distantvoice

Carsten, Pnina, thank you for your compliments 8^D .

Mike, the composition is much better than in the previous one that I have commented and you have apparently deleted. The sky is really important here. It is a pity that the light is not so unique as it was on the deleted photo, but it is still very interesting and the beautiful clouds formation make up for this loss. Nice gradual darkening of the sky adds to the mood of this image. Two small rocks do not bother me much, but I must second Carsten here. Regards, Michal.

Colin, I checked your portfolio after I had read your comment to the recent Carsten's submission. I was really impressed. Your vision of photography is very similar to my own, your exhaustive and fascinating comments add even more interest to your beautiful photos. You are very lucky that you live in the UK - plenty of coasts there 8^D . It was always my dream to visit your beautiful country and Cornwall is definetely on the top of my list - a place that I must see. I promise to be a frequent guest in your gallery.

 

Getting to the point, the composition of this photograph is conventional yet powerful. The building is an obvious point of interest but the sun conquers with it. Much like in reality when we look against the sun, we squint trying to see the details in the backlit building. The colouring of this photo is subtle (what appeals to me), so the borders are less pronounced loosing with the contrasty scene in the center. But when we look closer there are many delicate lines that are pointing towards the Arsenic Calciner (clouds, waves) which at the same time links the more pronounced lines of the road and the cloud just above the horizon. Thus the whole composition emphasizes the main theme which is the ruined building. Splendid.

 

I still have some reservations concerning the filter used here. I think you could have used a 0.9 ND Grad and expose for a half or one stop longer. It would have reduced the contrast between the sun and the buiding a little bit and this way you would have got a classic image. Still it is a very successful landscape photograph that evokes many different feelings and associations. Congratulations and regards, Michal.

Henri, Pnina, actually it is Saint Martin du Canigou (you could have mistaken it with St Michel de Cuxa which is situated nearby). It was founded in the beginning of 11th century and built in the Romanesque style at that time but later destroyed by the earthquake and reconstructed in the beginning of 20th century (here and here are the photos made before the reconstruction). Metheora Monasteries were built in the 14th century as the places of refuge when the area came under attack by the Turks. By the end of the 15th century, there were 24 Metheora monasteries. So they were built much later. Regards, Michal.

Very good composition. You have conveyed the mood of this church perfectly (I have visited it 5 years ago). Your composition and the use of TS lens emphasize the geomethry of this architecture and show us how it is monumental and subtle at the same time. It is a pity that the windows have not any details but that is impossible to handle such contrast with a digital sensor. Maybe you should practise HDR technique (your themes are almost always static so it would be useful to make 4-5 expositions from a tripod and merge them in Photoshop using the HDR option). I would do it if I had the possibility to shoot Romanesque architecture again. I did not see any church interiors photos using HDR so you may be the first 8^D. Regards, Michal.

Another abstract photograph but how very different from the theatre series. Still the art is the subject as it was there. It shows how you thoughtfully adjust your technique to the theme, the technical excellence of this photo reflects the quality of the craftsmanship the same way how the blurred theatre photos reflected the world of idea created by the visionary scenographer. It has a little bit too much free space on the right for me but your concept for this composition works so I guess my opinion comes from my conservative inclinations ;-) . Regards, Michal.

Pnina, this theatre show was a real gold mine for you. I love this abstract photograph. The figure of a man is distinguishable enough and the rectangles that for me look rather like mirrors (which still are the doors to the alternative or negative space) symbolize the question of choice. He builds the installation that will give him a choice in the future and he will probably choose the one that will reflect him in the way he sees himself. Nice metaphore of life, isn't it? (I would get rid of that red dots under his foot but that is a minor distraction.)

Demosthenes, you are wrong. Regarding your name ;-) it is strange as the finale of "For your eyes only" is laid in Metheora (Greece) and this abbey is located in Pyrenees (France). Nice photograph, Henri, but the UV-haze disappoints a little and the light could be more interesting (with side lighting the shapes of the buldings and the rock would be better defined). Regards, Michal.

Olgeir, great photograph. The movement of water in the foreground make it a very dynamic image. The rock in the distance is the perfect point of interest pointed by the river floating into the sea. I have only one reservation concerning the post processing - the sharpening could be ore precise.

I do not agree with Chris, in my opinion it would be another photograph and this one could be interesting too, but I would zoom in (or get closer) a little and focus on the door and the contrasty rocks on its right to fill the frame with them or recompose as the left half of this image is overloaded now.

Miles, I have uploaded my photo of the Red Beach here.

