>>> LPS#13 Feedback Thread

Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
edited October 13, 2007 in The Dgrin Challenges
I will be posting my feedback shortly. Most of the judges mentioned they had a very good time judging this round. I agree, the playfulness of using light or shadow made for some very nice work to view. A couple of judges found it very difficult to get their list down to only 10. So good work everybody :thumb
Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
"Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
«1

Comments

  • richterslrichtersl Registered Users Posts: 3,322 Major grins
    edited October 2, 2007
    I will be posting my feedback shortly. Most of the judges mentioned they had a very good time judging this round. I agree, the playfulness of using light or shadow made for some very nice work to view. A couple of judges found it very difficult to get their list down to only 10. So good work everybody thumb.gif
    Thanks for the update, Shay!

    For the unofficial feedback thread, it was also VERY tough to keep the list down to just 10. This was truly an exceptional round.
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 2, 2007
    I have a ton of processing I have to do, so I will be doing the feedback in stages, first stage post 2 - 20.

    2 - Povertybarn - Absolutely no idea
    I like the concept, (no light, no idea), and the cool color balance works well too. The framing seems odd though, not far enough in or far enough out and it feels like an oversight.


    3 - VisualXpressions - Safe Haven
    Same here, the colors and contrast look great along with that glint of light, but it isn't tight enough to exclude the house, and not far enough out to include it. So it feels like the house is intruding and it is there as an oversight.


    4 - MarkTodd - Sorcery 101
    Love the green, very wicked witch of the west feel to it ;-) But something about the hand doesn't feel right. Almost like the hand is going to grab the ball instead of twist it to perform some evil deed. More acting in the hand, more senister emotion.


    5 - rwells - Day's End...
    The viewer wants to dream the fire the cowboy is enjoying. Adding the campfire would have added the context needed to complete the story I think. I can just make out grass, so I don't think he is looking at a boiler or a house fire, I can only assume a camp fire. Add a few more visual elements to make it feel complete for the viewer.


    6 - mpaulie - Looking for the answers
    This has a nice ethereal and emotional feel to it for me. But something is just not clicking for me. It might be the lack of a face to help cement the emotion, maybe if the left hand were on the window instead it might read left to right and feel better, I don't know. I am really unsure what it is that is holding me back.


    7 - SciurusNiger - Evening Sentinel
    I like the sunbeam and it has potential if the squirrel were better placed in it, and the framing could use a bit more pizazz too. The head square in the middle leaves a lot of unused space that could be put to better use. Most of the left side of the frame doesn't add much to the photo.


    8 - MrsCue - "The Living Dead"
    The lighting is used well to get across a horror type look, but it just isn't grabbing me. Maybe I am reading the title too seriously, but I feel a disconnect and am not getting a good response to the parody.


    9 - jkenzie - Night Pool
    Beautiful! And I think I would love it even more if the image were panned down a bit to exclude the black top and include a bit more of the reflection below. Love the simple composition and that blue line. Gorgeous!


    10 - hurricanesteve - September Morning
    Very atmospheric, it is nice when the light has a medium to radiate through like this shot shows.


    11 - imax - Out Of The Shadows
    Very scary! I love the dense shadows here. So dense you could almost swim in it.


    12 - Travis - Cavalier
    Very pretty! I am surprised more lights are not on in the building. The moon is a nice touch and I appreciate seeing that detail. Could maybe use a bit more brightness, you don't want it looking like day, but giving the light a pinch more impact might help.


    13 - The Curious Camel - Lonely Rays
    Wow, the light here is really the subject, and the trees are just supporting props. Beautiful!


    14 - Strikeslip - Just another rock in space
    I am not really seeing the theme here. There is shadow, but it is so small, a closeup of the craters at the terminator would be highlighting the shadows wonderfully. And there is light, but it is pretty flat and surrounded by black and I just can't get a good feel for it one way or the other. Light as a subject is just not grabbing me even though light is needed in order to see the moon.


    15 - schmooo - Firestarter
    Love it!


    16 - quark - In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
    Very cool illustration. The amount of black space is appropriate here too since you are trying to get across the idea of a beginning. I like it.


    17 - Tentacion - It's A Small World....
    Beautiful scene. I am not seeing "light" as the light is pretty diffuse and does not stand out as lighting per se. And I am not picking up much of an idea of shadow either. Kind of a no mans land from a theme perspective. But the photo is pretty.


