NikonGear'23

Images => Critique => Topic started by: eugeniogp on August 12, 2015, 04:21:51

Title: Zen state
Post by: eugeniogp on August 12, 2015, 04:21:51

The picture was taken with a Nikon D600 with a 35mm f2 lens.  I would appreciate any feedback on the composition of the post production.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Frank Fremerey on August 12, 2015, 04:27:58

What stays in the end of life, of us? Just sculptural witnesses it seems.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Jakov Minić on August 12, 2015, 10:36:00

I would have kept the foreground more in focus.
Nice composition :)

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Bjørn Rørslett on August 12, 2015, 11:09:13

Actually this is a classic example of wishing to include everything and thereby, losing some of the picture opportunities present. I wondered about the "speck" in the background and by zooming in on the fully-sized image, I see there is a fishing vessel at speed. Juxtapositioning this against the dead mangrove trunks would create impact and image depth, but as is, this is lost between all other details.

My general advice when arriving at such a scene that visually overwhelms you: snap a picture of the scene first to "get it out of your system". Then, sit down and consider carefully what element(s) or structure(s) that attracted you in the first place; then start working with these one by one.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: elsa hoffmann on August 12, 2015, 15:01:22

Desolate comes to mind.
I am with Jakov on the sharpness / focus

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: eugeniogp on August 12, 2015, 17:32:56

Thanks for your feedback,  specially to Bjorn.  I guess the phrase "you don't take a picture you make it" comes to mind.  Lots to learn!

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Frank Fremerey on August 12, 2015, 21:57:10

I still like it. And I like my comment very much

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Sash on August 12, 2015, 23:18:32

I my opinion cutting the  the upper part so that the sky takes 1/3 of the frame put the largest object at 1/3 as well and immediately improves the balance. 

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Bjørn Rørslett on August 12, 2015, 23:23:46

Also makes it even more conventional and increases the dullness factor. My immediate objection was the overload of detail not the divide sky-ground.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Andrea B. on August 13, 2015, 02:51:33

I don't particularly "see" the detail as overload. I'm seeing the detail as a part of a larger scheme of dark/light inversion. White clouds on dark sky. Dark(ish) wood on white sand.

I think the dark/light aspects were well seen or edited, whichever was done.

Agree that overall blockiness of composition could be experimented with.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Anthony on August 13, 2015, 10:26:11

Overall I find this quite a dramatic image, which gives me the feeling of being there.  I think a large print on the wall would look good.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: ColinM on August 13, 2015, 22:02:20

Thanks for posting Eugine.
I like the way you've used the deep blue sky to contrast with the sand but had completely missed the boat till I read Bjorn's comment.

Guess since most of the suggestions can't be fixed in PP (unless you bump up the contrast of the foreground stumps) you now have an excuse to go back there and try another shoot ;)

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Jim Covello on March 24, 2017, 13:39:13

I might put the horizon in the exact center and highlight the contrast between the dark sky with soft puffy clouds and the light sand with all the harsh stumps. You can crop the bottom a touch but might need to fabricate a little sky on the top.

Perhaps clone away the boat on the horizon since it is too tiny to do much other than distract.

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: Fons Baerken on March 24, 2017, 14:24:20

Zen is such an abused word nowadays,  :o

Title: Re: Zen state
Post by: armando_m on March 24, 2017, 17:25:50

Eugenio

Big open spaces give me calm, and your image does that, so in capturing the feel of the location  IMO it is a success

I see the luminance of blue was lowered? this in tuns causes white halos around objects against the blue, it is a problem that I also run into and I do not know how to correct it, without going into a pain staking photoshop process zoomed it at 100%

I also noted the slight out of focus for the nearest tree stump

But you didn't go all the way over there and took one single shot, or did you  ?

Where is this location ?

Thanks for sharing your image