Abstract 289

Comment, ratings appreciated on abstract--thanks.

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Love the colors and light!

Love that red! An alternate crop for your consideration.

Just awesome.

I'm going to disagree with Laurie here and say my preferance is for having both sky and reflection. For me, the pier columns(?) become too monotonous without it. Interestingly enough, your shot also has two halves that are, of course, so similar yet sufficiently different. The rusty colours have quite an impact, also.

 

On second thought, the crop might work if there was just a sliver of red showing at the top, thereby shifting the black line to roughly the top third. Still like the full reflection, though.

Laurie nailed it.

 

As is, the eye goes to the brightest spot rather than moving alone the line of repetative elements and being rewarded with the discovery of the bottom right post reflection.

laurie did nail it, but it was too late at that point: cropping is a sin, framing is the virtue. i will also add that making this vetical is another step forward.

 

vuk.

Echoing some of the comments above, and chiming in with the cropping brigade, I would take the right-hand side of Laurie's crop.

 

The horizontal framing, once the higher triangles get removed, is somewhat oppressive and does not give the due relevance to Carl's well-spotted pole reflection.

 

Once you go vertical, everything seems to fall back into place!

Vuk, can you please elaborate further on your 'oppressive' comment. I ask because I shoot horizontal rhythm shots like this all the time and don't read them that way at all. What you're suggesting essentially emphasizes the symmetrical rather than rhythmic aspect of the image.

It's me who used the 'oppressive'...

 

The reason is simple: the pattern has a rythm, for sure, but this makes me go to the right and I am trapped into this horizontal motion. The reflection of the pole, which is delightful, does not fit into this motion. I know it is there but I am not drawn to it, therefore I am oppressed.

 

The way this might be compensated would be by a composition a bit more angled to the bottom, which keeps the original aspect ratio, and includes in the bottom left corner more reflection of the sky. This would then have a second *horizontal* rithm which also goes to the reflection of the pole.

I would agree that seeing more of the bottom would be an improvement, but I'm not clear about why you're trapped as it exists. Perhaps its the scale of the pole. I'm assuming that if you remove the pole and sky reflections entirely, leaving only the repeating elements, then the edges reflect the rhythm rather than trap it.

Clearly so, Carl. If you remove both the sky and the pole reflection, there is no trapping at all anymore and one does enjoy the rythm! The trapping came from knowing about the pole reflection and not finding a way to it.

Are you sure you want to remove both sky and reflection? I think the slight interruption to the pattern is quite necessary here. Without one or the other there is a strong tendency to simply zoom through or look over the photograph. The sense of rhythm is much stronger with the crop, but what makes the rhythm here overt are precicely these interruptions. I wonder how many musical/audio analogies one could apply to this.

Thanks for all of the comments about this photo.

 

Aaron, I prefer this as is, uncropped, but . . . I think the reflected pole is what make the image. If this is what I want to emphasize, Laurie's crop works wonders.

 

Vuk, I know your feelings about getting things framed right in camera--and I'm in full agreement with you on that. However, I must confess I'm no stranger to mortal sin.

 

Salvatore and Carl, thanks for your comments and I will take the opportunity in the near future to re-shoot. What I'm hearing in all of your comments, though you aren't actually saying it, is that I just didn't quite get it right: obviously, there must be a better way to compose this. I just need to wait for good light and calm water and give it another go.

 

Laurie, a 10"x14" print (framed at 16"x20"), cropped to your specifications, is currently hanging at the RiverSea Gallery here in Astoria for the mere price of $250. So far, unfortunately, it hasn't sold.

 

Thanks again for all of the helpful, interesting comments. I feel very lucky to have such a fine group of photographer/critics commenting on this photo!