2015 Project 52, first quarter by Steve Donovan (srdonovan)

[srdonovan]

My goal for 2015 is to become a better photographer (surprise, surprise). I'm excited about this project as a way to add focus and discipline toward achieving this goal.

Steve

[srdonovan]

Week 1 Picture

I was playing with lighting (with my single 580EX flash) on my cello and this is one of the resulting images.

This was taken with my Canon 70D and EF 24-70 1:4 L lens.

[Shadowman]

Nice concept.

[FrankMi]

Welcome to CiC Steve!

A nice idea with the stringed instrument.

You are using a symmetrical image and as such it usually displays better the closer you get the symmetry. In this case you might want to consider getting the sound box opening as balanced as possible and perhaps a slightly tighter square crop to eliminate the 'cut in half' ends of the openings.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Steve,

A warm welcome from me too - great to see you here and jumping straight in to this.

Regarding Frank's comments on symmetry, that got me thinking - and checking things veeery closely

It appears the second string is vertical - well, parallel to the edge of frame and I wondered if by either (a tiny amount of) rotation or perhaps even some perspective correction, the strings should either be; equally angled with respect to edge of frame - or all made 'vertical'?

The shot displays a good light angle on the bridge, allowing us to appreciate the subtle shapes, plus exposure and white balance are also good.

I must start my own P52 thread soon too!

All the best, Dave

[srdonovan]

Thanks

[srdonovan]

Welcome to CiC Steve!

A nice idea with the stringed instrument.

You are using a symmetrical image and as such it usually displays better the closer you get the symmetry. In this case you might want to consider getting the sound box opening as balanced as possible and perhaps a slightly tighter square crop to eliminate the 'cut in half' ends of the openings.

Good input. I played with the crop and tried for symmetry in the amount of "cut" in the F holes. I'm not sure if all or nothing is better for that crop. I'll play with it if I find time.

[srdonovan]

Hi Steve,

A warm welcome from me too - great to see you here and jumping straight in to this.

Regarding Frank's comments on symmetry, that got me thinking - and checking things veeery closely

It appears the second string is vertical - well, parallel to the edge of frame and I wondered if by either (a tiny amount of) rotation or perhaps even some perspective correction, the strings should either be; equally angled with respect to edge of frame - or all made 'vertical'?

The shot displays a good light angle on the bridge, allowing us to appreciate the subtle shapes, plus exposure and white balance are also good.

I must start my own P52 thread soon too!

All the best, Dave

I did play with the rotation and missed a little in getting them all going to the same vanishing point. If I get a chance to set up the shot again I'll work on camera position to better handle this and the cropping issue pointed out by Frank.

Thanks for the comments.

Steve

[srdonovan]

Week 2

It's been a cold, dreary, cloudy, raining week in Dallas, Texas, making it difficult to get out to take pictures.

I was lucky enough to come upon the fountain that is the focus of this weeks picture. The cold we have been having proved to be a benefit, turning a nice but not terribly unique fountain into something of interest.

The primary challenge in this picture was to get enough light to allow for some amount of differentiation in colors. Grey on grey on grey isn't every interesting. Luckily there were some hearty flowers to help. I also decided on a fairly fast shutter speed to capture the still running water in the fountain without making the water look like an extension of the ice.

I hope the sun comes out before the ice melts. I'd like another shot at this picture with a blue sky.

Regards,

Steve

[ShaneS]

That's quite a sight Steve and one I don't ever see near home You achieved your goal of getting some nice separation of the ice from the sky but I wish we could see more of those hardy wildflowers, or an even tighter crop (or some cloning) from the bottom eliminating them. You have also captured a lot of great detail in the stonework and got the shutter speed spot on for the flowing water. Have you tried a black & white conversion of this shot?

I will hope that you get a cold clear blue sky before the ice melts as I think that would make for a great image.

[srdonovan]

That's quite a sight Steve and one I don't ever see near home You achieved your goal of getting some nice separation of the ice from the sky but I wish we could see more of those hardy wildflowers, or an even tighter crop (or some cloning) from the bottom eliminating them. You have also captured a lot of great detail in the stonework and got the shutter speed spot on for the flowing water. Have you tried a black & white conversion of this shot?

I will hope that you get a cold clear blue sky before the ice melts as I think that would make for a great image.

Shane,

I was in Honolulu in November and can vouch for you that the only place I saw any ice was in fancy drinks at the bar. :-)

If I get some good sunshine I'll take a bigger variety of pictures, including a tighter shot of the flowers with the ice. I'm also hoping to eliminate the cars and other distractions in the background.

I'll be playing with the picture, as time permits, as the week progresses. I'll try for a monochrome version and, if I like it, I'll post it here.

Thanks for the comments.

[Shadowman]

Nice capture of the cold.