s_wan

The usual comments plz :)

Nice lines as Jesse has pointed out, no complaints about the colouring either.

 

Interesting crop from Jeroen (as always) but I think I prefer the original which has more depth and space.

 

Hope we don't have to wait this long for the next one ;)

>When there is something in the background that

>gives context, or the background lends to the

>beauty by its form or simplicity, then cropping

>harms the photo. Here, I don't see why you

>wouldn't get rid of it. We have some hard-to-see

>blue fencing and a lot of dirt. Where is the

>beauty in seeing more of it. The cropped version

>leaves enough of it for me.

 

To me, the background is nicely blurred, not particularly intrusive, and provides a boundary for the image that gives it front to back depth. Cropping it gives it more prominence in the photo, making it much too obvious relative to the riders head, and compresses the scene too much IMO.

Showing more of the dirt to the left of the pic gives context in regard to the direction of travel of the bull into it.

Showing the bulls front feet may also reinforce the movement aspect as it may also show dust being thrown up... the front feet may not be on the ground etc...

 

>I don't get any more information about the

>situation (it's a bull ring in a rodeo or

>whatever, right?) by including more background.

>So is this a composition issue?

 

Yes, but only Wayne can comment on whether or not there was any possibility (regarding equipment and time) to actually do anything about it...

This really is minor nit-picking. It could be that by showing more around the bull, other factors could be introduced, such as a persons head in front of where Wayne was sitting...

Another thought, something that might make this work would be if the license plate on the SUV suggested something contrary to the disabled element of the pic (admittedly unlikely). Otherwise it would require somebody physically climbing in/out of the vehicle to emphasise the point you were trying to make.

Hmmmm, it must be just you. To me, this picture is missing the human element which might suggest that an oxymoron exists.

This scene is missing one smoking car wreck and user induced blurring to fully capture the events of that day :)

 

Otherwise, I'm of the opinion that Agfa Ultra 50 should be banned.

The gap in the trees is enough to lead my eye into the picture, but I would suggest that the closest tree in the picture is too prominent - a few steps left would not affect the point of view to a huge degree but would allow the viewer to see more of the trees immediately behind the closest. This would reinforce the "path" into the picture, and reduce the relative prominence of the closest tree.

 

The shadows from front to back are great, and the horizontal aspect is a good contrast to the vertical orientation of the trees.

However, I would like to see some sky to reinforce the lighting which the shadows suggest, perhaps by including some light shining through the tree canopy (not necessarily including the whole tree, but enough to determine a horizon in the background).

Despite the scanner issues (I sympathise!) this still manages to capture the mood of the location.

 

The waterfall "hanging in the air" is certainly interesting, but not being able to see where it is coming from is somewhat odd and it competes for attention with the lit areas of rock which doesn't help. Jeroen, as ever, has come up with another composition which I feel has a better presentation of this effect and concentrates the mind on what it actually is.

Think Jeroen has hit the nail on the head with his composition. The facial expression of the parents is great, but the angle of presentation is a little odd. Jeroen's mod corrects this minor niggle and restores the cut-out/cropped arms which I think are crucial to any portrait composition.

 

Otherwise, would have been nice to have the child looking at the camera and smiling...

Must disagree with Glenn about cropping which only emphasises the background immediately around the rider's head.

 

Definitely with Bernhard on this one, good shot as is, would be great with more space around the bull.

Echoing Fred's point, the shadows definitely make the shot. Remove them and my comments would probably be similar to your last one.

Hmmmm, I think one of the main issues is that the location of the picture isn't especially photogenic, and trying to show too much of it in an effort to create space can actually detract from the picture and introduce too many distractions - the reflective glass in the original for example. On the other hand, zooming in too much loses all sense of scale and isolation.

 

In striking a balance, I think you have pretty much come up with the ideal compromise considering the limitations imposed upon you. However I do feel that the image is lacking front to back depth which limits the feeling of isolation that you are trying to emphasise. Though the original doesn't have much more foreground to play with I think that including what was there makes a significant difference to the overall impact of the shot.

 

Perhaps this could have been further enhanced by angling the camera downwards to include more of the ground and less of the building (which you've cropped anyway)?

Background is a little distracting but you've captured the moment well. Personally I think the angle in the original should have been retained in the crop rather than levelling it... gives more of a "spur of the moment" feel.

Composition is OK, nice lines of the barbed wire. Wire covering his head doesn't bother me (at least you can still see his eyes)... otherwise I have very little feeling about this one way or the other. He's obviously doing something, but without your textual description it's difficult to fathom what that something is!

His pose has all the makings of a portrait, but the setting suggests anything other than that.

Not sure I can really gauge what he is thinking or feeling, but I would simply suggest that he is tired, rather than tired of life.

Composition is a bit too "straight" for my liking, and not so keen on the overhead view. Would like to see this in B&W (as suggested) and from an angle other than perpendicular to the wood.

Agree with Chuck about the tree, though I suspect that has more to do with viewfinder area *grrrr*

 

Only other comment I'd make is that it would be nice to have done something more with the lights, perhaps by waiting until the light level had dropped a little...

I think the crop is a step in the right direction (by focussing more on the interior of the car) but the change in image dimensions is detrimental.

 

Could do with being a touch brighter too IMO (in order to see more of the steering wheel)

I wouldn't say it was abstract (in the way that Niranjan's Titanic pic is), but just very simple, and from a good angle. The three elements (cloud, vapour trail, and balloons) combine to emphasise the angle of view. IMO this is what makes the picture work.

Hmmmm, I'm not sure that this pic does much for me. As Jeroen mentions in the first response, there is a feeling that something is missing, yet when the original pic is reinstated there is a feeling of clutter.

 

I agree with Jesse that the boy is cute, and he could be an interesting subject in himself, but I think the circumstances have conspired to rob you of a good shot. It could all be so different if he was facing the other way.

Good framing, background does not distract. Ground is somewhat bright in comparison to the rest of the picture, but that merely emphasises the shadows.

 

Good use of "props". Would be better if they were holding cups of coffee in front of a sign saying "men at work" :)

Good facial expression and general posture.

Good framing, though I would have made a point to keep all of his head in the frame.

 

Perhaps a more neutral background is in order. The shadowy bits stand out too much.

Good contrast between the snow and trees, though IMO the empty lower half of the picture adds little to the overall image and is best cropped out. Jeroen's modification loses a little depth but gains much more focus.

 

The bottom half really needs a few snow covered rocks or a shadow (yours?) to make it worth keeping the original perspective

It's surprising that I actually quite like this image considering I'm not especially keen on square pics, B+W or people pics!

 

The subject whilst not particularly exciting seems to work because of their facial expressions and general posture.

 

Composition is excellent - her seating position facing him and the perspective employed with the wall draw the viewer into the frame and towards the man. This also imparts a great sense of depth in the image with the wall and ground vanishing into the distance.

Looks fine to me as it is. Nice angle of the shoreline and colours reflected on the water.

 

The fence was probably beneficial rather than a hindrance, retaining foreground detail helps assess scale.