Would love some imput on this image...

imonk

Hi grinners,

I'd like some input on this image. I'll post 2 versions of it. It was the only pic I decided to keep from a wee last minute shoot I did the other evening. It was a really nice night so I jumped in the car and headed out to the Forth Rail Bridge but when I got there it was getting cloudy. I tried a few shots and I liked this one, I tried to get the shells as foreground interest but they actually capture my interest slightly more than the bridge in this image

First colour then a contrasty B&W. I'd love to hear people's thoughts, whether it's a keeper or not! Be brutal.







Personally I like the B&W more and I'm thinking of trying to print an A4 proof of it on decent paper to see how it comes out.

Cheers
Ian

Jack'll do

Hi Ian
I prefer the color shot and think that you can overcome the tendancy to be drawn to the shells (and make the bridge more of the subject) by cropping out the large (closer) shells in the lower inch or so of the image.

colfragless

Color!!! All the way.....

Argos

I think I could go either way w.r.t. color vs. black and white. I have to agree, though, that the foreground shells draw *far* too much attention away from the bridge. Crop the bottom off, and either the color or b/w image would be good to print.

My $0.02,

Argos

Dogdots

I like the color and the shells are awesome. I've never seen so many

If it were my photo I would crop off some of the sky and make the photo more about the shells with the bridge as your background.

schmoo

I actually prefer the b/w. Great conversion and it really brings out the texture found in the sky and the rocks.

I am unsure if the rocks make the best possible foreground subject, however. I see where you were going with it but I find myself wishing there was something bigger and slightly less busy.

All the same it's a great shot.

Pezpix

I like the B&W a bit more but would love to see just a bit more contrast, especially on the shells. Good shot

Digital Illusions

Ian,<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>
Let me start by saying you have a great eye for this photo, I do like it. As to which is better, this is a tough decision for me, the shells bring a lot of color in the color version but I feel they bring a lot of texture in the b/w version. So it’s a toss up for me. It would all depend on what mood you want the photo to evoke.<o:p></o:p>
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Unfortunately, in both photos my eye is drawn to the bridge but not cause of the composition of the photo but rather for the glare or reflection on one of the girders. Was this a sun reflection? <img src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6029383/emoji/headscratch.gif&quot; border="0" alt="" > Personally I would not crop the shells because of this spot on the bridge. The shells will discract the viewer from the spot.
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Brian<o:p></o:p>

imonk

Thanks alot for the comments guys. I find that there's alot of different opinions on this image which is really interesting. I quite like the shells being dominant. I feel like they should be the main focus of the image, and the bridge is there to give them conext, which is of course the opposite way the bridge is usually used. The more I look at it the more I think the bridge isn't large enough or strong enough in the frame to carry the full visual weight. Does that make sense!?! lol.

Anyway, I appreciate everyone's opinions on this. Oh and Brian, that's not sunlight, unfortunately they are doing work on the bridge and that's covered scaffolding. It's a bit of a shame as it's been there for a couple of years now and I think it'll be there for a while longer.

If anyone is interested, the bridge was finished in 1890 and is one of the great bridges in the world. It's an amazing structure. Another thing to note is that it sits alongside the Forth ROAD Bridge which was only built in 1964 and is already showing signs of strain with a secondary bridge being planned to take some of the strain. The Rail Bridge is still used every day

Cheers
Ian

Digital Illusions

imonk wrote:

Anyway, I appreciate everyone's opinions on this. Oh and Brian, that's not sunlight, unfortunately they are doing work on the bridge and that's covered scaffolding. It's a bit of a shame as it's been there for a couple of years now and I think it'll be there for a while longer.

Cheers
Ian

Well poo, that does stink. Nonetheless thats a great photo!