Trying to convert a hayloft into a loft apartment...
by snaffles

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

This is starting to get weird now! I'm wondering if anybody else is ever going to crop in my queue. I think this is my 6 critique for you in the last few weeks.

I wrote a big long critique and then my machine got stuck and I needed to reboot, so just lost it all.

I am going to start this critique by asking you, a fellow critique club member, how you would critique this image?

I have a couple of questions about it. When you entered this into the I Quit challenge, did you really think it actually met the challenge, or did you think that you could squeeze it in with the title? (I'm assuming you did think it met the challenge or your would not have entered it) Do you yourself like it? What score would you give it in light of the challenge topic?

I ask the questions, just as a pre-amble to my critique, because my words may sound harsh, but I think if you put this up for critique, then you want real feedback and not just platitudes.

Technically this image is lacking. The exposure is off, it lacks contrast and the colours are washed out. Some of these things could have been fixed in camera by using the correct exposure, but a lot could be done in post processing since the highlights and shadows are not clipped. I'd be very interested to see the original file, as you have listed a whole bunch of editing steps, but I am not sure what those have done to this one. It may have been a good idea to boost the ISO to 400, it may have given you a faster shutter speed which in turn may have made the image a bit sharper. Even with VR 1/30 is quite a slow shutter speed and could easily give you a bit of camera shake. Typically anything lower than 1/60 is going to cause some kind of camera shake.

Coming back to the concept. I'm afraid to say I see this as a real shoe horn for this challenge. The image itself does not really portray quitting, it relies on the title to link it to the challenge topic. You were far from the only person to do that. I think this was a really difficult challenge, so kudos for giving it a go.

Susan, I'm sorry if this critique sounds harsh, it's not meant to be and I certainly do not want to discourage you. Having critiqued so many of your images just recently, I would just like to help you a little bit.

Sarah

Lexus Man
by snaffles

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

Well, me again!

Sorry this didn't tip the 5 scale. I think conceptually this was an almost there kind of shot. I think anybody who chose not to include text in this challenge was hurting with the score. As it was an advertising challenge, a much more graphic feel was needed to score well.

From a technical point of view, I think you are hurting a bit too. The image is quite over exposed, especially in the sky area. What would have helped you a lot in this specific case would be to use a circular polariser on your lens. So not a photoshop trick this time! The polariser would have helped make the blues bluer and yet keep the clouds fluffy and white.

That said, you could have also fixed it to some extent, very very easily in photoshop. The highlights in the clouds are just a bit too blown out to do much in PS.

Perhaps think about bracketing your shots to get the optimal exposure in the future. The histogram on your camera is your friend. Check it out, if the histogram is strongly to right, you have overexposed the highlights, or if it's strongly to the left, you have underexposed the shadows. In both cases, it's nearly impossible to get any detail back in post processing. If you set the camera to bracketing mode, where it takes one at what the camera thinks is the correct exposure and then the next 2 images will be a 1/3 of a stop (if that's what you have set the bracketing to) under exposed and a 1/3 stop over exposed. That way you get a more accurately exposed shot and less work to do in PS. Doing this can help as sometimes the camera doesn't get it right!

Concerning the composition, I think the angle of view could have been improved. As several people commented, this seems to be more about the man and less about the car. Moving him to the other side, would have been a good idea. Also, you do have a bit too much sky, which again takes away from the car.

As I said, though, the concept was good and some small changes to both the composition and exposure could have brought it up at least to the mid-fives (even without the fancy graphics and texts).

run girl run
by Lutchenko

Comment:
LOL. That's funny

street master
by grigrigirl

Comment:
OMG. I'm speechless. I think.

oops
by Lutchenko

Comment:
I'd like to see Connor's shot to compare them both :) Never quite figured out the fascination with skateboarding. Just looks like an accident waiting to happen in most cases!

Ophelia
by Alicia

Comment:
Wow, that's a wicked overlay

Pink Dress
by Alicia

Comment:
You're in the wrong challenge! Overlays was last month :)
Sorry, couldn't resist that. This is just gorgeous Alicia. Really great.

lumière de soirée
by Ecce_Signum

Comment:
For some reason I don't think I've noticed this one before and I'm not sure why! This is beautiful Andi.

courier track stand
by power47

Comment:
I like the composition of this very much

Through The Looking Glass
by Covert_Oddity

Comment:
Not totally sure what we are supposed to be looking at here, other than just a busy urban scene. The reflection of you, the photographer gives it a kind of voyeuristic look, but I'm still not really sure what the subject is supposed to be.