Then a suggestion you shall have... Keep in mind when you're shooting night shots that the same principles apply as those taken in daylight. Most pictures benefit from a good sense of hierarchy, a certain 'logic' to the image that tells us where the primary point of interest lies. This point is often referred to as the "subject," but I find that term causes a lot of confusion because people often assume that the "subject" is what the photo is "about," which is not necessarily the case. Anyway, in addition to this primary point, there could also be secondary and tertiary ones (or more), but those should not compete with the main point of interest.
In your photo, the primary point is established pretty well: the closest window is the largest lit area and attracts the eye first. It's lacking a strong visual pay-off, however--the kind of interest or 'aha moment' that tells us why we should be looking there (as opposed to any of the other windows which appear to be identical). Then the repeating lights march the eye into the distance, where it finds the lit sign on the bridge. The lit sign is also quite large in the frame, has lots of texture, and even some red color. The sign is therefore competing for interest, even though it's up against the margin and extending out of the frame (which tells us that it's not supposed to be very important). So the sign also does not provide us with that sense of closure/discovery.
So: when you're out shooting night scenes, as you would with daylight scenes, ask yourself which point in the picture will be the anchor, the primary point of interest. If that point is getting the right kind of light and you can find a 'supportive' composition for it, then you're probably going to end up with a nicely resolved photograph.
I hope that makes sense!
The composition here seems a bit arbitrary to me, though. She's centered in the frame, and her head just touches that big, blank white area above her. I feel as though she should either overlap that white area by a lot or else it shouldn't be in the frame. Also, there is a fringe of foliage at the right that looks to be neither here nor there; I would just crop it out. Perhaps some portrait shooters here can offer their comments as well.
I'm with P in the nice light and models, I'm no portrait shooter but her expression and body language remind me of whenever I take a photo of a friend and they're giving me the "please no pictures now" look
It has a nice quality about it, and she really pops with the shallow DOF, MF film I'm assuming?
I do like the hair rim light, but I think her face and body is too dark. A reflector or fill flash to brighten her up would help her stand out even more. What I've been learning is that you should try to get the portrait subject to be about a stop or maybe 2 stops brighter than the background in an outdoor shooting situation. That is not a hard and fast rule, of course (nothing in photography is), but it's what I see done again and again.
I can see where doylem was coming from here...have you saved and re-saved this as a jpeg?
Jpeg is a 'lossy' format, every time you save it compresses and looses information, and you will begin to see artifcating (blocking of pixels)
If poss try to work in Raw,tiffs, dng's etc and keep files in those formats and only convert to Jpeg as a very last step, so you are saving as a jpeg only once...
Was at a reception in NE Connecticut last weekend . The small town where the event was held reminded me of the kind of place where Norman Rockwell would have painted .
Image
M9 , 35/2 , f11@1/1000 , iso 400
Thank you very much for your thoughtful and valued feedback Phrasikleia. Your comments do make a lot of sense...even more so when I digest this and look at your shot.
The gentle clouds seem to be embracing the jagged peak in a dance of sunlight. The cloud floating in the foreground actually appears to have a body with outstretched arms. Remarkable and definitely an 'aha moment' for me.
Thank you again.
This screams to be on some calendar somewhere in the world! Again, good things come to those who wait. I'm sure you camped out for this shot like you do for so many of your masterpieces.
Just amazing! Would love to take a shot like this and get a giant print for my wall! Do you display your own photos in your house?
Taken in the U.K. today.
Only the second time I've ever seen these.
That wouldn't happen to have been taken in Orange CT. Looks like where i grew up.
Holy smokes!!! The shots just around here just keep getting better and better. This is the best I have at this moment (trying to keep up)...
[url=http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8063/8188325286_c8e0a71923_c.jpg]Image[/url]
Clock Tower at Fire Hall 17 by Cheese&Apple on Flickr
I think that was at ISO100 actually. As I said, still learning the ins and outs of lighting, etc. The exposure was less than perfect and has already been doctored up a bit using Lightroom (WB mostly).
I still haven't figured out how to get those photos that "pop and sparkle" as you said.
Thanks for the input.
Also, LOVE your landscapes. I assume this is somewhere in the UK? Would love to visit that kind of countryside landscapes sometime...
That's a really nice comment, Doylem, thank you. You've described the mood I was in that day perfectly. I hadn't been out shooting for months, aside from a few doomed outings when the weather did not reveal the beauty of the places I visited. By the time I got to this gorge, I was feeling deflated, off my game, and exhausted from a long period of overwork. Then I got thrown this softball by nature: perfect, misty, autumn conditions for shooting the gorge--and not just for a moment but for five glorious hours. The only sounds were the rushing water and falling leaves, and perhaps a little humming sound of me coming out of my funk. I left the gorge that day feeling utterly refreshed. I wish it could be like that more often.
No, and I'm not quite sure why. I sell the photos and give them away to family and friends, but I never do anything with them for myself. I keep talking about hanging some, but I never do it. Does anyone else have this problem? Is it a fear of commitment?
Got it in one. Hasselblad 500c with a 350mm lens! It's my Dads old bosses, old camera left to him in his will and it seemed right to keep it in use!
I am not a fan of the pose in this shot either but it's one of the only ones I have managed to get in focus with the 350mm.