Comment & Critique (Please!)

I'll do a short one.
Seagull: rule of thirds is ok but the problem is the seagull blends too much into the messy background. the eye does not immediately focus on the seagull because you have to search for it. A calmer background might have helped here. Just move a bit to the left. Also the colors are a bit muted

Wind: It does not do anything for me. I cannot see the wind. It's a stick with a rag tied to it. Black and white does not help it.

Typewriter: Has been done over and over. If you do something like this, make it stand out. Different perspective for example etc.

Hula: Probably the best one of the set.

Train: too much white and no point. what is it that the lines lead the viewer to? They all end in white. Might have a better effect if it would have been in color. Or make the sky angrier with some curves adjustment.

I think you are on a good track as all of them are sharp but I do think they still have a sort of "i want to make artsy pictures" quality to it. Keep at it and you will do just fine. '
I am not really trying to be mean either, just giving feedback. Black and white in itself is an art and it won't work for all images.

//F

I thought the Hula one was ace!

Okay, here's my take on the shots, FWIW:

Seagull: I quite like it, but I'd personally crop the sky a bit and crop the right side a bit. It would benefit from a bit more subject isolation, if you can open up the aperture on your lens. Second-best of the five.

Wind: I like it. It doesn't say much to me (and the lack of suggestion of movement of the rag certainly doesn't help the 'wind' concept), but I like the image anyway. Third-best of the five.

Typewriter: Yes, it's been done before, but it looks fine. I wouldn't look twice at it though, if that matters to you. Fourth-best of the five.

Hula: Nice. Best of the five.

Train: Really does nothing for me. I don't see any story, any beauty, anything interesting with the composition or geometry. Of course it may have been a really memorable event for you, in which case my opinion is meaningless.

--Jonathan.

My advise would be to push the scale toward interesting subjects (tell interesting stories with your images) instead of technique. It seems to me that you are trying too hard on composition and other techniques, and taking the fun out of the picture. When you have the time, watch the TV series (at PBS) of Art Wolf "Travels To The Edge," and notice how he approaches the subjects.

As others have said, technically well executed but a bit cliche in some cases.

But IMO this is not necessarily a bad thing. Frankly there is so much photography everywhere these days that it's hard to justifiably say that something isn't cliche. I think it really matters what the point of the pictures was. If it is just a remembrance of that day for yourself, it only really matters to you if you like the pictures or not. If you're trying to be the next up-and-coming photographer and this is your portfolio, these will fall far short of the mark.

Ruahrc

P.S. next time try to upload the images directly to the post so we don't have to follow links.

Ok so my two cents from a photography students pov.

Seagull: The rule of thirds is cliche at best, I think a tighter shot would give a better feel for the seagull. There is way too much negative space at the top ,and that's coming from someone that shoots with a good amount of dead space

Wind: This one is pretty nice, but what does it look like in color? Depending on the color of the fabric, it could look nice in color. As for a B&W you need much more depth in your colors, try the black and white adjustment in photoshop.

Typewriter: Very nice selective focus and the B&W is pretty nice with this one.

Hula: I love this one, the depth of field works great with this shot. The colors are also very nice in this image. It almost has a lomo feel too it.

Train: For this one you need more depth in your shadows and highlights. Right under the car there is no information so it just drops off. This could work better with hdr to pull out different tones.

All in all these are pretty good, the rule of thirds is played off a bit much, you don't need to exaggerate it so much. After looking at your other photos, you seem to need more dynamic range in some shots, I think you could come out with some stellar shots. Also try the B&W adjustments in photoshop, they are soooo amazing!! You have nice work, but you could have stellar work You also have amazing use of natural light!

p.s. added you as a contact, I wanna see more!