Critiques

escher1 (1268) 2006-04-20 3:11

Hey Ram. I have a real liking for photography from planes. I have been very lucky to see some wonderful sights and lucky enough to take some reasonable pictures.

This picture is just gorgeous. The colours and ethereal quality are wonderful. There looks like there are mountains in the background, but I guess they must be clouds.

Nice one. Quite exceptional.

If I was to offer any critique (it wouldn't improve it, just make it different perhaps) I would clone out the wing in the bottom left hand corner and straighten the horizon. I think that would create a dreamy, abstract image. I am not sure what camera you are using but I guess it is a digi with a 4:3 frame. Personally I prefer the 35mm format and the 3:2 format which has so many parallels in nature (the golden ratio etc). A different crop might make this exceptional picture even better. I'll have a go at a workshop when I get home.

Cheers
Richard

escher1 (1268) 2006-04-20 3:01

How long have I been trying to take a picture of trees just like this one? Forever and I still haven't managed it! The composition, contrast and monochrome feel is just perfect. It has a fanatastic balance about it and it gives me a serene feeling. Nice one!

Richard

escher1 (1268) 2006-04-20 2:58

Lovely detail in the sky Vicky, fantastic texture. I guess you are really loving your 350D now?!

I pretty much keep my camera set to under expose by 1/3 of stop (or more in high contrast conditions) and shoot in RAW. I then use Pixmantec RAW Shooter premium to process the images (you can get a free version Raw Shooter Essentials that will allow you to change the exposure just the same). I find with that tool that even if you have underexposed too much and therefore when you increase the exposure to the maximum and it still isn't light enough you can add fill light and it doesn't look unrealistic. So you can merrily underexpose and not blow out the sky and bring the photo back when post processing.

Do you use the histogram and info view on your camera? If you don't it is a very useful way of checking the exposure. Meter for the lightest part of the scene, take the picture and then review on the screen. The histogram will show you where you have overexposed (much like the levels adjustment in APS) and any overexposed parts will flash in black so you can see very quickly whether you need to meter again and take another picture. I find this very useful when shooting in sunlight as it is hard to see the picture clearly on the screen but you can see the black sections flashing.

Also, after we talked about the 350d's penchant for apertures no smaller than f13, I shot almost exclusively f13 and below in Nepal. And I must concur that the results are better.

All the best

Richard

escher1 (1268) 2006-03-06 2:42

John,

Thanks for your note on my photo. Were you on the summit of Helvellyn about 9-10am on Saturday with a 20D on a black tripod? It might be a remarkable coincidence but I climbed Gully no. 1 (slanting up in the middle of your picture between the buttresses to where the large crowd is standing on the top) and as I got to the top I could see someone standing on the cornice. I thought to myself that I hadn't seen anyone climbing above me, but as I clambered over the small cornice I saw that it was a photographer. I smiled but didn't say hello. Was that you? Have a look at my picture from Saturday. I took that just after getting to the top and remarked about all the photographers on the summit, and you really could well be in that picture as the guy with the 20d and the tripod headed over towards Swirral Edge. If it was you I passed you again as I headed towards Swirral Edge and to go down a few minutes later.

escher1 (1268) 2006-03-03 2:54

I can just feel the UV radiation coming off the snow. A lot of people wonder how alpinists cope with the cold. But I always find it is the heat that is a problem. Dehydrated with a huge amount of radiation coming off the snow is quite unpleasant! Nice one.

escher1 (1268) 2006-03-03 2:35

Hi Alvin,

The Lhotse Nuptse wall really is an awesome sight. Your picture fills me with excitement as I will be back in Nepal in a couple of weeks for my 8th trek. Thanks for sharing.

  escher1 (1268) 2006-03-03 2:31

Pitcures like this only work if you can actually see the subject. Wild life photgraphy is very difficult and getting good images of small subjects is hard. Unfortunately if you had not said there was a bird there I wouldn't have known, the picture really should explain itself. Try zooming in a bit more or getting a higher angle. If none of these things are possible you are only going to get a better picture by taking a photo of something else.

escher1 (1268) 2006-02-26 15:34

I lived in Poole until I was 3 years old and I have a few hazy memories of places like this. In all your pictures you show a mastery of exposure. The movement of the waves gives a really nice dreamy quality. The composition is spot on, but more importantly I feel like I am standing on the beach.

One thing I have been trying with my 350D is to shoot in RAW and underexpose by 1 stop (I did it by mistake and found it useful). It can be a pain to always expose exactly right on the highlights of the scene and the autoexposure can go a bit screwy. So underexposing gives a enough headroom, nearly always, to adjust the exposure in software (I use Pixmantec RAW Shooter - there is a freeware version that is worth a try) without blowing out the sky. And the shadow and highlight adjustments I find really useful. It can make skies so much more interesting. Just something I am experimenting with at the moment.

escher1 (1268) 2006-02-26 15:26

I say this a lot when I critique a photo - the best shots, for me, are all about atmosphere. I want to feel like I am there, and with this picture I do. I can't put it any other way than I can feel the breeze on my face, the sun on my back and the grass between my toes.

  escher1 (1268) 2006-02-16 3:31

Hi Olga, it is an interesting spot you have found there but I don't think your picture does it justice. The ice looks too uniform and ends up making the picture look flat. There needs to be some foreground interest to lead the eye up the river to the bridge, to create some depth. Try shooting from different points of view, perhaps lower to the ground, and include something in the foreground. A landscape setting on your camera will give you a higher fstop number (say f6 and upwards) and that will give you a larger depth of field and, if there is enough light, will render the whole scene in focus. F2.8 is only really any use for portraits and low light indoors. Higher fstop numbers (smaller aperture) are more suitable for landscapes.