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Domesticated Elements
Domesticated Elements
Ductyl


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: All Four Elements (Advanced Editing VII*)
Camera: Canon EOS-550D Rebel T2i
Lens: Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM for Canon
Location: Basement
Date: Jan 24, 2011
Aperture: 2.5
ISO: 640
Shutter: 1/50
Galleries: Interior
Date Uploaded: Jan 25, 2011

 I almost gave up on this challenge, my roommate is the one who convinced me to keep trying.

I had the "clever" idea of elements being packaged and produced in modern society.

I was going to try to do something with:
box of matches
bottles of water
can of air
bag of dirt
and the four different types of packaging being the four elements of modern life, but I couldn't really come up with an interesting shot.

I tried just putting them on a white table in front of a black background (and later came up with an awesome title for this shot, "Periodic Table of the Elements") but failed to make it aesthetically interesting.

Then I moved them to the shelves in this picture and took some front-lit shots which, again, came out rather boring. I was going to give up on this challenge entirely, but my roommate encouraged me to go play with it some more, and while I was just dinking around with the lights, I stuck one into the bucket and was really happy with the result. So then I just had to cut into the gas can (they make those things kinda thick) and blow up balloons for the green tint (I really need to get some lighting gels for next time) and I'm fairly happy with the result. Unfortunately I recognized the edge of the baloon on the "earth" shelf only after I started post production (and we already took down the set up). I figured cloning out the balloon would be crossing an editing line, can anyone confirm this?

There are some earlier shots where the "earth" layer is more cluttered, which I kind of like (much like the air layer is intentionally sparse), but for simplicity purposes, I pulled out some of the other items.

Lessons learned:
- When having trouble with an interesting shot, play with the lights
- I need to finish reading Light Science and Magic
- I need to get some light gels so we're not scrambling through the house looking for translucent colored objects
- Dodge and burn is neat, but I read up on how to do a non-destructive version using an overlay layer. I'll definitely try that method next time.

All and all, I'm rather happy with the result... we'll see how it fairs in voting. I imagine that the more talented participants will have pictures of actual fire, so that might be some stiff competition. ;)

==== After the Challenge ====
Wow! Top 10 on my second entry!

It was a rollercoaster all week, and while I was hoping to hold onto the 6.4 I kept creeping past, I'm very happy to get above a 6 on my second try. :)

I'm glad so many people enjoyed the shot, and I agree with some of the comments about the image quality. I'm fairly sure that my problem was having my DOF way too narrow for the shot... I didn't notice it until I pulled the shots onto the computer the next day, when I had already tore down the set up... lesson learned, from now on I should take some test shots up to the computer to make sure the shot looks alright. I think this could have scored a few places higher if the image quality was better.

Statistics
Place: 9 out of 47
Avg (all users): 6.3460
Avg (commenters): 7.8462
Avg (participants): 6.0323
Avg (non-participants): 6.3932
Views since voting: 2149
Views during voting: 593
Votes: 237
Comments: 30
Favorites: 0

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AuthorThread
 02/04/2011 02:31:45 PM
Nice take on the challenge :)

Oh wait, Bear_Music said the same thing below. But really... different from the rest of the top 10, and well executed. Congrats on your finish.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/02/2011 06:01:50 PM
Regarding the editing question, you could have turned the arc of the balloon green, and that would have been perfectly OK, no question whatsoever. Personally, I think you could have cloned it out altogether and not gotten close to being in trouble, but I've been wrong before.

Nice take on the challenge: certainly more creative than mine :-) Congrats on top-10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/02/2011 07:04:08 AM
Congrats! Nice finish for your second challenge.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/02/2011 12:02:52 AM
Awesome!!! Top 10 in your second challenge. Way to go!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
02/01/2011 11:03:43 PM
Very creative and well done.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/01/2011 05:00:08 PM
My first thought was ho-hum.... then I saw the different colors of flash. That saved this one for me. Very creative.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/01/2011 03:47:14 PM
Brilliant concept.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/31/2011 09:21:19 PM
I like how you set this up. Very diffent from all the other entries. The color emphasis added a lot to the composition. There are actually several small items in this shot, but they do not attract attention to themselves. The image is viewed as a whole, and a very pleasant one it is. bumped to 8
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/30/2011 09:58:56 PM
This one isn't as picturesque as some others, but you deserve major points for a great idea, a lot of effort and the clever lighting. Well done! 9
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/30/2011 10:25:47 AM
love your concept.. very creative.. would have been cool if the lantern was lit. It is unfortunate that detail is lost in the hose, gas can and water bottles. The image as it is could be improved with some light processing.. maybe to just remove noise, a little sharpening and a shadow/highlight adjustment... Still 8 for creativity.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/30/2011 12:09:27 AM
Great image. Love the different levels and the different colors relating to the items. Well thought out and executed. I'm sure it will do well. Top ten for sure.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/29/2011 08:59:48 AM
A straightforward approach with clarity of concept. The picture lacks something though - perhaps a bit more poetry or a better focus. Between a 9 for idea and a 4 or 5 for photo = 7
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/28/2011 02:45:49 PM
Definitely one of the best! What a great concept. Love it
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/28/2011 12:48:38 PM
Like this very much for its difference.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/28/2011 12:09:19 PM
hahaha what a set! nice! looks like a lot of thought was put into this one.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/28/2011 11:41:37 AM
Good idea, but I don't like the Photo Quality
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/27/2011 03:47:09 PM
cool idea
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 01:35:08 PM
Brilliant idea! This gets a 9 from me (voted earlier) despite the bit of camera shake.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 01:16:45 PM
I am not sure what everyone else will think or vote, but this is the most original composition in the bunch, I can see it getting slammed, but I give it a 10. Hope people will notice the subtle light changes in the shelves - no matter where u end up, this was great thinking on your part!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 12:27:08 PM
Great idea. I really like the individualized lighting and the props you picked.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 12:09:47 PM
excellent!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 11:06:30 AM
What a heck of a lot of work went into this. Marvelous concept and execution. Thoughtful consideration of objects, and the color appropriate lighting is a wonderful touch.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 09:51:07 AM
Such a great take on the challenge! Love the idea of the different color lights for each element!

I wonder whether it would've looked better (or worse?) if you went more minimalist and only had one representative item for each element in each of the compartments?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 08:47:07 AM
This is very creative.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 08:20:55 AM
very creative and unique interpretation of the topic, great lighting, One of my top picks.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 07:58:26 AM
Nice concept.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 01:47:02 AM
I like this. As art. The concept is great and the different color lighting adds so much.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 12:53:05 AM
Best of challenge. 10 Very creative. Great lighting.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 12:19:13 AM
Creative!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 01/26/2011 12:07:30 AM
Genious and im glad you took the time to do it
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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