• r e f l e c t i n g •
by Ja-9

Comment:
From the Critique Club

Janine, just my luck commenting on a ribbon shot.... :)
Whats left to say on a shot which met the standards for right angles and also a perfectly executed shot in taste with DPC.

Just earlier I was commenting on how a person could improve on their shot and in opening this shot I find exactly what I suggested. Again well done on framing this. Its so easy to ruin this and believe the BW works for this. The framing on the top right, one could easily miss how important this is in making this image work as the eyes get drawn from left to right diagonally and are met by further angles.

Nothing more needs to be said. Textbook shot

Regards
Rian

• r e f l e c t i n g •
by Ja-9

Comment:
From the Critique Club

Janine, just my luck commenting on a ribbon shot.... :)
Whats left to say on a shot which met the standards for right angles and also a perfectly executed shot in taste with DPC.

Just earlier I was commenting on how a person could improve on their shot and in opening this shot I find exactly what I suggested. Again well done on framing this. Its so easy to ruin this and believe the BW works for this. The framing on the top right, one could easily miss how important this is in making this image work as the eyes get drawn from left to right diagonally and are met by further angles.

Nothing more needs to be said. Textbook shot

Regards
Rian

• r e f l e c t i n g •
by Ja-9

Comment:
From the Critique Club

Janine, just my luck commenting on a ribbon shot.... :)
Whats left to say on a shot which met the standards for right angles and also a perfectly executed shot in taste with DPC.

Just earlier I was commenting on how a person could improve on their shot and in opening this shot I find exactly what I suggested. Again well done on framing this. Its so easy to ruin this and believe the BW works for this. The framing on the top right, one could easily miss how important this is in making this image work as the eyes get drawn from left to right diagonally and are met by further angles.

Nothing more needs to be said. Textbook shot

Regards
Rian

The Right View
by KMcC

Comment:
From the crit Team

That voting graph should look different for a shot like this. You did well with this image and the right angle them comes through strongly. The exposure on the reflected glass is perfect, pleasing to eye and the clouds are making this work even better. Love the touch of greens - growth coming in on the right bottom corner. These are basic strong elements which makes it work.

Ways to improve maybe the following.
The slant in the building is one drawback in this image which weakens the right angle theme a bit and just the overall strength the building is supposed to portray. Of course any tilt of camera in relation to building will do this on a wide angle approach and only TS lens or a higher angle for you to shoot from could help for this.

You chose a time of day that worked for the image and cant say the light is all that bad except for the sky itself which with a bit more TLC in the PP could have helped to make that part of the scene not as bland as it currently is. It looks flat and further causes the potential punch of this image to be swayed to a lesser level of image. Challenging light requires a bit more work in PP. The contrast between sky and reflection makes it more of a challenge.

The comp itself could maybe have been improved slightly by playing around with moving around the points of intersection... That is where building enters and exits frame of image. Especially on top part of the frame and by creating further right angles in this imaginary way, if you follow what I mean, the general feel of the image could have been enhanced... And the slant of the building maybe even downplayed a bit.

Either way, it remains a shot with lots of potential and focus, exposure was handled well and surprised by depth even at 6.3. Not sure of the growth at bottom suffered on the focus end and cant judge on this scale but I would have been inclined to shoot at a closer stop to be sure the DOF is good.

Well done on eyeing this shot.
Regards
Rian

Hey friend look at the sky
by otto22

Comment:
From the club

Well done on a good finish in this challenge. You have some positive feedback with maybe a reservation on how much sky vs the fg.
Although this is a very good shot it most likely got downvoted slightly because of the description of the ground being more supportive rather than dominating as in this case a much larger part of the image. You had such a lovely sky... Why for this challenge did you need all the rocks? That human element alone would have been all the support you needed and I cant see why this image would not have had the potential for Blue.
Instead now you have a figure making a statement on your title and yet pointing at the rock. Title should support and not direct.
With so much going against the image largely due to the challenge theme conflicting with the image as a whole.. This image had enough to do well despite this. Technically not much wrong with it.
Good work Otto

Regards
Rian

Double the Skyscape
by juliannj

Comment:
From the Critique Club

Just short of a 6 on the DPC voting scale and High on your score rankings.

The idea is good for the challenge and original even though reflections comes a dozen at a time. It's a simple yet effective shot with comp good sticking to some basic rules Im sure you are familiar with. It's a very peaceful shot and in essence there truly is nothing wrong with it on a technical level.
Simple things that could have been done to create a stronger effect and have voters tip more towards the higher end of the voting scale is
1) Slower shutter and have some motion blur in the sky and have the water turn softer
2) wait for another time of day to have the light softer and in event of being morning or evening the colours richer
3) Lower angle to get closer to the water and bring the viewer more in contact with the scene.

All of the above creates an entirely different scene which is maybe not what you wanted.. But it does create a stronger image in the general viewer's mind and automatically moves the image up in the rankings.

Congrats on a good shot and keep them coming

Regards
Rian Botes

Alaskan sunrise
by gmink

Comment:
From the Critique Club

Skyscape challenge met. Good colours, layers of clouds and FG Mountains. There is a strong mood in this image which always helps.

Already noted is the fact that the Skyline dont seem to be level. It's possible of course that the mountains are running diagonally away but this is of little concern to the viewer and with very little detail in the image to convince the viewer otherwise.. it becomes disorienting and the most logical conclusion the lazy viewer can come to is.. it's not level

It's a pity that the sun could not be more sharper and more Starburst effect. Even at F19 the lens you used did not help much and this is always the case with longer focal lenses - BUT there seems to be a definite softness not only to the sun bit also the mountain line.. A further drawback to the image.

Finally the crop seems a bit of a pano which in itself is not a problem. Certainly helps strengthen the horisontal lines in the images where rythm and layers are used to good effect.. yet the blacks on both bottom and top gives the viewer very little to look at and I find myself bouncing back and forth between lines and what also could further distract the O.O.F cloud line. In a wider perspective image this is not a problem but because this is the main scene... it doe snot help.

That in a nutshell from me and I hope it helps a little. Enjoy your travels and photography
Rian

• r e f l e c t i n g •
by Ja-9

Comment:
Well done Janine. Great image. Love it :)

Solar Storm
by MargaretNet

Comment:
Congrats. HDR seems to do well on DPC

Right Angles, Right Curves
by JakeKurdsjuk

Comment:
From the club! :)
Right angles...? Who could miss it in a shot like this. 100% meeting the requirements set by the challenge topic. As always the voting graph rather harsh and yes it should have scored better but why not?

The processing works well in bringing out the colors and detail in all the multitude of elements such as bottles, shelves, etc etc.... And that is part of the problem in the image especially given the glaring white section of the image demanding attention but presenting the viewer with very little other than a lady/bartender who herself seems disengaged from anything in the scene. Such a busy scene needs a stronger point of interest that must contribute to the story as well as even if possible to the right angles theme.

In short I believe this image will be transformed if you had the backside of a person sitting either on left or right chair or even one person on left and right with bartender right in middle. This will have a triangular line effect and for this the lady should look straight at me the viewer. This then immediately adjust the focus and have me return my wandering between all the busy elements back to the people and finally to our lady serving the customers/drinkers/ wandering souls. The lady as pretty as she is also further looking at me will also strengthen the contrast between Beauty and cruelty/harshness of the environment she finds herself in and works in.. As this is a cold world for most people to drink in.

Its a good shot... But you need to get the attention of people and get them to search the image that will tell a story.. One that unfolds as they further wander their eyes through the image.

Regards
Rian