james_wilderhancock

that is the one thing that really bugs me about this shot. i had framed it right on the edge cause i basically ran out of room to move back. but in mounting the slide of course the edges got even more cramped. i should have unmounted it to scan but didn't think of it till it was too late.

i am not as fond of this as i am your previous 2 or 3 posts. there just isn't a lot here to keep me engaged for long. i do like the colors, and it makes me fondly recall times spent in the desert which i love, but... not much else going on IMO.

this is from my latest round of test shots for my Goddess series.

what do you think?

i like the use of color and texture in this composition. would love to see a print cause i am guessing that this scan doesn't do this image justice.

 

 

i really like this shot.

 

love the way the colors blend around the image and also prefer this perspective over the other.

 

guess i also have to agree with cropping the shell.

 

very well executed.

lisa,

 

if there is a way to make this shot better i don't know what it is. maybe more color in the sky, but the steely blue works too.

 

enough detail in the places that matter makes this a very interesting shot. wouldn't have moved closer to the man either as it seems that the board is the real subject here, and the man in just there for scale. would've liked to see him closer to camera tho also.

 

nice idea with the man and wife though.

well there a few ways that i would have tried this (assuming i had the time and presence of mind).

 

first would try exposing for the reflection in the wall (with tripod). this would of course grossly over expose the subject but would make for an intersting pic if she was cropped out and only seen in reflection.

 

also, try another time of day. probably later in afternoon. but this depends on the orientation of the wall.

 

also, could try from other side of subject using the harsh light as a backlight and fill with flash or just expose for face.

this looks like a very magical place to me due to your wonderful representation of it. i would bring down the upper right corner a bit so that it doesn't compete so mucht with the fabulous water flow you have captured. that area does add nice color but is a little bright. maybe just a bit of fill flash on the logs on the right would have helped, but i do like the way the leaves seem to float there.

too much life? it looks nice. i AM though missing somebody sitting on that bench. perhaps i have been shooting models so much lately that my bias has shifted. but it seems empty without someBODY.

 

i would have probably shot this if i walked by as well. perhaps from as a wide angle from across the street.

thanks for the comments.

 

this lantern was powered by one votive. long exposure accounts for the rest.

in the spirit of the season...

for your viewing and critiquing pleasure i have scanned a larger version from an 8X10 print. the print is cropped a bit tighter and loses some of the interesting stuff at the top.

 

interested in hearing your comments.

as a beginner in this technique i am constantly searching out 'masters' to study and emulate as i develop my own style. they are few and far between. thank god for you and emil. i am learning from you both as i struggle to make my own way.

 

as for critique, i can only say perfect. i wouldn't change a thing. compostition, lighting, pose, expression, exposure; all good.

 

i will read anything you have to write on the subject of lightbrushing.

...but the moody fog probably would've been more engaging. all i can think about when i look at this is "wouldn't this be cool in dusky fog with the light on and panning across the top of the frame?"

 

as it is it looks like a nice brochure shot. all it needs is some captioning.

thanks for the comments.

sorry for the small size. it's an old scan and i can't find the

print to rescan it. also, this is before i discovered USM so i will

post a slightly sharper version for review. although, i have grown

to like the soft quality of this version. all comments are welcome.

i am gonna go with tony and daniel on this one. i think SOME detail on the inside would help the framing, and more dramatic lighting outside would help with the subject. especially in AZ. i lived in tuscon for a little while and was blown away by the sunrise/sunset light most days.

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.

this is the most expensive model i have ever worked with.

fortunately i got her for free.

 

the colors on this polaroid were tweaked a bit in PS by adjusting

levels and then adding a little saturation. my beautiful 12 inch

model is standing behind a screen of diffusion (rosco 250 i think)

and lit from behind and each side.

emil, you, and your art, are an inspiration to me. you say, "...in my own opinion, I'm not there yet." well, i REALLY look forward to your posts when you ARE there.

 

of course my critique circle is teaching me that there is always something that could be better (or at least different), and i do see a couple things here that catch my 'eye in training'.

 

i would like to see a little more detail in the lower face, and more balance in the arms above. and the bright area nearly touching the left arm up there is a little large and distracting.

 

yes, that's all i could come up with. I LOVE THIS IMAGE.

hi chris,

 

really nice work here. how did the front of the horse stay sharp while the back is blurred?

 

the only thing i might suggest as far as THIS photo is that it might be nice to see the horse's legs and less headroom.

 

as far as other ideas for the assignment; i guess my first thought would be, do there HAVE to be kids on the merry-go-round? it all depends on the goal and i can imagine very well that the answer was yes. but if not, i love images of empty rides where color, form and motion are the focus.

nice capture of expression which just edges out my desire to see him a bit sharper in the eye. another vote for some cropping. at least to hairline (also moves eyes from center of frame) or square with eyes near top.

flatbed scans are never good in my experience, but at least SOME detail came through. also, i forgot to USM my last batch of uploads, which includes this one. if i can figure it out i will post the sharpened version.

 

thanks for the comments so far.

i love these trees. and even more after i decided to go underneath

one for a different perspective. the combo of the fall color and

twisting trunks/branches fascinates me. my hope is that the viewer

is as interested as i was at the time of photography. so, does it

work?