    18 - Nikolai - The path of the righteous man
    This is a great combination of themes for me. I get strong light and shadow messages from this photo, and they are both very complimentary to each other. Love the pattern repetition too. Beautiful!


    19 - pemmett - The mind of a child
    Try this as an option, crop the left side away and keep the right side and see what you think. The asymmetry I think helps the photo a lot. The double light bulb reflections look odd to me, and by cutting down the middle of the nose, you only include one light bulb which seems less artificial.


    20 - HarleyPugs - The Poker Player
    Some posing help here might, I hope, be beneficial. The right hand is cut off by the table, so having it rest on the table or even holding the drink would give it something to do. The ashtray could probably be assumed and not shown just for the sake of visual simplicity, or at least move it farther out of the frame so it takes up less space. And either load it with ashes or clean it out 100%. A hint of background might also help provide some visual separation between the shoulders and the background, it almost looks like a floating head and arms only ;-)

    More to come later...
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • pemmettpemmett Registered Users Posts: 507 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    19 - pemmett - The mind of a child
    Try this as an option, crop the left side away and keep the right side and see what you think. The asymmetry I think helps the photo a lot. The double light bulb reflections look odd to me, and by cutting down the middle of the nose, you only include one light bulb which seems less artificial.

    Shay, Thanks again for the great feedback. Is this the kind of crop you were referring too? Thanks.

    1475278268_116103035b_m.jpg
    "Take a moment to capture a memory that will last forever"
    My images | My blog | My free course
  • rwellsrwells Registered Users Posts: 6,084 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    5 - rwells - Day's End...
    The viewer wants to dream the fire the cowboy is enjoying. Adding the campfire would have added the context needed to complete the story I think. I can just make out grass, so I don't think he is looking at a boiler or a house fire, I can only assume a camp fire. Add a few more visual elements to make it feel complete for the viewer.

    Shay,

    Thank you for taking the time to post feedback on our photographs. It helps to see where and why the picture(s) come up short for the judges.

    In my case, I liked the photograph, but thought it lacked the "elements" to make it a solid entry. I really wanted a bedroll and the fire in the photo, but certain constraints didn't allow it. At least it did partially draw you in, just couldn't complete the sale...

    Sometimes you just gotta go with what you got rolleyes1.gif
    Randy
  • The Curious CamelThe Curious Camel Registered Users Posts: 943 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    Originally Posted by Shay Stephens
    13 - The Curious Camel - Lonely Rays
    Wow, the light here is really the subject, and the trees are just supporting props. Beautiful!


    Thank you, thank you, thank you, soooo many beautiful shots I wasn't sure if I'd make it in:D
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    pemmett wrote:
    Shay, Thanks again for the great feedback. Is this the kind of crop you were referring too? Thanks.

    1475278268_116103035b_m.jpg

    Ya, that is what I was thinking. But, what do you think? How do you feel about the photo pre and post crop? Would you do something different?
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • richterslrichtersl Registered Users Posts: 3,322 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    pemmett wrote:
    Shay, Thanks again for the great feedback. Is this the kind of crop you were referring too? Thanks.

    1475278268_116103035b_m.jpg

    I love that crop! thumb.gif
  • pemmettpemmett Registered Users Posts: 507 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    Ya, that is what I was thinking. But, what do you think? How do you feel about the photo pre and post crop? Would you do something different?

    Thank you so much for your input, it's really helpfulbowdown.gifbow

    I had toyed with this crop before which i really like, but I fell in to the trap of loving my daughter's face too much :D I think that this kind of crop really works well on close ups of faces.

    I had also tried this close crop
    1435128359_f14b57bd61_m.jpg

    which I also liked as it felt that she was almost trying to peek out of the photo.

    In the end I probably could have done anything and I would have liked the result, which is probably not what I should be aiming for. How would you suggest I approach this situation? Don't take pictures of the family for the LPS? Get others input when using a family shot?headscratch.gif

    Cheers/Peter
    (From a very wet Philippines)
    "Take a moment to capture a memory that will last forever"
    My images | My blog | My free course
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    pemmett wrote:
    In the end I probably could have done anything and I would have liked the result, which is probably not what I should be aiming for. How would you suggest I approach this situation? Don't take pictures of the family for the LPS? Get others input when using a family shot?headscratch.gif

    Learning self critique can be a big help. Sit back and critique the photo. What message is it communicating as opposed to what you want it to convey? When you can begin treating the photo as tool of communication, it helps to disassociate you from the personal attachment.

