lokbaintan Floating Market scene

I have been in photography for 40+ years and this is the first time I've been inspired to comment on a photo. Simply remarkable!!!! Makes me utter the phrase

"I'm not worthy"! I'm still a diehard B/W person with a darkroom but this photo make me re-think my direction in the future! Thank you for sharing! JGS

I join those who have nothing but positive comments to make.
There's absolutely nothing to criticise for me.
I agree with the comparison to images of the Renaissance.
Rembrandt's magnificent paintings and warm colours come to mind.

Beautiful image !!! Well done.
Any more from the same photographer..

Ps.:
I also admire the expertise in the use of Photoshops's features!

A fantastic photograph but the photoshop spoils it for me. Too much shadow recovery, hdr, whatever it is, making the physics of the light unbelievable and the tonal changes, especially around the horizon, harsh and unnatural. A wonderful photograph though from a skilled photographer.

First of all I like to say Thank you for all the attention and comments. For me this site brings great apportunity to share with such wonderful photographers from all over the world. As my works will keep moving and producing photos of my home country (Indonesia) in the rich colour the art of Digital Imaging, I too expecting suporting comments and critics. Once again....thank you for appreciating my works

although this is a "beautiful" image it is way too perfect.... more like a highly idealized, staged Thomas Kincade painting or something... too much manipulation, over saturation and coloration in photoshop trying to emulate a painterly look for my taste...

It is a beauiful image but a very strong part of me wants it to be a painting and not a photograph.

A good painting/photograph whichever way you want to see it, but if it is supposed to be a documentary photograph, well then it is way out. A documentary should be as close to reality on the spot as possible. I can`t see that the photographer has said it to be documentary, so in that case, the "painted" photograph is very good. As a documentary photographer I personally do not like documentary photographs to be but documentary. Keep to tweaking for the art of it only.

It's a very nice and a very very good photo. Congratulations!!!!

When it comes to photographs of foreign climes, a good one (for me) draws me in and I see things that tell me a bit about the culture, the daily life, or some other facet of the region. The elements I see here are the market sellers, the potential customers in the boat at the back, the time of day (many Asian market are finished by late morning etc). But with this one, all that almost passes me by - its post processing has clearly been done with a great deal of care and skill, it is colourful and has high visual impact. But the downside is that that very intensity (for me) overrides the actual content.

A more documentary approach could have emphasised the boat at the back and hinted at a narrative - that is where the wares are, hopefully, going and that is why the market sellers get up at that time in the morning.

Overall I would hang that as (admittedly impressive) picture to hang as a centrepiece on a wall , but not as one to represent life in a different country. Horses for courses...

Although there was a negative comment somewhere (there always will be I suppose) I think your have found your stile. This is a nice piece of work and I can only say "Keep up". I like the most the fact that you have managed to give a big accent on the sky. This is a magnificent sky texture and you managed to preserve it. It is very hard to manipulate the picture without affecting the sky. I am envious (in a positive way of course). Great work!

One of the beauties of art, any art, is that we all have different perceptions of what we feel is aesthetically pleasing and what isn't. Over time, these tastes change, sophisticate and as we hope with all things, grow. So, when I read disparate comments regarding aesthetic qualities of an image, I might wince here or there, but no one can argue with opinion although one can hope for growth.

In the image here, let me say that I do actually like the underlying image and think that most of Randy's images are well seen. I don't totally agree with the color finishes he chooses, I feel that they have a great deal of curb appeal but not much sophistication, but that isn't my issue here. My issue here is technique and craftsmanship and what I have read over and over as praise for this element of the piece here. I am sorry, but that is where this image is a failure.

Craftsmanship is one of those things where little is really subjective. Hopefully some of these comments about technical perfection in the post processing work are really personal aesthetic reactions to the image and not actually technical comments. If this site is about learning and the POW the flagship, then there needs to be some serious introspection regarding this issue and what perfect technique is.

What I see here from the post processing point of view is very crude technique. This is how one would "sketch" in ideas of how they might want an image to appear, to get ideas before the serious work begins. There is absolutely no skill or finesse in what we see here, at least not in the more pronounced areas of the sky and foreground water. These adjustments, dare I say, are neanderthal in their application.

The most obvious issue is in the sky. Here there is almost a hard line where the brush applied the masked in the increased contrast and saturation that so many like. There appears to be no attempt here to unify the image and this is what I meant when I said "blanket" as it is so clearly defined. This is not good technique in any book, sorry! My attachment displays where this occurs with the red line in case it was missed. (As an aside, I am not so sure the bright sun would have been such an issue with many if it had been allowed to exist in a more natural sky--but I digress!)