Robert, proste i piekne. Ladna stonowana kolorystyka i perfekcyjna kompozycja. Niebo przyciemnione (Photoshop?, filtr ND?) akurat tyle ile trzeba, czyli bez przesady, a jednoczesnie na tyle mocno by uzyskac odpowiedni kontrast pomiedzy pierwszym planem a tlem. Gratulacje.

Pnina, this one is really extraordinary. The pose of the figure is just perfect and the simple striking colours work even better against the black background. You have got an abstract, thought-provoking photograph which looks like a piece of modern art... Sorry, it IS a piece of art. The best one of your teathre series.

Ferrando, simple yet strong composition here. The trees break the line of the horizon, their curve is leading our eye to the distant mountain. The palette of this image is really outstanding, but what is the most important is the mist (clouds?) which hides all the things that could make the composition less striking and so constitute a good background for the curved trees. It is a perfect coincidence that the mountain under the horizon at which the tree points remains visible - the mist frames it perfectly.

Pnina, the crop is indeed ideal now. I would suggest desaturating yellows as it does two jobs: it removes distractive patches of yellow and it gives this picture colder colouring corresponding with the main subject without introducing any blue casts.

 

The photograph is - as always - very well considered. It evokes many different associations. It is just a vase but with all this glass surrounding we see a character from a fairy tale walking through ice palaces rather. You did a little magic with your camera, here ;^D.

Swietne, minimalistyczne, abstrakcyjne nieomal ujecie. Bardzo przyjemna kolorystyka, ktora nie pozwala oderwac oczu od tego zdjecia. Gratulacje.

I guess it was photographed in South Downs region and the english Avalon is in Glastonbury (Wessex) 8^D but you are right, this english countryside looks like a paradise. Very nice concept, the feeling of space is emphasized thanks to the family in the foreground, especially the lady whose hair is ruffled by the wind. I like the subtle realistic colouring. Congratulations.

Very interesting even fascinating idea for a monochrome photography. I would not change a thing here though at first it may seem a little bit chaotic. I wonder what is the colour of the chair. If it is not green you could use channel mixer to enhance the contrast between the leaves and the chair, but... as I have written I am not sure it would improve this image which is already perfect. Congratulations.

Marc, this is really a paradise. Very original idea with the sun shining just from the top border. Perfect composition, beautiful colours. As usually I congratulate you - you show us the beauty of nature as no one did before.

Pnina, everything has been written here. Very interesting photograph, nice concept. When I looked at your image I came across a funny idea, I would try a double exposure and use the second photo made for example 15 minutes later as a layer covering only the second clock. This colonnade would symbolize the passage of time and the picture would get a new meaning. Still it would be an obvious manipualtion and the photograph is very meaningful as it is. What do you think?

Very sharp, perfect macro shot. What I particularly like here is the colouring, muted and warm. Subtle colours let us concentrate on the subject. Good DOF, it is obvious where the photo was made yet the background does not distract our attention. Regards, Michal.

Pnina, of course - there are many ways for darkening, and you did not burn the container, sometimes I forget that burning is only a way of darkening and darkening does not necessarily mean burning :-). This blue container is not so distracting really. But I think that after your manipualtion it looks a bit artificially as it has lost all the details from its surface. I post my suggestion - now the container is almost invisible, but still it looks naturally. The manipulation has been done with a simple selection using magic wand and a hue/saturation/lightness adjustement. To make the tombstones which are in front of the container stand out I decided to use a sharpen tool on their edges.

 

Anyway no matter what you do with this container, the photograph is really a masterpiece. It appeals to me more and more.

Pnina, you are right, the B&W conversion does not work here. Although I would not burn the container, I would rather try to desaturate it so it would not differ in colour and luminance from the tombstones. Regards.

Pnina, very good photograph. This cemetery is really picturesque and it gives many possibilities for meaningful images (though some people do not like to be photographed on the cemetery - it is a kind of a superstition I think, but I found myself in a very embarassing situation once because of it). Anyway I think that the composition could be better after cropping it from the left. We should get rid of this distracting patch of light on the tombstone and cut at least some of this blue container (?) in the background. I have some preferences concerning the compositions including people also - though you may call them superstitions too 8^D - so I find the cropped version better balanced at the same time because the girl does look into the middle of the picure and not out of it. It is not a rule that I obey always, but when a person is placed so close to the center of an image the direction in which his/her head is turned may change the balance of the whole image.

 

Thank you for commenting my work. I promise to visit your gallery as often as I can. Regards.

Jake, I have looked through your portfolio, I like it. Some of your landscapes are very aesthetic and pleasant to watch, sometimes you exagerrate with light/shadow correction but generally your portfolio is very convincing. And then I have seen this truck... you know I rarely give 7/7 rates, as you may check on my page, but this time I did it without any hesitation. What can I say, I do not know what could be improved here really. Congratulations.