    Sometimes just accepting the photo as a base and seeing where else you can take it helps too. Exploring the bounds of what the photo can convey can help you zero in on its strengths and weaknesses because you are actively looking for them. Even if you wind up not using any of the alternatives, you will have a better understanding of what the photo is actually doing and if that meshes with what you wanted or help you to reformulate the idea and reshoot a photo that communicates that idea stronger.

    Those are some ideas anyway that would still let you shoot family hehehe.
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • pemmettpemmett Registered Users Posts: 507 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    Those are some ideas anyway that would still let you shoot family hehehe.

    That's cruel rolleyes1.gifThanks again for the awesome feedback and the great job you do helping all of us out here. bowdown.gif
    "Take a moment to capture a memory that will last forever"
    My images | My blog | My free course
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    21 - Shamguess - Luna Park
    Beautiful night shot, I love when lights can be reflected in water. The composition feels off a bit to me. The dock may be doing it. It might be skewing the balance without anything to counter act it. An alternate possibility would be to shoot the same scene with the dock centered. Would it point to the ferris wheel? It's an idea.


    22 - ultravox - Go!
    I am reminded of the movie Abyss and that water creature thingy. Very nice and that little drop with the sparkle in it is cool too. I get strong ideas of shape, but I am not feeling light or shadow so much. Maybe if the light were more directional?


    23 - tsk1979 - Vibgyor
    Ahhhhh, peaceful and lovely. And the subject is light itself. Beautiful!


    24 - davev - Behind Door #1
    Wow! Those shadows are magnificent! And I love the inclusion of the figure climbing the stairs. Marvey!


    25 - RogersDA - Facing the Day
    There is a lot of light, but maybe too much to the point where it swamps out the message. Like when the volume on a radio is too high and the melody is lost.


    26 - photoj - Little White Church
    I have to admit, I don't understand the photo. I see the light beams in the back hitting a wall and a shadow across the model, but I don't know why the model is there or what it is sitting on. Is it a bench, a porch? It looks small, but how small? The top of the steeple is cut off. Is that an oversight? Is the church model a toy or part of something larger like a play set or is it a souvenir from a trip? I don't understand, and so I just go to the next photo.


    27 - Mitchell - Garage portrait au natural
    Beautiful portrait. Diffused loop lighting is very attractive, but for me at least it doesn't hit the theme button strongly enough for me to see the lighting over the subject. But great portrait!


    28 - Greensquared - Night Vision
    This is wicked cool as they say in Boston. It reminds me of a pandoras box scene or something. Could maybe use a touch more contrast to darken shadows, but that would probably depend on the photos usage too.


    29 - pkramone - Lost Religion
    A bit too symmetrical? I could see a vertical crop that cuts out the left up to and including the shutters. But the title has me confused as to the subject. Does the title imply the viewer has lost their religion or that the subject in the photo has lost it or that this is the building of some long lost religion? I don't get it.


    30 - photogmomma - No running in the street!
    Sweet!


    31 - chertioga - compass
    I like that. The photo does rely pretty heavily on the title, so make sure it always accompanies it. And I like the crop, very complimentary to the subjects length. They work great together.


    32 - hamster - A Rough Night
    The left side of the frame is drawing the photo down for me and diluting the impact of the fallen cart. A vertical crop might get the message across stronger. The sickly color cast is also effective I think.


    33 - ulrikft - Dawn at the shoreline
    Beautiful scene. The sky is not doing much to enhance the scene though. So you might consider a 10:4 pano crop to tighten it up and focus attention on those beautiful rocks and water and the small amount of sky that looks interesting.


    34 - Rockporters - Nature Remembers
    Nice shadow. The full width of the grave marker feels too much, a crop to cut into the right side of it puts more emphasis on the shadow of the flower and down plays the marker just enough to swap attention more to the flower shadow for me.


    35 - ifocus - The rise of the Urubu
    Sweet! The shadows on the birds make them look extra menacing.


    36 - JohnTheBear - Entrance to the DuPont Metro Station, Washington, DC
    I am not too sure what is not working here for me. It might be just that the transition from light to shadow is so abrupt, from pure white to low detail shadow, so most of the photo is not readily discernible. I mean I see the escalator, and I know exactly what I am looking at, but there is just something that is just not clicking and I can't put my finger on it.


    37 - sherstone - 120
    Simple and elegant, almost abstract. I like it.


