Time Slot

A wet thanksgiving weekend in Seattle with nothing much to do but

roam the rainy streets. Critiques are encouraged.

Hanna, this is excellent! I like the sombre tones and view through to the new buildings rising above the old. Those tracks add a shiny emphasis as though underlining the scene. I would use PS perspective correction to straighten up the verticals but others might prefer it as it is. I seem to see a lot of shots of rain in Seattle. Does it rain a lot there?

I like it..... =) tc

Colin, it's odd that the right side is parallel but the left side is skewed. It doesn't really bother me because there are so many angles in there and I feel it suits the gritty scene somehow. Seattle does have somewhat of a reputation for being rainy but it has some interesting architecture.

I like the change in the building styles as their height increases. From rich architectural detail in the smaller ones, to the relative blankness of the tallest. Is the third scraper still being built? Looks like sheets around it. I also quite like the slight bulge in the road which falls into the dip along the alleyway.

 

And great looking weather :-)

Stephen, Seattle is built on a hill with the old town at the bottom, here, and the business district and newer buildings toward the top. I don't remember if said building was under construction. Thanks for commenting.

I like the horizontal lines at the bottom--it adds something that most architectural shots don't have--foundation :o) I like the toning too. The left building tipping inward did catch my eye initially. I think you could correct it in PS. If not, what would help is lightening the black edge on the very left so that it is closer in tone to the wall. Also the white stone left of the cross could be darkened slightly. Nice tones--especially into the shadows of the alley. You're inspiring me to head downtown on a rainy day.

David, that's clever. So lightening that area would work as a visual distraction by de-emphasizing the veering line. I suppose I could also crop that dark area off altogether. So I'm inspiring you! Now there's flattery. { ;

Glen, like I said in my reply to Colin, it doesn't really bother me. But I do like to hear other people's opinions and suggestions. Yours is appreciated. Thanks for contributing.

Well, I vote for fixing the verticals, but you've already commented on that. Otherwise, I love the tones that you chose! This image creates a wonderful mood!!

Interesting alley Hanna, a lot to look at. I like the colors difference. The tilt was talked about already.. I like it. Pnina

The tilt erosion my neurons cells........ sorry ,sorry.

Hanna, it doesn't matter at all but just for the record!...

 

When you took this shot your camera was tilted slightly upwards (see the exact middle point of your frame is at about 4th floor level of that building at the end of the alley) so all the verticals converge as a result. In addition you had the camera slightly rotated to the right (look at the verticals of that tall building in the middle of the frame in the background) Combining these two effects you have converging verticals all leaning slightly to the right.

 

It doesn't bother some people but drives others crazy (eg Marina), like a picture that is slightly out of straight on a wall. In the good old days of film pro architectural photogs used large fornat cameras where all these perspective effects could be zeroed out but these days PS makes a good substitute.

 

A useful trick when shooting architecture is to use a slightly wider setting on the lens to allow for these corrections later.

 

Lovely shot though.

 

regards - Colin

Colin, thanks for the engineer's perspective. I have a 'thing' about pictures hanging crooked. I once straightened one for someone and it came crashing to the floor with glass everywhere. Situations like this are difficult unless you carry a stepladder, can break into a building opposite, or have very long arms. I was probably also trying to keep my camera dry at the time of clicking. I'm not making excuses, just listing the pitfalls. My feeling is that when standing close to buildings we rarely get a square-on view, but rather a skewed one, particularly when looking up. I love to walk around a city centre and admire all the architectural detail that the average pedestrian never notices. But I digress. I'll have a fiddle in PS, out of curiosity, and see what I come up with.

Nice contrast between the alley and the rather upscale background, Hanna. It is a truly unique shot.

 

The angles don't bother me, but the somewhat (but subtly) weird lines result from not having the horizon absolutely straight before perspective correction. In this case, it doesn't bother me at all.

 

--Lannie

Hanna, yes, the step ladder is the best solution. (To safely adjusting pictures on walls - great story - hope your friends could see the funy side of it!).

 

I've done a quick correction here - a 1 deg rotate to the left, then a perspective correction using Image > Transform > Distort pulling out the top corners slightly. Is it better for all that? Maybe it has lost the feeling of reality by being too tidy.

Colin, thanks. That's impressive. Can you straighten crooked teeth too? I applaud your efforts. I hope Marina does too. For me, I'm happy with either version.

 

Lannie, glad you like it. Did you notice I managed to get a bit of water in there too?

oooooooohhhhhhh, hannah, this is a very moody, evocative urban landscape scene, i like it very much, agree with colin's comments and like the "corrected" version a little better. really glad to see this one, you've created art out of an everyday scene in a most pleasing, gritty way.

Thankyou Ben. This IS a very gritty part of Seattle and with the cold, rainy weather it was even more atmospheric. Unfortunately, as I was travelling with three other people who were not interested in lingering in the rain, this was one of only a few shots I managed to grab. But Seattle has such a reputation for rain that I'm sure there'll be more the next time I visit.