Light challenge entry - what went wrong?

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

02/07/2005 02:07:53 AM · #1

I'd appreciate critique of my Light entry

why has it finished so low (barely made 5.0 in the last 5 min or so)?
I have three guesses:
1. the face is not tack sharp (which I think it shouldn't be)
2. the religious connotation (as snackwells suggested, some people might consider the title sacrilegious)
3. child's face is a no-no

So, which is it?

Lev

Bear_Music

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

02/07/2005 02:19:45 AM · #2

Main thing that kept me from voting it higher was the totally blown-out candle flame, no color at all, and the very visible blotchiness of the boy's skin. A little better sharpness wouldn't have hurt either, but that wasn't the main issue. The catchlights in the eyes are perfect, the eyes and the expression make the picture. I gave it a 7.

Robt.

bicray

Canon EOS-300D Rebel

Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM

02/07/2005 02:22:44 AM · #3

I was left feeling uneasy at the angle of the candle and flame. The rotation spoiled it for me.

riotspyne

Nikon D80

02/07/2005 02:22:59 AM · #4

I didn't vote on this challenge but my first thought would be #1.
I think you did a great job at not making the face yellow orange looking like a lot of candle/face shots do.
I also took a quick stroll through your portfoilo and you have some really great stuff in there. I hope to look closer when I get some more time.

4score

Nikon D80

02/07/2005 02:24:08 AM · #5

I really liked it. I thinks that her eyes are really striking in the photo. I probably should have paid more attention to the candle itself.....but I was naturally drawn to the face. I think that's why I rated it fairy high myself.

Mark

garrywhite2

Canon EOS-7D

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

02/07/2005 02:27:09 AM · #6

Lev, I didn't vote; but I would have given either a 6 or 7. I think it's a great picture worthy of competing in other photography contests. I would encourage you to do so.

Node

Nikon D300

Tamron SP AF 17-35mm f/2.8-4 Di LD Aspherical IF for Nikon

02/07/2005 02:30:21 AM · #7

IMHO the eyes in this kind of shot need to be crystal clear. I think the crop just above the flame is a bit tight. Its quite a nice shot though in a very tough challenge.

Bud

Canon EOS-550D Rebel T2i

Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS HSM

02/07/2005 05:56:23 AM · #8

Pretty much #1... You could have used a faster shutter speed and then dodged and burn to bring out the details you wanted. That would have helped get a much sharped image.

Over all pretty good, I would have given this a 6 or 7 in the voting.

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

02/07/2005 11:17:58 AM · #9

bump

thanks for all the nice and helpful comments!
There must be many voters out there who gave it 1-5. Speak up, please!

scottwilson

Canon EOS-350D Rebel XT

Canon EF 28mm f/2.8

02/07/2005 11:41:56 AM · #10

Well I did not vote on this one, most likely would have given it a 5 if I had. No one else has mentioned this so maybe it is just me but the poor kid looks pretty sad to me. Again this my just be me but the look of the kids face makes it looks like he is being scolded for something bad that he did.

siggi

Canon EOS-10D

02/07/2005 11:44:32 AM · #11

I did not vote on this challenge but..

the eyes need to be in sharp focus.
the candle light is too bright and visable noise around it.
good crop, good color, good composition but the candel is too high up.

I would say about 6

ElGordo

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS for Canon

02/07/2005 12:48:04 PM · #12

I gave this picture a 5 because it is technically competent. The placement of the candle with respect to the boy's face and the angle of the candle is somewhat disturbing to me. The idea is good, I just don't care for the proximity of the candle.

MikeO

Fujifilm x100

02/07/2005 01:29:09 PM · #13

You should have either had the face/eyes sharp or used a soft focus effect. Also the flame is too bright in my opinion. I gave this a 4 for the reasons stated.

Mike

Message edited by author 2005-02-07 13:29:52.

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

02/07/2005 01:38:47 PM · #14

Thanks again to everyone for taking time to comment!

I agree that the candle would be better straight. In fact I had my niece hold it because I originally planned to have her hand in the photo, but it was so dark I had to crop it anyway. So I could've just placed it on a static foundation.
As for the placement, it would be problematic to place the candle farther from the face because the face would've been even darker as compared to the candle, and as several people commented, the candle is already too bright. To circumvent this, one could use an additional light to fake the candlelight on the face, but I did not want to go that route here.

Message edited by author 2005-02-07 13:39:16.

Bear_Music

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

02/07/2005 02:43:29 PM · #15

If the image is lit ONLY by candlelight, this explains the sense of softness. The candle is a moving light source as the flame wavers, and even more so if it is hand-held. This blurs the shadows and produces softness.

Robt.