    38 - fashiznitsngrins - Eureka!
    I like the idea and execution aside from one thing, the face is not believable. If you could have gotten an expression that looked like real inspiration I think this would have worked much better. Maybe even not looking at the camera, but that depends on the usage for the photo too I think. Now that I think about it, the bulb looks screwed into the head. So maybe a bit of separation also might help.


    39 - samsplace - Reflections
    Deeper water might make the water darker and the reflections more pronounced. They are a little weak here to carry the show. And while it takes light to see a shadow, it doesn't really say light to me as far as the theme goes.


    40 - Nomanizan - The Peace Keeper
    The lighting is very cool and the shadow across the face is quite dramatic. But the image quality is really terrible with the streaks and blotches. If you could clean that up or use a photo that had a better exposure it would help the photo a lot.


    41 - pyroPrints.com - Night and Day
    I am not really getting the photo, so please excuse the following brain storm. If I were to try and guess what you where trying to do, use the stem to divide between light and dark, it isn't working so well for me as the stem has just fallen into darkness. But I see another option that may be close, that is putting the stem in the darkness and the leaf in the light, so you would have a transition of thin stem to exploding leaf once it hits the light. Maybe on an alien planet or something I don't know.


    42 - kisi - sunset in the city
    I like that you included some ground in the shot. But that reflecting water is really nice and if possible, seeing more of it might help to balance the sky a bit more. And when it comes to sunsets, don't be afraid to pump the colors a bit. Putting some zaz into a sunset seems appropriate.


    43 - Jzazzi - Six Thirty
    Beautiful!


    44 - DaveK - Waiting
    I am not seeing the light or shadow theme here much. I do like the crop though, it looks great with the subject and the stairs. Maybe the over-bright look is making me loose the theme. Too much of a good thing?


    45 - HiSPL - Grupo Estrella, Cumbia!
    I see both themes here, but in diluted form. If you could single out one or the other it might be a stronger match to the theme. A silhouetted figure with a touch of rim lighting, or the performer enveloped by light and fog machine.


    46 - Leonardo - darkness for the cure
    I don't understand the title or the relation of the medicine to the other items, so I am handicapped here a bit. I like the composition and the B&W treatment. The whole piece has a bit of a surreal feel to it, probably because I don't understand it. Very attractive and well balanced.


    47 - richtersl - Beacon of Resurrection
    Awesome!


    48 - dlscott56 - Glass
    Very nice, maybe a bit too reflection feeling, but the stark shadows put it over the top to be relevant for me. Nice.


    49 - bfjr - Come up to My Lair
    A riot of detail, but the shadows do help define the scene. Those stepping shadows across the stairs are very interesting too, I am trying to figure out how they are made and come up short. The lighting here is very mysterious. I like that. Almost disorienting.


    50 - Llywellyn - Vacancy
    I like the angle and composition. Is it just me or is it too dark though? That may be intentional, but I keep trying to find a brighter angle to view the photo.

    More to come later
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • sherstonesherstone Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 2,356 Major grins
    edited October 3, 2007
    37 - sherstone - 120
    Simple and elegant, almost abstract. I like it.

    Thank you very much Shay!


    I must take this opportunity to say something about your avatar.
    Every time I see that laughing face of yours, I cannot help but see a fuzzy cat paw tickling you under your chin. Almost like Garfield (the cartoon cat), trying to make you laugh. Squint if you do not see it.

    I know its just the way the background is but you know what it's like once you get an image in your brain. mwink.gif
  • NomanizanNomanizan Registered Users Posts: 8 Beginner grinner
    edited October 4, 2007
    40 - Nomanizan - The Peace Keeper
    The lighting is very cool and the shadow across the face is quite dramatic. But the image quality is really terrible with the streaks and blotches. If you could clean that up or use a photo that had a better exposure it would help the photo a lot.

    Gah! I over processed the image...
    203854908-M.jpg203851533-M.jpg
    Hmmm still grainy...

    This would have been a better choice:
    203855946-M.jpg

    Thanks for the feedback! Congrats to the LPS#13 Semifinalists!! thumb.gif

    Rob
  • JzazziJzazzi Registered Users Posts: 111 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    43 - Jzazzi - Six Thirty
    Beautiful!

    Considering you gave one-word replies to the photos I really enjoyed, I'll take that as a big compliment! And by the way, thanks for all your time on this contest, I'm really having a blast.
    42 - kisi - sunset in the city
    I like that you included some ground in the shot. But that reflecting water is really nice and if possible, seeing more of it might help to balance the sky a bit more. And when it comes to sunsets, don't be afraid to pump the colors a bit. Putting some zaz into a sunset seems appropriate.

