Roman Statue (1st posting for me!)

[anthonymagister]

Hello, all. This my first posting so be easy on me =) I am looking for pointers though.

This is from my most recent trip to Rome. This statue looked interesting through the view finder. This is a HDR bracketed photo with three (-1, 0, +1) exposures done in CS5. I cropped it to make it more interesting. I definitely don't like the tree that seems like it is growing out of her neck. If I could retake it, I'd change that for sure. Being a Latin teacher I am always looking for interesting shots to post in my classroom or show to the students. Classical themes are very typical in my photos.

[JPS]

Hi again Anthony,
the troops will soon be here to give you some constructive feedback.
You appear to be skilled in PP, so would you not consider cloning out the tree? Or is this something you would rather not do.

I like the overall idea of this picture and am interested myself in the C&C the members will offer you.
Well done on your 1st (picture) post.
John

[dje]

Hi Anthony and welcome.

For me, the statue doesn't stand out enough from the background. Also the mottled light in the background is a bit distracting. My suggestion would be to reduce the brightness of the background and also sharpen up the statue a bit to make it stand out more. Something like this perhaps ?

Dave

[anthonymagister]

Hi Anthony and welcome.

For me, the statue doesn't stand out enough from the background. Also the mottled light in the background is a bit distracting. My suggestion would be to reduce the brightness of the background and also sharpen up the statue a bit to make it stand out more. Something like this perhaps ?

Dave

Thanks. It does look better in yours. Also I do not think I'm skilled enough to remove the tree in photoshop, unfortunately.

[kdoc856]

Hi, Anthony

I like the shot, particularly the composition and the decision to render it in B&W.

You have 2 trees to contend with. I would suggest a crop just to the immediate right of the large tree on the left (cloming out the remnant of the roof that will result), perhaps s very slight crop of the top nad just enough across the bottom to remove the slight blurring at lower right. Then you have a fairly easy clone of the bit of tree extending from the statue's head.

Welcome to CiC. Looks like you're off to a good start.

Kevin

[Geoff F]

That statue looks like a warning about the dangers of biting your finger nails!

Dave's edit works well for me in that it has reduced the confusion from the background.

But, if the statue had a head, it would be looking out of the picture. Much better if it was facing the other way.

However, as that correction may be a little tricky, I would crop tighter on the left side and use a different size ratio so the statue seems to be closer to the centre of the scene, which would add to it's importance..

[JPS]

Anthony,
Just a tweak for your consideration.
Cheers
John

[Geoff F]

Very close to what I was thinking.

[rubyb]

Yes, very nice. I think that's the exact crop Kevin suggested earlier. I think that works very nicely to preserve the setting and still emphasize the statue. I learn so much from you all!

[rawill]

Anthony,
Just a tweak for your consideration.
Cheers
John

That certainly makes the statue "pop".
I like it.

Can I say, "cleaner lines"