Cherry Blossoms, St Luke's Episcopal Church, Simeon, Virginia. #0848833

I don't know what kind of leading question to ask on this photograph,

so any general comments would be appreciated. I guess I'm a little

concerned about the dark branches in the upper right.

I think the darker limbs on the right are fine as is. In fact that bit of darkness balances well with the lamp and post on the opposite side, both of them give some relief from the symmetries of the scene and add a bit of tension. The petal strewn, cobbled walkway, makes this for me. I'd love to see a shot from a bit lower and longer angle. Maybe even loosing the window completeley and adding more to the walkway. On the other hand doing that might just make an otherwise good shot too cliche. I'm undecided.

I think I agree with Gordon - I would liked to have seen how a photo shot lower to the ground with a slightly upward angle would have turned out. I've thought a lot about this photo. I like it, but there are some things I think I might have tried to change. I think the biggest thing is that the photo is too straight on for my taste. I like the trees, (I don't know how far apart they were) but I think I might have tried to include the trunks alongside the outside of the photo for more framing. The darkness of the tree branches give good contrast to the surrounding area.

Nice photo. Keep up the great work.

Good feedback, thanks. Here are some outtakes. The letters A-H are for easier referencing, and have no other significance, except that A and B were the two I finally printed. B is the original image posted on this page. As you can see, there was a lot of moving around: B was shot from across the street with a Nikon D200 fitted with a 105mm f/2.5 AI lens. In 35mm terms, that would have been a 150 mm lens. A was shot just where the sidewalk began to go under the trees at 18mm (27 on a 35mm). (x marks the spot on H).

Attached to this comment is the same image (pluse two read arrows) as in the above comment, but larger, for more detailed viewing.

 

Regarding the lower angles: The roof line of the church is such that angles upward began to include too much vacant sky, (see image D to see the shape of the church) so I avoided them. Also, the lower I got, the more the walkway compressed, so I avoided them for that reason, too. (B shows some compression, but remember, it was from across the street, so it's not the best example) A powerline cuts through the trees (red arrow in G and H on the larger collection of outtakes), which became a bigger problem as the camera tilted up when closer to the trees.

 

Wow, pretty cool. Looks like a nice little place. I can see where it would have been difficult (for me at least) to photograph this. I do like what you have done. Great work.

Thanks for posting the out takes the larger attachment is instructive. Having gone over them and weighed the pros and cons I agree with your choice. B is the strongest image. The bunching up of the petals on the path, at the point where you have placed the " B " in your series works so well in this image , giving a nice balance to the actual flowers above.

 

BTW A guy who can fake belly dancing, could most likely clone out powers line ? I like "G" but it is a bit too wide. A bit closer in to the point of loosing the top steeple would have made a nice shot. I feel that "A" put the church and blossoms too far into the background.

A nice touch that the lamp is on.

Gordon, I feel that A and C, especially A, fits well with your suggestion of being cliche. I can't help but think it came from a wedding album somewhere, although I would love it if it were my wedding.

 

What I like about the one I posted, besides the lamp, which I agree is a nice feature (thanks to the overcast) is that the petals on the ground are given equal importance as they are on the tree, and I like the how the door is a stronger point of feature. I like how the geometry of the church facade is strongly featured, too. Although I find my eyes lingering on the door, I don't think any one subject (door, walk, lamp, limbs, facade) dominates.

Dear Lacy,

 

Thanks for your two comments. It is as you say, a nice little place, but don't think I found and photographed it on one visit. I'm afraid I'm not that good of a photographer. The out takes are from at least 2 days, probably 3, maybe 4, as I returned several times to refine the image from the day before. Also, I've photographed it several times over the last 8 or 9 years, and always with measured success.

Lacy, here is another out take, quite a different treatment of the same scene. Although I like how the blossoms are depicted, I felt the compostion was a bit awkward.

...and another one...