    By steepening the B curve in LAB, I was able to push a lot of color into the yellow sunrise and blue sky in my photo, Six Thirty (the original looked much more grey and un-interesting). Sunrises and sunsets are fun.

    I was trying to capture an image very similar to yours kisi with the San Francisco skyline at sunrise, but couldn't quite make it happen. I enjoy your execution.
  • richterslrichtersl Registered Users Posts: 3,322 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    47 - richtersl - Beacon of Resurrection
    Awesome!

    Thanks! iloveyou.gif That single-word feedback means a lot to me.
  • LlywellynLlywellyn Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 3,186 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    50 - Llywellyn - Vacancy
    I like the angle and composition. Is it just me or is it too dark though? That may be intentional, but I keep trying to find a brighter angle to view the photo.

    Hm, can one get away with telling Shay, "it's just you?" :D Thank you so much for the feedback! Setting aside the fact that my personal taste does run toward darker pictures, I did play with this a bit to see it lighter and darker, but too bright removed the glow of the spotlight on the bench seat (made it too much a general wash of light). Too dark lost it altogether. So I ended up close to the actual exposure I shot it at. mwink.gif

    Thanks again for all the time and effort you give here. You rock. thumb.gif Come back to DC so you can convince me wedding photography isn't evil and frightening.
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    Llywellyn wrote:
    Hm, can one get away with telling Shay, "it's just you?" :D

    Yes, absolutely. I am just a guy who says stuff about photos every once in a while. I figured the darkness was probably intentional since the rest of the photo was carefully composed and such. I just kept trying to see a bit more, so I figured I would mention that. But there is no obligation on anyones part to take anything I say with more than a grain of salt of they don't agree and want to do their own thing mwink.gif
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • HarleyPugsHarleyPugs Registered Users Posts: 106 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007

    20 - HarleyPugs - The Poker Player
    Some posing help here might, I hope, be beneficial. The right hand is cut off by the table, so having it rest on the table or even holding the drink would give it something to do. The ashtray could probably be assumed and not shown just for the sake of visual simplicity, or at least move it farther out of the frame so it takes up less space. And either load it with ashes or clean it out 100%. A hint of background might also help provide some visual separation between the shoulders and the background, it almost looks like a floating head and arms only ;-)

    More to come later...

    Thanks! All very good suggestions. I have to admit this wasn't a planned keeper...it was more of a test to see if my lighting was the way I wanted it. The shot after this one was the planned keeper...and I really "smoked" it up and made the shot look murky and out of focus. The other one had me holding the cards I believe. I was really going for a back room, dark, dingy poker setting. I think I achieved the look I wanted so the posing tips are well received.

    Thanks for taking the time to do this.

    Jon
  • kisikisi Registered Users Posts: 83 Big grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    42 - kisi - sunset in the city
    I like that you included some ground in the shot. But that reflecting water is really nice and if possible, seeing more of it might help to balance the sky a bit more. And when it comes to sunsets, don't be afraid to pump the colors a bit. Putting some zaz into a sunset seems appropriate.

    thanks for the feedback, shay! it's really nice of you to do this thread and it is much appreciated. unfortunately that was pretty much all the water i could get... in fact i cloned in a bit more at the bottom to get rid of some buildings on the other side of the river rolleyes1.gif hehe. i did bump up the colors from the original but i tend to be conservative... good to know i can take it a bit further!

    also thanks jzazzi, i thought yours was beautiful and i liked the depth of composition. hmm those rocks look pretty craggy mwink.gif
    Kimberly Salem Photography
    food, portraits and weddings :D
  • dlscott56dlscott56 Registered Users Posts: 1,324 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    48 - dlscott56 - Glass
    Very nice, maybe a bit too reflection feeling, but the stark shadows put it over the top to be relevant for me. Nice.

    Thanks very much Shay.
  • samsplacesamsplace Registered Users Posts: 144 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    Review of #39 - Samsplace-Reflections
    39 - samsplace - Reflections
    Deeper water might make the water darker and the reflections more pronounced. They are a little weak here to carry the show. And while it takes light to see a shadow, it doesn't really say light to me as far as the theme goes.


    Thank You for your review of my work

    Gil
    Take Nothing But Memories:rofl
    Kill Nothing But Time :clap
    Leave Nothing But Footprints :thumb

    http://www.samsplacephotos.com
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    51 - Annie222 - Waiting for a breeze
    Beautiful photo, I like the full range of light to dark here and the partial amount of fluff. Very attractive.


