Critiques

graffer (1764) 2009-11-22 2:52

Hello Gunnar,

Not a patch of red to be seen here, but a fine image nonetheless.

The proportion of water to the rocks is roughly 2/3:1/3 and the two musicians are well placed according to the rule of thirds.

The diagonal lines made by the way they are holding their guitars, form two sides of an imaginary triangle, giving strength to the composition. The sunlight from the side produces more diagonals with the shadows cast on the rock.

The direction of the gaze of the nearer blond haired man neatly parallels the line of his instrument.

As usual, a fine sharp image.

I have put an illustrative compositional diagram in the WS.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-21 8:07

Hello John,

A fine contrast of light and shade as the eye is led straight down the road, out of the shadows and towards the marvellous sunlit slope of the hillside, with its clump of autumn leaved and coniferous trees.

There are strong lead-ins formed by the fences each side of the road, and the road itself forms the most powerful element of the composition as its course exactly follows a vertical line of thirds, until it vanishes in the distance.

There are attractive reflections in the water lying in the road after the rainstorm, and a lovely sky to top it all off.

An excellent picture.

I have posted an illustrative compositional diagram in the WS.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-20 3:13

Hello Gunnar,

Another fine photograph that is unmistakably one of yours. Crisp and clear as ever.

The girl in the red top, placed in the image at an intersection of lines of thirds, is the eye catching element within the picture.

The line where the sky meets of the wall follows another thirds line.

Her father's gaze down towards her, and the diagonal direction which they are walking introduce a sense of dynamism into the composition.

There are plenty of lead-in lines: the joins between the paving stones, and the railing at the right hand side. The shadows cast by the figures provide another diagonal interest.

Instead of a diagrammatic WS, I will post an alternative crop for your consideration.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-18 3:13

Hello Bev,

The low sunlight bathes the wall with warm colour, and throws the shadow of the bench almost horizontally on to it.

An interesting collection of graffiti in various colours – sadly, not much sense can be made of any of them.

The top of the bench and its shadow lie along a line of thirds, and make a strong anchor for the composition.

Attractive textures in the cobbles and the bricks and blocks in the wall.

I look forward to seeing more in this series.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-17 3:33

Hello John,

A lovely early morning contre-jour shot. The eye is led through the image along the gently bending line of roofs with their chimneys. As you mention in your reply to Bev, they do indeed look like a steam train with the linked "carriages" of the houses.

A fine foreground, with those protruding stems of the autumnal coloured plants curving out over the grey slates of the roofs.

I particularly like that little area of the image showing a strong contrast of dark and light, where the left hand chimney of the nearest roof is silhouetted sharply against the white mist

A very attractive picture.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-16 6:19

Hello Gunnar,

A fine sharp image with excellent exposure.

A very satisfactory composition with the "cameo" of the two men in conversation positioned around the upper right intersection of thirds. The body language of the two, and the interaction of their gaze reinforce this.

There is also a strong diagonal from top right to bottom left directly through this "cameo" area, the accordion and then to the bag laid on the ground.

An illustrative diagram in the WS.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-12 10:20

Hello John,

A crisp frosty early morning, a lot different from the wet weather we are having down south at the moment.

I like the way the low sun illuminates the far side of the loch, while the frozen foreground remains in shadow. The swimming waterfowl bring interest to the middle ground, and the steely sky matches the wintry mood.

The small bush at the near waterside lies on a line of thirds, forming a starting point for our eyes to wander over the image, taking in all the sharp details. I particularly like those tall reeds which stand out against the sky at the left and right of that little bush.

As a WS, I'd like to suggest an alternate crop to reduce the foreground slightly. I've also tried, not very expertly, to clone stamp away the thick reed stems that shoot up and out of the picture on the top left hand corner of the image.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-12 7:41

Hello Gunnar,

I think I could tell this was one of yours as soon as I saw it as a thumbnail.

Composition:

The red foreground element is well positioned as an "anchor" in the image, on an intersection of thirds, and the far horizon also lies on a thirds line.

There is a good lead-in from the right hand side, where the older wooden boat is moored, across to the boats along the quay, then on towards the left hand side of the image.

There are fine reflections in the water. The old two-masted boat on the far side of the quay looks interesting.

Technical matters:

As usual when I critique a picture, I have a look at the histogram in PS "levels", to assess the range of tones in the image, from the blackest to the whitest pixels on the curve of the graph. It's fine here at the white end, but there is a small deficit at the black end suggesting that the darkest pixels in the image could be further exploited.

In the WS I've added the usual thirds grid, but I've also applied Auto levels to bring out the darkest tones. A bit more fine tuning using "Curves" would adjust these darkest areas more precisely.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-12 4:57

Hello Bev,

The first question that occurs to me here is – what is the man in charge saying to the girls with their Brownie [?] umbrella?

Is it: "You must fold that bright coloured thing up and put it away, because this is a very serious occasion. You should have brought your flag instead"?

Anyway, this is a fine picture, with a good contrast between colour and solemnity, on opposite sides of the street.

I am sure those who died in all the wars would be glad if they could see these children able today to enjoy their young lives.

Kind regards,

Peter.

graffer (1764) 2009-11-10 3:58

Hello Gunnar,

A fine sharp and clear picture. The strong diagonals of the white gable of the house separate the cloudless blue sky above from the red timbers below.

The dark green foliage introduces the complementary element. It's unusual to see a Swedish house with ivy growing around it, but this looks to be quite an old building.

The line of the roadside with its white markings, makes a good lead-in to the picture from the left hand side.

The gate, the post box, the old door and the roadside marker post in national colours, all introduce elements of interest along this line.

I see that you have added a thin white border to your image. Interestingly, this shows up well in the old [beta] TE, where all images have a thin black line around them. On the new TE site, however, where this black line no longer exists, the white border unfortunately disappears into the background.

Kind regards,

Peter.