Red and Blue

I wish there was something in the lower left quadrant to break up the void. Still, I like the image you've captured.

Almost

what is it?

Nice seeing the effect of different colours, but they don't seem to work as well as the blues and greens. The composition is very strong.

This has been a favorite of mine over the blue rim image also in this

folder. The reaction seems to be to the contrary and I'm curious

what some thoughs are on it from this crowd. Just in general, some

responses and thoughs and maybe ideas to improve it when I get a

chance would be appreciated. Thanks.

I have tried looking at this over the last few days and still nothing grabs me except the colours. I don't like the lines and shapes very much but I do like the colours. Part of the reason I am having difficulty with this may be that I can't work out what the subject is. I like the creases on the left of the image but I don't like the way the right side of the image seems cropped out. I think that unsettles my eyes. The photograph seems unbalanced in that my eyes expect total blackness at the top to match the total blackness at the bottom, however the rest of the subject is out of focus. I like the use of colours but I would prefer to see them used on possibly a different subject or the same subject from a different view.

Well... That's interesting... 74 ratings so far, so many really discouraging ratings, so little suggestions to improve, and now you end up asking for advice or opinions ! Shame, after 74 ratings, that you still haven't got the answers about this shot... I share your sorrow, for what ever that's worth...:-)

Now, the image... Colors are fantastic. Composition is quite good to me as well. Shapes is maybe where the explanation of all this low ratings is... I don't expect a paper bag to have the beautiful shape of a violin... Do you ? I guess not. But maybe that's what most people saw as graphically unpleasant.

Of course these shapes are not wonderful but they are what paper bags are. If the main red edge would have been a nice curved line, then, I bet a lot of people would have liked it better. Me too, but I bare in mind that this is a paper bag, which is quite impossible to curve nicely unless you glue it onto a support and hide the support...

Then, I don't think the top left area of the shot is very pretty - rather muddy since the lights get mixed and since lines are not really there, and yet appear as distractions somehow.

I'd say, this isn't so bad as a difficult paper bag shot, maybe worth a bit more than the average it had so far. How to improve next time, you asked...? It all depends what you want to achieve.

If you want nice lines and colors, there are better bets than paper bags as a subject. If you insist on paper bags, glue them on a (hidden) support if you want the lines to please the eye a little more. If you like the paper bags to be what they are and to not look better, as far as shapes are concerned, than they do in real life, then proceed just the way you started, but expect a lot of people not to like it for 2 very logical reasons - lines not very pleasant, and no obvious message to compensate this aesthetical frustration.

That's my take on this. I miss great graphical appeal, OR I miss a strong message - there might be one, but I don't receive any. Regards.

i think it's because the rim of the bag (with it's rim lighting) creates a more interesting 'story' than this pic does. i do like the colors but, once i figure out what the subject is, i am bored. not so with the 'blue rim' shot.

 

it is an interesting choice of subjects though, and i commend you for making it THIS interesting. i would say keep at it. you have definitely created something unusual from the mundane, and that is huge.