    52 - LiquidAir - Hatch
    Feelings of Jurassic Park! Sweet!


    53 - DJTHEMAC - Red Rum
    I wonder what that would look like casting a shadow on the wall? It isn't hitting me for the theme, but the statue has potential. Maybe a small dim light on the left to help separate the left side of the statue with the background? Would that destroy the shadowy feel, I don't know.


    54 - swintonphoto - Morning Pawns
    I like the title, and the shadows, but maybe a bit closer to the subjects, the lower half can be removed and it looks a bit better to me. The main action seems to be coming from the repetition of the shadows rather than the length of the shadow from the post hiding the sun.


    55 - annnna8888 - Into the Sky
    I love the field of view, that is amazing. The shadows may be processed too much though. A little darker might give some added punch to an amazing vista. Dramatic complementing dramatic.


    56 - cdhames - Riyan and the Dark Tower
    Cool look. And she looks like a mannequin at first glance. It really makes you look twice. The angle and the light house are awesome too. The left side doesn't add anything for me. Might be great for copy, but for display it weakens the composition for me at least.


    57 - sunita - Fading iris
    I can' tell if the blotchiness is noise related or an art filter application. Perhaps at larger size it would be more apparent. The colors are very interesting though.


    58 - synature - Almost sunset
    Light filtering through leaves is an awesome sight. I don't think this photo does justice to it though. Maybe if the white balance were warmed up a bit and more contrast were added it would help, but it looks pretty weak as is. I know it can be tough with pocket cameras, but an image editor could help out here with only a few tweaks.


    59 - cmurph - Barn Nights
    Love the lighting. Looks like a classic photo of some champion horse from yesteryear :-)


    60 - NanaMo - Golden canopy
    Beautiful! And I love the color contrast of the blue against the yellow!


    61 - nelsonstuff - Guard the Dark
    Wow! Very bold. The blacks might be a bit too strong, but lovely none the less.


    62 - TPBinKC - Layers of interest in the night
    I may be suffering from contextitis. I am assuming this is the top of a building, but have no idea what type or where. The rest of the building might not have been lit enough to show, which the front railing suggests. But as nice as the lighting is on the tower thingy I can't really get excited. Kind of like seeing a photo of the back of someones head, they might be famous, or just Joe Blow. Their hair looks great, but who are they?


    63 - princess anna - elf Portrait
    Love the eyes. If only the hat could have gone a tad higher to hide the nostrils or a tad lower to show them more fully. Either way would work for me. Maybe a tad brighter? But I do love the soft lit look, so brighter might ruin that. Beautiful!


    64 - Thusie - Entranced
    I like the shimmer. The whole piece has an abstract look, but there is just enough in the background to hint at what this really is. The focus may be a tad off. I find myself wanting to look first at the second grass blade from the top and it is fully out of focus except down by the point where it disappears.


    65 - st33lz - Somewhere in between (Light & Shadow)
    Good combo of light and shadow feel. I see the wood cross is centered in the frame, but if possible, treat the shadow as an extended part of the subject and include it in your framing decision. A bit more to the right, if possible would have looked great...maybe, I wasn't there hehehe.


    66 - lynnesite - Ripple
    I like the idea of capturing the ripple "gleams" on the bottom, but they can't compete with the varied rocks. There is so much detail that the "gleams" for me get lost, so I see more of a texture of color theme than a light or shadow theme. Would have been awesome on a solid slate or shale or whatever that big flat rock stuff is.


    67 - jwear - Camping
    That could be in an REI catalog or something. Very inviting, homey even.


    68 - davalistudios - Lights ON!
    Ahhh, the ESB! Love the view!


    69 - Heather U-K - Shine
    Says more reflection to me than light or shadow. And speaking of reflection, watch for self reflections when shooting shiny stuff ;-)


    70 - zweiblumen - Big Sky Country
    I love the sun gleaming out behind the post, and the view is great too. The mountain does feel a little blocked, but at that time of day there isn't much you can probably do.



    I should finish the last 20 tomorrow.
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
  • GreensquaredGreensquared Registered Users Posts: 2,115 Major grins
    edited October 4, 2007
    Shay,

    Thank you so much for all the hard work you put into feedback. It is truly appreciated!

