critique please - london night shot

[Andy]

ok i'll start off by submitting a photo for critique.

click on the pic for exif

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/23815879-L.jpg (http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/newexif.mg?ImageID=23815879)

[John Mueller]

Great idea Andy.
I will have to come back to this and tell you what I really think:D















:hide

[behr655]

Nice shot...................well it is, but I think you should have asked the light pole to move.

Seriously, I think it needs the foreground cropped out. On my screen the foreground does not show when I fill my browser window. Then I scroll down and see too much darkness.

Bear

Edit: Ok, I opened the picture in a new window and was able to see the whole shot at once. The dark foreground does balance with the sky and center the cityscape so never mind.:D

Gee, this ain't easy.

[Khaos]

I like the way you've shown the small area of light the lamp post gives in the darkness, giving it a solitary, lonely, yet handsome look. And while you take in that feeling you see the city beyond, lit up, full of life. It's a nice contrast of emotions.

The clarity and sharpness is excellent.

The one thing I don't like is the building directly behind the lamp post. It draws me away from the post and the group of buildings. I would PS it out.

That to me is the only drawback of a really nice photo.

[Andy]

Nice shot...................well it is, but I think you should have asked the light pole to move.

Seriously, I think it needs the foreground cropped out. On my screen the foreground does not show when I fill my browser window. Then I scroll down and see too much darkness.

Bear

Edit: Ok, I opened the picture in a new window and was able to see the whole shot at once. The dark foreground does balance with the sky and center the cityscape so never mind.:D

Gee, this ain't easy.

yep - there are issues with this shot but the foreground being underexposed fully isn't one of them - it's surely a taste issue, i will give you that, but on a properly calibrated monitor you should be able to see all the way to the bottom...

i put this shot up becuase there are some issues with it....

I like the way you've shown the small area of light the lamp post gives in the darkness, giving it a solitary, lonely, yet handsome look. And while you take in that feeling you see the city beyond, lit up, full of life. It's a nice contrast of emotions.

The clarity and sharpness is excellent.

The one thing I don't like is the building directly behind the lamp post. It draws me away from the post and the group of buildings. I would PS it out.

That to me is the only drawback of a really nice photo.

ahh yes - that pesky buildling. yup you are so right khaos! but far easier than ps'ing it out in post would have been for me to move my arse and repositioned my tripod, and the building would have fallen to the right of the light post :lol3

good catch and thanks for your contribution here....

[ian408]

My first impression of this shot was that I liked it. The shadows,
the buildings in the background and the street lamp are nicely
balanced. It's got that incredible early morning feel to it. The city
is just waking up, maybe the area will be filled with commuters, etc.

The building directly behind the lamp post and the lights behind the
fence distract from the look I first noticed. It looks a little OE as well.

The brick work, railing and shadow cast by the lamp combine for a confusing
sense of direction in the foreground. The railing and buildings are bullseyed
which make me wonder what the subject is.

I think I might move a bit more to your left and maybe a few steps closer
to the post. Tilt up a bit and take in a bit more sky. Moving to the left should
put the post to the right of the building--I wouldn't want to split the buildings
with the post. By tilting up, you'd get more of the morning sky.

Ian

[4labs]

For me I would have liked less of the foreground, maybe moved closer and to the left and taken horizontally. For some reason I feel like I just told Randy Johnson how to grip his fastball..:rofl

[rutt]

What is the message of this shot? It's handsome enough, but doesn't really move me. I don't get a sense of place from it; it could be almost any large city at night. It's lonely enough, but there is nobody there to be lonely. The composition is textbook perfect and (unlike the others) I like the gradual shading of the pavement to black in the foreground. All of this would form a great backdrop for a subject of some sort. Without that, the shot doesn't have enough to say. The lamp just isn't enough.

Technically, the foreground focus has blurred the lights in the backgound buildings. I suppose they are also very bright compared to the foreground elements (except the lamp heads.) For this image to convey a sense of place, I think both foreground and background elements have to be sharper.

I do like the color tones of the sky and pavement. It's hard to acheive such nice colors in low light.

[gubbs]

I like the shot, but it doesn't really get me like many of yours do. I think maybe it's because its not clear what the focal point is. The streetlight or Canary Wharf? Both are strong subjects that have the effect of diluting the other :dunno

[Andy]

What is the message of this shot? It's handsome enough, but doesn't really move me. I don't get a sense of place from it; it could be almost any large city at night. It's lonely enough, but there is nobody there to be lonely. The composition is textbook perfect and (unlike the others) I like the gradual shading of the pavement to black in the foreground. All of this would form a great backdrop for a subject of some sort. Without that, the shot doesn't have enough to say. The lamp just isn't enough.

Technically, the foreground focus has blurred the lights in the backgound buildings. I suppose they are also very bright compared to the foreground elements (except the lamp heads.) For this image to convey a sense of place, I think both foreground and background elements have to be sharper.

I do like the color tones of the sky and pavement. It's hard to acheive such nice colors in low light.

rutt brings up a fantastic point - this shot could be a real winner if there were a "lonely heart" leaning on the railing, in silhouette even... or perhaps a smoker leaning against the lamppost.. anything to add an additional element, which would make it a good shot as a standalone... otherwise, it would imo, only fit in with other similar shots as an element of a grouping.

thanks rutt :thumb

[Steve Cavigliano]

rutt brings up a fantastic point - this shot could be a real winner if there were a "lonely heart" leaning on the railing, in silhouette even... or perhaps a smoker leaning against the lamppost.. anything to add an additional element, which would make it a good shot as a standalone... otherwise, it would imo, only fit in with other similar shots as an element of a grouping.

thanks rutt :thumb
Thanks Rutt :thumb You have convinced me that I have something to contribute in this forum :clap

Andy,
I was going to comment on this one last night. I loved everything that the 4 respondents (at that point) had mentioned. The composition, the lines, the color and the sharpness. But it left me looking for a person. As Rutt mentioned, someone looking longingly from the rail, a smoker under the lamp or even a blurred motion person walking by would have put this right up there with your umbrella man for me. Or as another example, that shot down California St in Chinatown. You got it with people crossing, I got a much less interesting same shot without people crossing :dunno


Steve

[John Mueller]

Well,Im late getting back to this and been thinking about it since I first view it yesterday.
Rutt hit the nail on the head.
To me something was missing.IMHO comp and exposure are good.
Maybe someone or something showing motion which your great at.
A bird flying or a cat walking by.
Or a lady of the evening standing under the posthttp://www.digitalgrin.com/images/smilies/icon10.gif
Just my nickels worth.