LPS #3: Irregular attempt

richtersl

Made a few attempts today at something irregular. I was wondering what you all think of these two. It's the same tree, just photographed from two different angles:


#1




#2



Not sure which one I prefer or if this concept even works.

Nikolai

Linda,

richtersl wrote:

Made a few attempts today at something irregular. I was wondering what you all think of these two. It's the same tree, just photographed from two different angles:
#1
#2
Not sure which one I prefer or if this concept even works.

I like #2 more, but it still does not look ready, more like a raw food, needs some cooking done:-)

Thanks for the GG advise, mebbe you wanna try your own medicine?

richtersl

Nikolai wrote:

I like #2 more, but it still does not look ready, more like a raw food, needs some cooking done:-)

Thanks for the GG advise, mebbe you wanna try your own medicine?

O...I guess I'll be playing around today!

richtersl

I did some playing around today with adding some Gaussian blur to the photos. Even tried them in color, which did not seem to work as well as the B&W.

Here's a rework of #1





And #2



Worst case scenario is that I go out and shoot something different.

Nikolai

Linda,

richtersl wrote:

I did some playing around today with adding some Gaussian blur to the photos. Even tried them in color, which did not seem to work as well as the B&W.

Here's a rework of #1

And #2

Worst case scenario is that I go out and shoot something different.

I think I like the original versions better. Still, the contrast is a bit overwhelming.
Composition-wise, I see the maze of roots, but somehow I don't get the "focal point" if you will...

richtersl

Nikolai wrote:

I think I like the original versions better. Still, the contrast is a bit overwhelming.
Composition-wise, I see the maze of roots, but somehow I don't get the "focal point" if you will...

The roots lead to the tree trunk -- but the more I look at the photos the more the root system seems to blend in with the stones. They just don't stand out as much as I'd like them to.

I think I'm going to head back to the drawing board. nod

urbanaries

richtersl wrote:

I think I'm going to head back to the drawing board. nod

I actually like #1 for what its worth. The eye starts at the trunk and gets lost in the irregular tangle of roots. I like the gaussian blur one better than the original, but that's just me.

LiquidAir

I also like #1 better. I find that the base of the tree is a stronger center of interest in that shot. The Gaussian blur in you modified version helps the center of interest so in that sense it is good but, for my taste, it looks too processed in a shot which is all about the organic.

One thing you might try if you decide to reshoot is a touch of fill flash. Don't hit it too hard, just enough to bring the shadows a tad.

richtersl

urbanaries wrote:

I actually like #1 for what its worth. The eye starts at the trunk and gets lost in the irregular tangle of roots. I like the gaussian blur one better than the original, but that's just me.

Thanks so much for your feedback!

richtersl

LiquidAir wrote:

I also like #1 better. I find that the base of the tree is a stronger center of interest in that shot. The Gaussian blur in you modified version helps the center of interest so in that sense it is good but, for my taste, it looks too processed in a shot which is all about the organic.

One thing you might try if you decide to reshoot is a touch of fill flash. Don't hit it too hard, just enough to bring the shadows a tad.

Thanks for the feedback. I never thought to try a fill flash that day because the outdoor light was not too bad. That tree is not far from here and I'll have to try that the next time I get over there!

amy wilburn

like urbanaries I, too, like #1 after processing the best (but if you ever take a look at my photos you'll see I'm into heavier than usual processing so perhaps I'm not the best judge)

your rework of photo #1 actually makes me want to go out and gaussian blur things...I haven't really experimented much with that filter...I like that photo of yours a lot

richtersl

amy wilburn wrote:

like urbanaries I, too, like #1 after processing the best (but if you ever take a look at my photos you'll see I'm into heavier than usual processing so perhaps I'm not the best judge)

your rework of photo #1 actually makes me want to go out and gaussian blur things...I haven't really experimented much with that filter...I like that photo of yours a lot

Thanks for the feedback, Amy. I'm leaning toward #1 myself but I need to work on it a bit more.

Playing with Gaussian blur is fun! I think it would look really cool on some of your cemetery pictures.