Fortnightly Challenge August 6 - 19 : Reflection

[8.33]

Not really much of a photographer, so forgive me if these are rather basic comments.

jji7skyline: Incredible colouration of the skyline - I didn't even realise it was the dome until I looked around the rest of it as I was so drawn to the clouds and the colours there.

gnd (building shot): I like the slightly bronzey colour of the glass in the building and the feel it gives.

gaswerks: Is that Lake Louise? (If so I love that place - constantly changing light and weather make it look different every time you look) Great colour of the water. And if I may borrow what phrasikleia was saying about lines in images I think it leads to that focal point in the distance. I also quite like the symmetry of the image.

TheReef: I like the second one you posted - the texture of the water in the wave is very pleasing, and adds a contrast to the stormier outlook further away.

avro7: I like the idea of what you are aiming for - just a shame, like you say, about the water. May be even too much ambient light? If it was darker there would be more colour and light reflecting off the water, which would probably also give it a good effect.

 

[Macman45]

Water Refections

Some Shots From a Very Old Fuji

Because it's such an old camera I wanted more contrast between the water and the trees...I was quite pleased with the swan though.

 

[Qwest905]

 

[Waybo]

What bothers me upfront is the plants sticking up in the foreground. They block some of the reflections of the sky in the water, and we don't see where they originate from. I realize there's not much you can do about them being there. Also I don't think the scene is all that interesting overall. There's nothing really there that says, "Hey, look at me!", at least not to me. I hope I'm not being too brutal.

I agree with Keleko. What would have made the picture a little better is if you could capture it with completely still water. This may not always be possible. However, if this site is readily available to you, seasonal change with leaf color would definitely boost the scene, so I'd give it a go and try again. If you do post it here let us see. This site is great for constructive criticism that helps us all continue to grow and improve as photographers, IMO.

I'll offer my two cents, for what it's worth. You were certainly shooting on a nice day--pretty, puffy clouds like that tend to look great in photos, especially when you have some water reflecting the sky. You also had a good instinct to include a foreground, middle ground, and background in your photo.

Here's how the photo "reads" pictorially: The eye is always drawn to light, so the sky here gets a lot of attention. The one reflected cloud stands out against the dark color of the water in the foreground, so it also draws attention. The strongest lines of the photo are the shorelines and tree lines, which all converge at the center of the photo (more or less), where we see some leafless trees and taller pines in the background. Since the 'lines' of the photo lead us to that point, it's where we expect to find some kind of visual pay-off, but we don't.

The strongest lines in your photo are these:

(I'm taking the liberty of drawing lines on your photo, but I will take the photo down immediately if you object.)

The lines you have indicated don't quite follow the really operative lines in the photo, and we don't find a subject or visual pay-off at any of their four intersections anyway. The Rule of Thirds (or perhaps better named the "Rule Against the Center") is a handy tool for positioning the point in your photo where the eye can 'land' between explorations of the frame. In this photo we don't have such a point, so the photo seems unresolved.

Using your photo with the lines of the thirds, I have indicated the four possible zones where we might expect to find the point of visual resolution:

(Again, please just let me know if you'd like me to remove the photo.)

So in a photo contest on the Rule of Thirds, one would expect the point of greatest interest to fall within one of these four zones (roughly, of course).

A few other notes: Keep in mind that branches jutting up in the foreground tend to look messy and amount to distractions, especially when they cross something we want to see (the reflected cloud, for example), and especially when they intersect with the very point to which the photo's main lines are leading us (the center, in this case).

So, to summarize... (you did say to be brutal! )...

1) The photo needs a stronger subject/point of visual resolution/home base for the eye

2) The lines of the photo lead us to the center, making the image rather static.

3) The branches in the foreground clutter up the image.

For what it's worth, I find these kinds of locations very difficult to photograph as landscapes because strong subjects are hard to come by, and it's usually difficult to get a clean shot without distracting branches getting in the way (you'd probably have to do some wading). They are, however, usually quite good for bird photos, so that's something you might try there if you live nearby.

So there you have it. Hope I've helped.

Waybo: I think your photo has a lot to offer, but comes off a bit flat for me. My comment is that there is a bit too much going on in the frame. Sky and trees use about the same % of the frame as the water does. I cropped it down a bit to see if that would help.

This is my take on the topic.

EXIF Summary: 1/200s f/6.3 ISO100 Tamron 28-75 f/2.8@28mm

Dale

Wow! I appreciate so many people taking so much time to help me. I asked for "brutal" and I meant it. I am trying to improve my skills and crave this kind of honest feedback, always!

Phrasikleia, please leave the images there. Others lurk, but don't post, and maybe they can learn by my mistakes. I know I learn by reading comment on others images.

As I start to look at this (once fantastic!) image through your eyes, I CAN see the flaws. I still like it though, but now recognize that it is my heart and emotions that are seeing it, rather than my eyes: I had just had a lovely lunch with my elderly Dad, the snow had just disappeared and it was the first day that really felt like spring.

Again, my friends, thank you for your help. And please feel free to be brutal, always, with me!

 

[avro707]

....

I really love that third image, with the snow and mountains, and the clear, but still reflective water in the foreground.

avro7: I like the idea of what you are aiming for - just a shame, like you say, about the water. May be even too much ambient light? If it was darker there would be more colour and light reflecting off the water, which would probably also give it a good effect.

Thanks! I've actually done that when it is darker - but it's not that easy:
http://reheatimages.smugmug.com/Civ...iation/16294363_Mfp6Q#1386847223_NM7rcBG-A-LB

When it gets darker, the ISO has to go up in order to maintain any semblance of reasonable shutter speeds. When you are maxed out at F/4.0 and huge ISO settings, and still have low shutter speeds - that's something crazy. I never get a chance where one of those planes stops in one place for long enough to do a long-exposure shot, and never ever with still water (since that area goes out onto the ocean). Either things are going 150kts or better, or moving slowly at erratic speeds (accelerating or slowing down) making panning really hard. I shouldn't complain though - I'm the only one out there taking photos at that time of night.

 

[mackmgg]

And I'll get one more in before this ends:

 

[sleepypanda]

 

[Designer Dale]

Nice to see so many great photos in the Challenge. Thanks to all the photographers who help make it happen.

On that note, the new Challenge topic is now up.

August 20 - September 2 : Topic is Water

Dale