The water is treated similarly, however, it is hidden a bit more because the change is not so dramatic as in the sky and the texture here provides a modicum of natural camouflage. But, again, very primitive technique. The black arrow points out an area where we can see an abrupt color change in the water very clearly and the red line where it follows along in this foreground.

Now you might say "I don't care, I still like it!". So be it, but don't call it good technique or perfect post processing because it doesn't even come close to such a claim.

Again, I am not criticizing Randy's ability to see, but I do believe that the skill with which he finishes images needs a lot of attention in the area of technique. Aesthetically, for me, I also hope that time will settle down the need to push things to create superficial visual impact and the post work will come more in line with the underlying beauty of the image.

wonderful work, looks likea painting, congratulations

wonderful work, looks likea painting, congratulations

I was in the far east, and have pictures of floating markets... this one is not so good. the color is not real. as a big enthusiast of Photoshop, i'm all for manipulating a shot, but not like this. it lacks contrast, and the "misty" background is strange. sorry.....

This is a perfect example of taking HDR to far.

I noticed the word "painting" in many posts, which hit home for me. Photography to me, is to capture the raw emotion of the shot, and HDR is OK depending on the shot, but here you have lost the "soul" of the photo.

Kind Regards,

Bryan J Zimmerman

../photodb/photo?photo_id=9802053&size=lg
thank you for all the criticism.
I was doing my preparations in the photos, in order to get results like what I imagined in my mind.
I'm sorry if for some people ( or maybe a lot of people ) this is a work that failed or not eligible to appear.
now I'll share the results of the direct raw photo I got from the camera. and I always take with jpeg files.
about the gaps in the sky and to much water in a foreground,i did it on purpose, because I want to be different with other photos.
I did not care about the law and regulations in photography ( because the knowledge I did not much ) and I really want results like that. once again I am very grateful for all the criticisms and suggestions, which certainly will be making me more advanced.
best Regards ... :)

Love the mother nature created the scene & you captured the essence friend. Congrats for such brilliant shot! 10/10

This is not a photograph any longer - it is digital art - beautiful digital art. If we call it photography, then we are calling all of the great photographers of the past and present frauds, which would be tragic indeed. Call this digital art and be done with it.

Beautiful photo. I was and I am still curious where was it done...which land. The most I like that happines and peace coming true, how these people do not have to mind their big noses or other bodycrops, they are just pure, you found the perfect distance-my opinion. Congratulations to have the best photo done of the first week of December!

Yes digital art. All of which seems so prevalent lately. I do think it is a fine image, but somewhere a line was crossed that I can no longer consider it a photo.

I think if you take the image 'without photoshop' and process teh sky in line with the POW, the the combination would be better.

First look was WOW! But on second look I really stopped to like it. It's over manipulated and over saturated for my taste. And this painting like and hdr like effect killed something what was a great photo once. Now it looks cliche for me.

hmmm.....i dont get it? why photographic people is so afraid of the digital imaging style?
Me myself a natural photography follower, but when it come to choices and style...I think people or Randy on this case are freely to interpret his mind onto anything.
Painting and photography are merely the same.....both using senses and eyes.....both need perspective and angle....
and before we upload our masterpiece, we all have a small check box on the left side...manipulated or not....
this masterpiece choose manipulated.....tough manipulated means (in my humble opinion) reduce or add new element so significant that changes the real essence of the photo it self....but i dont see any significant changes....if you look at the original photo....some leveling, sharpening with high pass and maybe a lil bit of burn and dodging....
for me....art is a free form.....that's why in photography there are many new category has born...we shud respect each category....because each has it own dificulty and i dunno know....it just....for me.....we dont judge on people masterpiece if we are not into it....
judging and critics are different thing......
but as for this photo.....i preferred Randy previous masterpiece.....the floating market with blue sky.....that's my fave!

I find it an interesting and pleasing image. I enjoyed the original without the color filtration even more. The one chosen reminds me of a print of turn of the 19th to 20th century painting, an idealized picture of mythical figures in a romantic glowing setting we used to have a print of on our wall. This work is better, but still reminds me of the idealized glow business... I sort of prefer the documentary look and the original makes a better slice of life. ( I have visited the floating markets of Thailand a long time ago. Life afloat). My eye wants to see the front boat on the left a little closer of course. Composition wise that would add more depth to the scene and would have been even nicer. A photo I would have been happy to show if it was my work. But of course, it is good to seek a different thought or two. Or even something to quibble about. That being the pastime of photographers. And even romantic painters. I wish you well, Randy. Not an everyday scene we get to see and I can appreciate it even with the personal" gloss" you added. Your privilege. aloha,gs

Perfect exposure Randy.The digital procedure gave very warm tones to this photo, a sight that you don't see every day.The whole scenery is unusual, full of life and human ingenuity.Best regards