When One's Ship Comes In Photo

Photographer’s Note

I found this shot on my laptop; it makes a change from the photos I have taken since arriving in France. It was taken on the first day that I used my new DSLR, and despite not knowing what I was doing with the camera at the time (just shooting away without having even read the manual, which I suppose is typical) I've found that a little cropping and work on the levels has made it look OK.

This is a shot of one of the many piers in Melbourne, on the eastern side of Port Phillip Bay. I think it's the Kerferd Road Pier, not far from the centre of Melbourne, which I've photographed before for TE. As I remember, I was driving along the beach road with the new camera in the car waiting to be used, when I saw the ship crossing the horizon behind the jetty. I managed to stop, set the camera on 'P', and get a shot in just as it passed in front of the setting sun.

qpochet, kiwi_explorer, daddo, snunney, Elaine_Blath, Buin, chrisnet, johnnyh, Silke, cherryripe, gypsygirl58, guillaumejm, VeeJayCee, vinicio has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

TravelerNL (2951) 2007-02-15 4:39

Hello Andrew,
Beautiful colors of the sky and the light on the waves which makes them visible very well. I like the compo very much with the pier crossing from right to left through the photo. The lights and people make it a very good scene. The boat in front of the sun is the finishing touch. Well done.
Harko

qpochet (1378) 2007-02-15 4:48

Hi Andrew,

Very nice view. I like the light and the beautiful colours. Well balanced composition as well with well placed silhouettes.
Well done!
Quentin.

kiwi_explorer (12195) 2007-02-15 4:59

Hi Andrew,
What a perfect capture ... a setting sun, a silhouette ship, and colourful sky ... what more can you ask. Well composed and the pier looks well placed. Excellent!
Cheers,
Renier

moody (0) 2007-02-15 5:21

Very nice photo, cheers, Moody

yanm (1485) 2007-02-15 5:48

very good colour and composition. did you dodge some on the waves ? i think it will be better if you doit along the way...

daddo (11342) 2007-02-15 5:58

hi andrew. It seems the ratio is 1:3 ( you know what I mean.)Anyway, back to your little masterpiece. I absolutely love those waves- they seem to be made out of embossed silver. Magical capture, especially when youhave them in contrast with the dark sand. The sky, golden as it is, complements my simile regarding the metalic like waves. Regards. Klaudio.

snunney (34830) 2007-02-15 6:00

Hello Andrew,
Very pleasing composition with lots of interesting geometrics. The diagonal angle of view on the pier is nice as is the repetitive shapes of the lamp posts, all making for an appealing set of silhouettes. Very nice tones from the last of the evening sun and good definition. The passing ship is certainly an added bonus.

Elaine_Blath (6170) 2007-02-15 6:09

Hi Andrew,

nicely moody, he setting sun is always a good choice. It would be just another from thousands of sunsets, but what makes a sunset photo a good one, is the details and foreground...and you´ve managed that, som my compliments...

Take care, Ivana

jone (3229) 2007-02-15 6:29 [Comment]

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Buin (37600) 2007-02-15 7:04

Hallo Andrew!
A beautiful atmosphere is in this picture and the sight is beautiful too. I like the rows of waves in contrast to the breathtaking calm sky. The build up of this is exceptional. I like it a lot!
Greetings from Germany!
Frank

vapours (7913) 2007-02-15 7:24

A great shot Andrew. Love that sun sinking into the ocean just behind the ship and that jetty makes a great foreground subject, almost acting as a division between the foreground and background.

chrisnet (20374) 2007-02-15 7:50

Hello Andrew,
I like this atmosphere and the beautiful orange color of the sky, the silhouettes are well placed, it's a very pleasant shot. Good work.
Regards
Christian

baba_flies (7981) 2007-02-15 8:03

Hello Andrew! Seeing this, a rough ride to Tasmania comes to my mind, when everyone went to bed early not to be seen until the other morning. It can badly "rock" out there, and I can see some waves moving to the beach in your photo ... so probably another bad ride over. But let's "switch" to this wonderful sunset. Nice how the sun sets behind the ship. A romantic evening this must have been. All the best from Zurich, Barbara.

johnnyh (637) 2007-02-15 8:48

Lovely tones Andrew, and great compo, and love the silhouettes, very good work and best regards for the day, John.

Silke (3023) 2007-02-15 8:56

The POV is perfect, especially since you were able to get the ship blocking out the strongest light of the setting sun! Great colours and details, super composition
TFS
silke

cherryripe (18973) 2007-02-15 16:33

Hi Andrew
Have you been time-travelling in the Tardis ? 2007-12-02 ?
Anyway I really like your composition with a dynamic angle of the jetty, those cute overhanging lamposts the sun just right in the corner and those waves.
I hope I get such weather in August.
Regards
Nikki

gypsygirl58 (1329) 2007-02-15 18:11

Hi Andrew,
Lovely image! I like the pier crossing the image. The sky is a lovley colour and the light on the waves is beautiful.
There's a lot to be said for automatic mode, LOL!! I'm still learning bits and pieces on my camera, take me a long time I think.
TFS Cheers Tina :-)

guillaumejm (9072) 2007-02-16 16:21

Hello andrew.
A marvelous picture you have here. the pier adds a lot to the composition. I like also the soft light on the waves on the left of the pier. On course sun light on the right is perfect. And the sharpnes in the distance is very good too.
Best regards
JMarc

dsidwell (9745) 2007-02-18 22:47

Hello Andrew. I really like the contrast between the silky sky and the rolling waves, which add an element of danger. Lovely work!

ben4321 (9787) 2007-02-19 12:48

More than OK, I think this is a great shot, Andrew. I like the contrast between the steely grey of the sea and the warm orange tones of the sky.
The composition is excellent, as is your timing in taking this just as the sun was dipping below the horizon.
I think the shot could be further improved by cropping a bit more of the beach in the foreground away though.
Good work.

Cheers,
Ben

toni_al (15430) 2007-02-19 18:54

Salut Andrew
Très belle ambience de fin de jornée, le cadrage est sympa.
@+
Toni

marioana (2178) 2007-02-26 4:32

G'day Andrew.
Great simple composition. The rough sea adds drama. I miss my home town! Well done.
Regards, Steve

vinicio (22380) 2007-02-26 11:04

Wonderful sunset Andrew, compliment, it's rich of many things to watch and have excellent lights and colours, very good composition too, the sunset atmosphere is on my desktop :) Well done.
Have a nice week
Ciao
Vinicio

Aline_N (3157) 2007-02-26 11:48

A perfect composition, a very elegant line of lamposts and waves magnifying it, and a lot of details to see.. It is a pleasure !

VeeJayCee (2410) 2007-02-26 17:13

Hi Andrew. As the saying goes, "if all else fails, read the instructions"! This shows how good the metering is on the DSLR if program mode copes so well with the sun in shot. An excellent image, nice colour and composition.

t0bs (147) 2008-01-21 1:22

Lovely.
I like the gradual mixture of pink and orange in the sky. I also like the soft texture of the waves with its gradual movement.
Well done.

Cheers
Toby