. I like it just the way it is but when I first showed it to a friend he complained that I had cut off some of the motorcycle. I replied that I was the subject not the motorcycle and that I found the composition very balanced just the way it is. Different strokes.

Even if it didn't suit you, I liked your critique. (especially the part about the skilled photographer...)😉 LOL. I also like the composition of your avatar. Interestingly done.

 

[Chuck A]

Makes PLENTY of sense to me. This is one of the reasons why I love photography, the sense of discovery.


.

Me Too! That is why I have the quote from Minor White in my signature.

 

[RayPA]

Me Too! That is why I have the quote from Minor White in my signature.

good one, and of course the Winogrand quote is a classic that I think about everytime I'm shooting and run out of film. I just put my head down and try not to look around, becuase I know I'll see something that I can't do a thing about! 🙄



.

 

[Chuck A]

Are we done with this thread?