Oh well...
I decided that the last edition is close enough so I posted it. I still have a couple of ideas I wanna try, but since there is no guarantee in this game I guess I better submit something now:-)
Thank you everybody for your help, I would not be able to make it to this state without it.
Thanks, man!
I'm so glad Ken caught that!
That's where the advantage of posting your entry in public for C&C really lies. I would definitely glaze over it myself. I really like the way we compete and help each other at the same time.
Good job Nik
Sorry, haven't been around at all much...been shooting my brains out (as promised) I really like this shot...cool stuff. Glad you got the whites balanced....kind of tricky on this one. Good luck buddy!
This image feels like you used Photoshop to accomplish what you couldn't get done with the camera. The idea of the conductor at the center of a bowl of performers is a good one, and with the right set-up and access, the image can be made in camera.
But here you have to resort to radial blur and selective color to get the effect you want. And my problem with it is that the heavy hand of Photoshop is really obvious and without it the image simply won't work. A beautiful woman uses makeup as an ehancement, not as the basis for her beauty.
Not trying to be unpleasant, Nik, I like your idea. Just expressing why I'm not crazy about how this turned out.
Sorry, haven't been around at all much...been shooting my brains out (as promised) I really like this shot...cool stuff. Glad you got the whites balanced....kind of tricky on this one. Good luck buddy!
Thanks! Same goes back to you, man!
I hear ya about "shooting the brains out". In fact, this darn LPS thing brought a whole new dimension to my life, which now has those all-important two-week cycles.
This image feels like you used Photoshop to accomplish what you couldn't get done with the camera. The idea of the conductor at the center of a bowl of performers is a good one, and with the right set-up and access, the image can be made in camera.
But here you have to resort to radial blur and selective color to get the effect you want. And my problem with it is that the heavy hand of Photoshop is really obvious and without it the image simply won't work. A beautiful woman uses makeup as an ehancement, not as the basis for her beauty.
Not trying to be unpleasant, Nik, I like your idea. Just expressing why I'm not crazy about how this turned out.
Thank you very much for your honest feedback, I do appreciate it!
As it's easy to see from the color "original" I posted earlier, the conductor blends into the the band. I wish it was some sort of the choir shot, where the performers usually wear matching dresses that are different from the conductor's. But it wasn't. It was what it was: high school band, all dressed in black and white, located 200+ ft away from me and 20-30 ft below me, with a miserable lighting (the 4.0-5.6 lens and the sheer distance prevented me from creating that paper-thin DOF that would isolate the conductor from the band in camera )
Yet I still liked the expression of the cue.
For me, at the moment I took the picture, only The Conductor existed. You know of course about the human vision's ability to concentrate on a small area out of the whole picture. Sometimes it's called "tunnel vision". I'm not saying that I was under a lot of stress at the moment, but I was only looking at him. Yet the darn camera recorded everything...
So, what were my choices? One was to abandon the shot altogether. I thought that I will always have that option, so I tried to make something out of it.
Since the band was already wearing mostly black and white, the B/W treatment seemed like a natural first step. Of course, it blended the target even more, so adding the mask and restoring the his original colored state was the natural step #2.
As far as B/W itself was already a heavy sign of a PS present (I mean - who here thinks we see in B/W?;-), I had no reservations about using whatever tools necessary to recreate what *I* saw, despite what *my camera* thought of it.
I have been accused of being too subtle before (hi, Elaine :-), so in this case I have decided that there is no such thing as "partially pregnant", and if I want to bring the attention to the man up front I should "leave no viewer behind" . Radial blur added the exact "tunnel vision" effect I was referring to earlier. The rest was minor fixes and touches, basically removing all the minor distractions that could deflect the audience from my preferred first focal point (and I'm so thankful to the gang here for pointing them to me ), be it too bright shirts on the top row or a baton going into his ear.
Bottom line: is is a perfect shot of all times? No. Yet at this point I don't have a better one. I will still try, since it's only a Saturday, but time is closing up fast. But, by any means, I'm very glad I took it, I'm satisfied with the treatment and it will definitely go to my "Best Of..." series.
Whether it will win or not is now utterly unimportant...
Once again, thank you very much for your time and honesty. I may not necessarily agree with you, but I always appreciate and respect your opinion.
I really like the way we compete and help each other at the same time.
As I read through this and the other SF1 threads full of C&C, frank opinions, and encouragement for the temporarily discouraged, I am totally awed by the unselfish help that the competitors are giving each other. What a great group of people.
