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11/12/2008 08:36:39 AM · #1 |
 I was shooting some Photographs for our Local Dance Group whohad put on a Production Performance and the opening Scene was this Dancer who appeard from the Stage Smoke.
It wa very very Dark and the Smoke Made it even more difficult to get anything Sharp, saying that I think I did the Best I possibly could but I am Gutted to have finished Fifth From Last.
I did not take this on purpose for the Callenge, I just thought it would be different from all of the expected Cigaret Smoke and Coloued Smoke that would be there, Maybe Peole didnt understand the difficulty of capturing something under these conditions or Maybe they Just Thought it was Pooor !
I am feeling a Bit Hurt and Low, so whats your thoughts and Advice Please.
Cheers.
Joe |
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11/12/2008 08:41:21 AM · #2 |
Hi Joe, it's a very nice photo but I would guess the problem was that it just doesn't appear that there is any smoke in the photograph from a normal user's point of view. You were there, so you knew there was smoke, but I find it hard to tell.
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11/12/2008 08:43:26 AM · #3 |
| I think it was a good effort, and the shot itself was closer to a 5 than what it really got. However, the smoke was not evident enough in the photo and it probably got killed by DNMC votes. (I have not looked at the comments yet) Some careful adjustments (some curves, contrast and sharpening, perhaps) may have been able to bump it up a little, and make the smoke more evident, but I'm not totally sure. |
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11/12/2008 08:47:08 AM · #4 |
Originally posted by judojoe:
I did not take this on purpose for the Callenge, I just thought it would be different from all of the expected Cigaret Smoke and Coloued Smoke that would be there...
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Joe - i think you captured the essence of your score pretty completely here. The shot was not taken for the challenge and the concept of smoke as a main subject appears to have been paramount to scoring well in the challenge.
On your disappointment: You commented that the shot was difficult to take and that you are disappointed that it was not rewarded for difficulty. But as viewers, we don't know that it was difficult - we simply see a shot that was entered in the challenge - the amount of work to get the shot is not clear when viewing. I can understand your disappointment when you work hard, do a very solid job, and not get rewarded.
But, in photography as in sports and music, it is not the difficulty that makes a work outstanding, it is completing a difficult task and making it look effortless.
For the shot: The composition is very solid - good lines and colors and I think you did well under the conditions. The focus on the face is off - with the front leg being more in focus rather than the face - which to me seems like the focal point based on the lines from the arms and lighting. For this specific challenge - the smoke is not especially evident in the shot resulting in voters giving you lower scores. |
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11/12/2008 08:50:57 AM · #5 |
| I think the main problem is that if you showed this photograph to somebody outside of this website, and asked them what the topic or theme was they would probably say something like "Dance", "Theater", "Play", or "Flexibility". Yes there may have been smoke, but as a viewer, when I look at this photograph, it is barely visible, and I might not have seen it if I hadn't been specifically looking for it. Does this mean it is a poor photograph because it finished so low? Of course not. It just didn't fit the theme as well as the other images. |
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11/12/2008 08:57:28 AM · #6 |
Its starting to make sense Now !
Cheers.
Joe |
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11/12/2008 09:01:02 AM · #7 |
The smoke is too minor an aspect of the photograph and the focus is not sharp on her face.
:(
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11/12/2008 09:09:52 AM · #8 |
| Its DPChallenge. Smoke has to be obvious to do well here. Not impresiionistic smoke. |
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11/12/2008 10:29:31 AM · #9 |
Or perhaps the voters didnt "smoke" enough before they voted?
Matt
Edit because apparently I cleared out my actual thoughts on the image.
I think exposing -1 of what you did might have shown the smoke a bit more in the image. As it is now the girl is the subject and the smoke that is visible is easily mistaken not to be smoke.
Message edited by author 2008-11-12 11:07:57.
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11/12/2008 11:14:53 AM · #10 |
Where is the smoke? The subject seems to be a Dancer.
Different can, sometimes be better.
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11/12/2008 11:31:32 AM · #11 |
If this was my daughter and I was just taking pics of her performance, then I'd be happy with the pic and stuff it in her album, and show the grand-parents... but beyond that, I don't see anything in this shot that I would enter into a photography challenge site for a smoke challenge. Your vantage point doesn't give any cool artistic view. The lighting is average stage lighting. The smoke is not back lit to give any mood to the shot. The person is in a stationary pose instead of a action/dance move... overall this pic works for a keepsake album for the person who knows her, but beyond that, it's a snapshot.
It's hard to not get attached to your image, and think it should score higher, but if you read your critiques, and think about how to improve next time, you can keep working on getting higher and higher scores. I've had my share of stinker photos on here that I thought should have done better, but several years later, and looking back on them, I can see how they could have been improved.
And as stated by others, difficulty of shot isn't scored, final outcome is.
-danny |
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11/12/2008 05:51:37 PM · #12 |
Thanks everyone for taking the Time
I am grateful for your Advice and I will Plough on and Improve Ten Fold
Cheers.
Judo Joe |
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11/12/2008 06:12:14 PM · #13 |
Hi Joe,
I worked with your shot a bit to try & make the smoke more evident. not sure if I accomplished it enough for the challenge, but it's definitely sharper. Have a look ...
[thumb]738828[/thumb] |
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