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11/09/2008 10:41:36 AM |
Greetings from the Critique Club
by strangeghost
The first three parts of this critique are written based purely on examination of your photo. "Final thoughts" is written after reviewing your score, photographer's comments, and voter comments.
TECHNIQUE
It strikes me pretty quickly that the contrast in this photo is pretty low. There are a few black blacks and white highlights, but the overwhelming impression is a lot of gray. Focus is also soft throughout, which can be fine if it is serving a compositional purpose, but I can't see any intent or reason.
COMPOSITION
There are seven people visible in the shot, and several environmental elements. Let's discuss. Three people face the camera and three have their backs to the camera (we'll ignore the person second from the left since she's almost completely obscured). Any of the three people on the left are potentially interesting subjects. The bike rider looking off to his left, the two guys walking show interesting facial expressions and could be fascinating candid studies. The problem is, there's no compositional emphasis on any of them. All three are relatively equally emphasized by placement, and none fills the frame enough to dominate the emotional landscape. Likewise the people walking away. Interesting looking folks, but again, no clear subject emerges. The environmental elements; the newspaper machine, the window sign, the crosswalk sign: all are interesting but again, none seems to rise to the level of subject. What was your intent in snapping the pic? Did you want to tell a story or suggest a creative storyline? The picture doesn't really suggest anything to me other than people on a street. Imagine the difference now, if the bike rider was clearly in the foreground and the others were background. The eye would be drawn naturally to him, maybe his placement in frame would emphasize his facial expression or mood. Stories begin to leap to mind. The composition presented here has too many elements with none appearing dominant, and the resulting photo seems to lack a clear purpose or any overall logic tying all the elements together.
EMOTIONAL IMPACT
There is some emotional connection suggested here, just because people are always interesting subjects, but the lack of a clear compositional clarity or logic hurts this photo. After seeing this photo and looking away, there are no enduring images or details that stick in my brain and make me think.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I can tell by your title that the rider was your intended subject, but I never would have guess this from the photo alone. Your score of 4.8 suggests that DPC voters were similarly unmoved by the photo and probably did not spend much time lingering. Some commenters did mention the walk sign as a possible item of interest, but without your working to make it the subject, it didn't really emerge from the mix. Some also mentioned the technicals (contrast and exposure). Think about what you want your viewer to walk away with. Make a clear and interesting subject emerge from the mix of elements.
I really enjoyed the chance to study your photo in detail. I hope something in my comments was useful. |
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 Photographer found comment helpful. |
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11/04/2008 10:04:50 AM |
| This seems to be well processed for photojournalism, a nice clear shot of the moment, but I think for Street Photography (an art form) more contrast is needed. What I particularly like about this is the walk sign. The posture of the little walking man on the sign is echoed by all the pedestrians. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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11/04/2008 12:41:03 AM |
| There are some really great things going on this picture. The perfect 3 on 3 (well 4 if you count the one person you can't see), as well as the walk sign and the round shapes. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
Comments Made During the Challenge  |
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11/02/2008 09:04:07 AM |
Man this is such a good capture but it needs help in the edit.
Tone down the brightness adjust levels
Adjust contrast
Sharpen Tweek all using curves
Your crop and composition are bang on try the edits |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/31/2008 09:18:51 PM |
Meets Challenge:2
Technical:1
Interestingness:2
Creativity:
TOTAL: 5 |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/31/2008 04:05:46 PM |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/31/2008 11:51:05 AM |
| Looks like you've pushed this too far in post. ??? I say that because of the grain/noisy areas and the flatness of the photo (it needs toning down and more contrast IMO). I will say that you've created an authentic street scene of some interest. Good luck in the challenge. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/31/2008 06:27:55 AM |
| nice slice of life, but lacks impact |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/31/2008 02:24:36 AM |
| I dont know what it is.. I love this shot. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/28/2008 04:25:48 PM |
| A pretty good cast of characters and I always kinda like the "walk" sign in shots for some reason. Kind of an average day sort of shot. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/27/2008 09:07:30 AM |
| Fine street scene, but no real main subject or idea conveyed. Also may be over exposed a half stop or more. |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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10/27/2008 01:47:48 AM |
| VEry nice line. Needs more contrast though. (IMO) |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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