I've often thought of driving to Happisburgh on the Norfolk Coast but never got round to it until a couple of weeks ago. This was shot mid afternoon and felt it looked more dramatic as an underexposed B&W then the original colour version.
I feel uneasy taking images of children so set the camera on a tripod, composed the shot and had my back to the scene talking to a fotog I met on the beach and triggered the remote a second after the crash of waves as the screaming started.
Not your normal lensbaby shot and am guessing 'oversharpened' will be the most seen comment however I like like the way it makes the 30 foot wave look like one of those old B movie scenes with a toy boat pretending to be on the high seas.
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Place: 18 out of 414 Avg (all users): 6.5149 Avg (commenters): 8.7000 Avg (participants): 6.6132 Avg (non-participants): 6.1429 Views since voting: 2810 Views during voting: 276 Votes: 134 Comments: 22 Favorites: 13 (view)
Mega stunning. (Lensbaby I can see, but wasn't sure if the underexposure was in camera or pp or both; what I am studying on is that 1/2046 shutter speed, use of tripod, sound and chance).
Beautiful, powerful, yet has a hint of innocence. Very well done. I've got to shoot more with my LB, this reminds me why I bought one in the first place.
Very nice. I remember looking at this photo during voting, but clearly didn't leave a comment. "Lensbaby" wasn't a word that even crossed my mind, though now that you've said it I can see the effect.
What I was actually thinking about was worry for the kids. I'm sure it's one of those shots that looks worse than it really was, but every summer you hear about people getting hit by sneaker waves and being pulled out to sea. Ooo, I shake my virtual fist at those parents...
The kids are easy to miss. They almost blend in with the posts. When they do reveal themselves to the viewer (as kids, not posts), it's quite a nice surprise.
Great job with the composition and using the contrast and lighting to maximum effect. Just enough information is revealed. Moving from left to right, you see the children having fun, then the posts and a little more splash, then at the far right of the frame, complete shadowy, blurry chaos. Quite a range of dynamics and a nice progression.
My first impressions: Very powerful shot. Lots of rage and action charged in the frame. Technically a beautiful photo. As I explored the rest of your image I then noticed the somewhat playful looking children on the left side which I must say I almost missed because they look like rocks or dock poles.
I guess the overall conflict I have is that the waves have this disastrous and powerful look, especially in dark B&W, while the playful children, i feel, take away from that sense of danger and seriousness. What looked like a raging storm suddenly changed into "splashy fun for the kids" situation. Still, I like this shot very much. 7 - just bumped you up to 8.
OK, I'm going through the Free Study submissions, purposefully finding those images I think are shot with a less conventional eye - this is one of those images! Thanks for offering something that isn't just DPC friendly eye-candy (though of course there's nothing wrong with eye-candy):
Positives: I think the use of a Lensbaby qualifies this image for a comment in this series but I feel this marvellous image is just as likely to receive great scores from those who reject the unconventional as those who embrace it. This is just flat-out fantastic, one of those pictures I know I'm just not skilled enough to pull-off.
I'll try and explain why I like it so much - the image is dynamic but frozen, sharp but blurry, contrasty but not lacking in tones, dark and light, scary and playful. Just fabulous. I could go on some more, but I don't want to bore you. It suffices to say I've given it a 10.
Critical stuff: The border, I've tried obscuring it on my screen and I think it looks better for it, but that's just a personal thing.
Overall - I really hope this gets the score it deserves and ribbons. I'm soooo glad to have had the opportunity to view this image.
Oh yeah, first cab off the rank and it's this beauty. Great choice. You certainly nailed the sweet spot in the right place on those crashing waves. Awesome timing and control. Plus including the kids in frame has really given it scale. How they weren't all swept away is beyond me.
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