    Emily
    Emily
    Psalm 62:5-6

  • jwearjwear Registered Users Posts: 8,005 Major grins
    edited October 5, 2007
    67 - jwear - Camping
    That could be in an REI catalog or something. Very inviting, homey even.
    but were did you think i got the shot ?? no really thanks Shay for the time and effort you devote to the game I was proud to place 32 in this round
    Jeff W

    “PHOTOGRAPHY IS THE ‘JAZZ’ FOR THE EYES…”

    http://jwear.smugmug.com/
  • TPBinKCTPBinKC Registered Users Posts: 194 Major grins
    edited October 5, 2007
    62 - TPBinKC - Layers of interest in the night
    I may be suffering from contextitis. I am assuming this is the top of a building, but have no idea what type or where. The rest of the building might not have been lit enough to show, which the front railing suggests. But as nice as the lighting is on the tower thingy I can't really get excited. Kind of like seeing a photo of the back of someones head, they might be famous, or just Joe Blow. Their hair looks great, but who are they?

    I think you are correct about the context of the tower. When I was wondering around after midnight it seemed to really stand out. In contrast to the other buildings and the surroundings, it was pretty and drew your eye to it. But afterwards, looking at the photo itself, it is rather.... blah.

    I will have to keep that in mind while I am taking the photo. This one did not tell a story as much as take a picture to remind me of how it looked.

    I was never really happy with this shot but I wanted to keep entering the contest. Even if I do not have a shot that is capable of winning, I like the feedback and the thought-stimulating themes and conversations here. I am glad I found this place.

    Thank you (and everyone) again for taking the time to provide your feedback.

    Thad
  • RockportersRockporters Registered Users Posts: 225 Major grins
    edited October 5, 2007
    34 - Rockporters - Nature Remembers
    Nice shadow. The full width of the grave marker feels too much, a crop to cut into the right side of it puts more emphasis on the shadow of the flower and down plays the marker just enough to swap attention more to the flower shadow for me.


    Thank you for the feedback. I do need to work more on 'creative' cropping. You can't tell from my photo, but the stone actually leans a great deal, which would have helped highlight focus on the shadow I think. The sun was in a really good position for the shadow, but because of location/surroundings/angles it was difficult to escape my own shadow. I ended up shooting from a weird position and the stone looks much straighter than it is. In the end the shadow looked quite nice, but the overall picture didn't turn out 100% how I wanted.

    Thanks again for the feedback, and the effort you put into this contest, it is much appreciated!
    Beth

    Nikon D300
    Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8
    Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6
    Nikon 50mm f/1.8D


    [SIZE=-3]Mary Beth Glasmann Photography[/SIZE]
  • davalistudiosdavalistudios Registered Users Posts: 11 Big grins
    edited October 5, 2007
    Thank you, Shay, for your comments this round and last. Thank you for taking the time to critique all the photos. I did not realize that you did this for each photo and is an unexpected bonus for entering these contests. From the short time I have been here, I can see you put in a lot of time and effort around here and it is appreciated.
  • bfjrbfjr Registered Users Posts: 10,980 Major grins
    edited October 6, 2007
    49 - bfjr - Come up to My Lair
    A riot of detail, but the shadows do help define the scene. Those stepping shadows across the stairs are very interesting too, I am trying to figure out how they are made and come up short. The lighting here is very mysterious. I like that. Almost disorienting.

    Cool, shoulda had something going on at the top of the stairs maybe woulda had more of an impact.
  • NanaMoNanaMo Registered Users Posts: 189 Major grins
    edited October 7, 2007
    60 - NanaMo - Golden canopy
    Beautiful! And I love the color contrast of the blue against the yellow!


    Thank you so much Shay! bowdown.gifbowbowdown.gif

    Coming from New England which is a rainbow of colors in the fall to Colorado, I did not understand the excitement of the Aspen changing to yellow. Now having lived here for many years I can appreciate the beauty of the "Quaking Aspen" turning golden against the clear blue sky.

    The shadows the trees create and the light that creates them and the overall feeling may be regional. I hope when you were here for your seminar you had the chance to experience this beauty!

    Thanks for all your work, your critiques and interest in all of us who enter the contest. I know first hand from someone who attended your seminar.....that is SHAY! thumb.gif

    Maureen iloveyou.gif
  • Shay StephensShay Stephens Registered Users Posts: 3,165 Major grins
    edited October 12, 2007
    71 - hawkeye978 - Gone But Not Forgotten
    I like the contrast you have here of the cut branch and the live leaf shadow, and it works well with the title. The concept is good, but the execution is not working well for me. It might be the contrast is too high. It also seems like the composition is too cramped. You might not have had room to use a landscape orientation, but that is the orientation I want to see. The vertical feels like the left is cropped out too much. A third thought is the shadow might work better if it were not overlapping the branch so much.