Virginia
_______________________________________________ "A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you, the less you know." Diane Arbus
As I read through this and the other SF1 threads full of C&C, frank opinions, and encouragement for the temporarily discouraged, I am totally awed by the unselfish help that the competitors are giving each other. What a great group of people.
Virginia
Couldn't agree with you more. It's this professionalisn and openness that's made this most competition most enjoyable.
Comments
Thanks man!
Nice...
I decided that the last edition is close enough so I posted it. I still have a couple of ideas I wanna try, but since there is no guarantee in this game I guess I better submit something now:-)
Thank you everybody for your help, I would not be able to make it to this state without it.
how late you up? I need input!!!
Tessa
www.tessa-hd.smugmug.com
www.printandportfolio.com
This summer's wilderness photography project: www.tessa-hd.smugmug.com/gallery/3172341
Tessa
www.tessa-hd.smugmug.com
www.printandportfolio.com
This summer's wilderness photography project: www.tessa-hd.smugmug.com/gallery/3172341
http://lrichters.smugmug.com
Thanks!
pyroPrints.com/5819572 The Photo Section
I'm so glad Ken caught that!
That's where the advantage of posting your entry in public for C&C really lies. I would definitely glaze over it myself. I really like the way we compete and help each other at the same time.
Sorry, haven't been around at all much...been shooting my brains out (as promised)
NAPP Member | Canon Shooter
Weddings/Portraits and anything else that catches my eye.
www.daveswartz.com
Model Mayhem site http://www.modelmayhem.com/686552
Looks like I'm going to be the one.
This image feels like you used Photoshop to accomplish what you couldn't get done with the camera. The idea of the conductor at the center of a bowl of performers is a good one, and with the right set-up and access, the image can be made in camera.
But here you have to resort to radial blur and selective color to get the effect you want. And my problem with it is that the heavy hand of Photoshop is really obvious and without it the image simply won't work. A beautiful woman uses makeup as an ehancement, not as the basis for her beauty.
Not trying to be unpleasant, Nik, I like your idea. Just expressing why I'm not crazy about how this turned out.
Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam
http://www.mcneel.com/users/jb/foghorn/ill_shut_up.au
Thanks!
I hear ya about "shooting the brains out". In fact, this darn LPS thing brought a whole new dimension to my life, which now has those all-important two-week cycles.
Thank you very much for your honest feedback, I do appreciate it!
As it's easy to see from the color "original" I posted earlier, the conductor blends into the the band. I wish it was some sort of the choir shot, where the performers usually wear matching dresses that are different from the conductor's. But it wasn't. It was what it was: high school band, all dressed in black and white, located 200+ ft away from me and 20-30 ft below me, with a miserable lighting (the 4.0-5.6 lens and the sheer distance prevented me from creating that paper-thin DOF that would isolate the conductor from the band in camera
Yet I still liked the expression of the cue.
For me, at the moment I took the picture, only The Conductor existed. You know of course about the human vision's ability to concentrate on a small area out of the whole picture. Sometimes it's called "tunnel vision". I'm not saying that I was under a lot of stress at the moment, but I was only looking at him. Yet the darn camera recorded everything...
So, what were my choices? One was to abandon the shot altogether. I thought that I will always have that option, so I tried to make something out of it.
Since the band was already wearing mostly black and white, the B/W treatment seemed like a natural first step. Of course, it blended the target even more, so adding the mask and restoring the his original colored state was the natural step #2.
As far as B/W itself was already a heavy sign of a PS present (I mean - who here thinks we see in B/W?;-), I had no reservations about using whatever tools necessary to recreate what *I* saw, despite what *my camera* thought of it.
I have been accused of being too subtle before (hi, Elaine
Bottom line: is is a perfect shot of all times? No. Yet at this point I don't have a better one. I will still try, since it's only a Saturday, but time is closing up fast. But, by any means, I'm very glad I took it, I'm satisfied with the treatment and it will definitely go to my "Best Of..." series.
Whether it will win or not is now utterly unimportant...
Once again, thank you very much for your time and honesty. I may not necessarily agree with you, but I always appreciate and respect your opinion.
As I read through this and the other SF1 threads full of C&C, frank opinions, and encouragement for the temporarily discouraged, I am totally awed by the unselfish help that the competitors are giving each other. What a great group of people.
Virginia
"A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you, the less you know." Diane Arbus
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Couldn't agree with you more. It's this professionalisn and openness that's made this most competition most enjoyable.
http://lrichters.smugmug.com
"You don't take a photograph, you make it." Ansel Adams.
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It has been one long week for me.
but now that I'm satisfied - I am taking some time to look around
Very nice Nik! I love your explanation of why you did what you did and how you overcame the obstacles.