    72 - stuffjunkie - Let It Play You!
    Cool idea! The shadow looks very artificial in places, so spending some time to make that looks as realistic as possible will make the impact much much greater. Love it though.


    73 - DI-Joe - On the Grain
    It looks like this is a macro of a staple in some type of wood. Assuming that is the case, the staple feels poorly focused. Perhaps the closest corner of the staple could be in focus, and that would still allow for the wood grain to show up, but it would give the eye a better target to land on. The left hand side of the photo is free of detail and could be easily removed without negatively impacting the photo. A vertical orientation might work here.


    74 - Paintdragon - LOVE FEST "Only in San Francisco"
    I like the centered composition, but you might consider a vertical orientation. The context of the people on the sides is good, but the guy gets a little lost. A vertically oriented crop puts the emphasis on the guy, especially if he remains centered.


    75 - Dizzy - Gelfling Quest
    Cool colors! The crop on the crystal is pretty close, so following that up with cropping into the shadow makes for consistent look. Consider a 2:3 crop from the top right corner to that little white point all by itself, just above that for the lower boundary as one possibility.


    76 - SunsetSailor - Perspective
    Sweet photo. That long tunnel looks great. The detail to the right of that last pylon though pulls the impact away though for me. A crop that reinforces the look of a single tunnel feels stronger to me. I also like cropping the right off to the second pylon in, the asymmetry looks cool.


    77 - vandana - "When you are gone.."
    I like your use of color here, and the photo tells a story. It might be cropped a bit too tight though or maybe a vertical orientation might help it, for me the impact of the photo does not seem to be where it was intended. It feels like something is missing, but I can't put my finger on it. Maybe the shadows or too dense? I like the overall dim look, but maybe a tad more detail in the shadow would help with context? Not sure. But I like it.


    78 - Red Dog - The Web
    The back lighting helps the webs show up well. It looks kind of junky, which can look interesting, but maybe zooming in on that part might help it look more interesting. Or maybe the union of web to tree, or the contrast of web to leaf. Not too sure, maybe there is just too much detail.


    79 - Eric&Susan - No 5 O'clock shadow here
    Cool sundial! The shadows around the sundial might be too dense to get a full flavored view of where this is. Great subject, just hard to see.


    80 - indiegirl - Harvest Sun
    Holy apple-roni!


    81 - kenlyne - Midnight Rain
    Sweet pixie-mercy!


    82 - binghott - Blonde Beauties
    Beautiful! Overexposed though, you could let the subjects be a bit darker and let that backlighting do it's thing with less competition. It looks overcranked. They are in shadow but they are nearly as bright as the back lighting which gives the eye a visual "hey something isn't right here" signal.


    83 - Felicia - Save Me
    I like your use of light here. Dark water is scary, and that feeling comes through here. Maybe a bit tight compositionally. Room for another hand that might come to the rescue might help. I think it works well with the title.


    84 - RBattis - Kansas Rain
    Beautiful shot. It does kind of compete with a reflection theme, but that ripple on the leaf is so nice to look at.


    85 - PaulThomasMcKee - untitled
    I like the simple idea here. The only problem for me is the left side looks too complicated for the right side. A nice simple elongated oval of light would have been great.


    86 - mwgrice - Park Bench
    Sweet shadowy goodness! Very nice. You might also consider a 10:4 pano crop as it fits very well with the composition.


    87 - Dee - The screaming match
    I can hear the ruckus! I like how they are moving into the shadow, but there doesn't seem to be a good theme match for me. More like an incidental match. I think what could have made it stronger, would be if somehow the lit bird were in front of a fully shadowed area. It is close here, but it isn't working for me fully.


    88 - HoofClix - 9:31 Pine Top.
    Love the action! The light is beautiful too. Almost abstract, I like it.


    89 - traunerk - Broken Dreams
    Beautiful setup. I don't know what the yellow thing is in the background, it is interesting, could be a laser blast in some kind of space concert hehehe. Maybe it is a line on the floor, or barrier tape.


    90 - drdane - Desert Morning glory
    Sweet morning-mercy!
    Creator of Dgrin's "Last Photographer Standing" contest
    "Failure is feedback. And feedback is the breakfast of champions." - fortune cookie
Sign In or Register to comment.