A Final Resting Place

[Donald]

I would welcome your comments on this as a story. I'm not sure I've done what I set out to achieve.

The text on the memorial tells you what it was about. The aim? - To capture this text and the context/landscape in which it sits. To show the bleakness and poignancy of the setting. Did I?

If you were compiling a collection to try and convey your experience of an island on the west coast of Scotland, would you include it?


40D, Tokina 11-16 f2.8 @ 16mm. ISO 100. 1/40@f7.1. Manual. Spot (don't know why I was at f7.1 - usually work in whole f-stops!)

[Shadowman]

Donald,

I think the memorial fits with your subject, the tragedy is definitely part of the history of the island. It would not be out of the ordinary to include two or more images of the same mermorial to show its size and its relationship to the landscape.

[Dave Humphries]

I would welcome your comments on this as a story. I'm not sure I've done what I set out to achieve.

The text on the memorial tells you what it was about. The aim? - To capture this text and the context/landscape in which it sits. To show the bleakness and poignancy of the setting. Did I?

Sort of, let me eloborate ...

a) The distortion on the top stone bothers me, I feel it should be parallel to the top of the inscription stone.
Curiously, the bottom edge of the inscription stone, which is almost as distorted, doesn't bother me, perhaps because it doesn't go quite so far into the corner, plus it's not against the pale sky background.

b) I think to convey bleakness, you need another 30% added onto the right hand side - at the moment, the monument is a bit too dominant in the landscape, although I can see you have tried. Making the monument smaller would make the inscription unreadable, so that's not an option I'd take. A slightly darker sky might help.

c) If you lightened the text to make it more readable, you did it very well, it still looks OK against the rest of the scene.

Hope that helps,

[rick55]

Hi, Donald;

I mostly agree with Dave's comments. I'm not so bothered about the top: I think it may even help give a sense of the overall size.

I'd like to see more of the landscape: if there's more of the "soft green turf" that could be shown to the right, even if you took the monument at slightly more angle, I think that would add to the effect. I don't know if you'll be going back there. But along those lines, I had some trouble reading the first half of the inscription: this may not be an issue at a higher resolution, but I imagine it took me about twice as long to read each line in the first two-thirds as it did to read each line in the last third. I don't know if there's anything you can do: I take it the upper part is stained by stuff washing down from the rock part above.

Overall, it's certainly an appealing composition: the memorial in the long space. It certainly seems worth doing, to me.

Cheers,
Rick

[Maritimer1]

It's definately bleak and fits the tone of the memorial. Is there any way to incorporate the coastline into your photo? When I read "brig" I expect water, I guess. What is to the left of the scene that we can't see? I'm really curious now!

As a side note (Wendy will have seen this), the CBC created some TV clips called Heritage Moments. One of them is about Irish orphans arriving in Quebec. You can watch the clip on Youtube if you'd like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXyfPJKWqig

Myra

[Donald]

Thank you all, for those those very helpful comments. Sometimes you get too close to something, and want, too much, for it to work, you convince yourself you've got something that doesn't really exist.

I could get a bit more from the right hand side, but it would need a fairly big cloning job.

I contorted myself into every angle possible to try and get the sea into this in a meaningful way ... but it just wouldn't work. There is sea just to the right of the monument below the far-off headland, but not really visible to the extent that is required.

Will maybe have another look at the RAW file.

[ScoutR]

I would welcome your comments on this as a story. I'm not sure I've done what I set out to achieve.

The text on the memorial tells you what it was about. The aim? - To capture this text and the context/landscape in which it sits. To show the bleakness and poignancy of the setting. Did I?

If you were compiling a collection to try and convey your experience of an island on the west coast of Scotland, would you include it?

[/I])

Donald this is a great shot, but as far as conveying bleakness, I'm not sure. Have you tried putting more light on the memorial and then darkening the sky and surrounding landscape. I'm thinking the memorial standing out like a beacon among the bleak surroundings.

Also, If compiling a collection. Perhaps 1 shot showing the text (this one) and another showing more of the surrounding landscape.

I'd be happy with it as is, but you do not seem to be so just some thoughts. I have no idea if they might work or not.

All the shots from your trip look great, but it is certainly a different part of Scotland that we are seeing. Very remote and peaceful by the looks of it. I get a "going back in time feeling."

Wendy

[Donald]

Donald this is a great shot, but as far as conveying bleakness, I'm not sure. Have you tried putting more light on the memorial and then darkening the sky and surrounding landscape.

Wendy
Thanks for this. It's great to get these different thoughts and ideas. Maybe all of us (I hope it's not only me) read the ideas that others post and say, 'Why didn't I think of that?' But, as I keep saying, that's the beauty of the learning experiences available on this site - it's not about saying 'Good' or 'Bad', but about sharing those thoughts and ideas. Am going to apply all these ideas (not necessarily on the one re-work!) and see what happens.

[PopsPhotos]

I think I would have pulled the 3-step stool out of the back of the rig and gotten the camera a little higher. Other than that (which might not work) I'm fairly happy with the feeling it evokes.

Pops

[Donald]

I think I would have pulled the 3-step stool out of the back of the rig

I knew there was something missing from my kit list!

Again, one of those 'so obvious' statements that you feel a fool for not having seen it/thought of it yourself. That (as with the other suggestions above) would have made a huge difference. Thanks Pops - you're wonderful. This weekend it's off to the DIY/Hardware store to get one of this little 3-step aluminium fold-up stepladders.

[Dave Humphries]

~ Thanks Pops - you're wonderful. This weekend it's off to the DIY/Hardware store to get one of this little 3-step aluminium fold-up stepladders.

Seconded!

I might do the same, although I have one in the garage, but it's a 30 year old tubular steel one and weighs a ton (ok, slight exageration), but thinking of the weight living in the car and effect on mpg - a newer, lighter Aluminium one has its attractions. Not to mention if I need to carry it anywhere.

Thanks,

[Shadowman]

Try one of those gardening stools with the monopod like balancing post.

Seconded!

I might do the same, although I have one in the garage, but it's a 30 year old tubular steel one and weighs a ton (ok, slight exageration), but thinking of the weight living in the car and effect on mpg - a newer, lighter Aluminium one has its attractions. Not to mention if I need to carry it anywhere.

Thanks,

[Shadowman]

Find at:
www.cleanairgardening.com/gardenseat.html

[Donald]

Find at:www.cleanairgardening.com/gardenseat.html

Mmm? Don't think Glenfarg's ready for that yet!

[carregwen]

Find at:
www.cleanairgardening.com/gardenseat.html

That looks more like a 'marital aid' to me. Not that I would know (no smilie)

[Dave Humphries]

Find at:
www.cleanairgardening.com/gardenseat.html

Looks like you can pogo with it too

[PopsPhotos]

I don't think that looks stable enough for ME to stand on.

This lives in the back of my pickup at all times. It is only a 2-step, which is why I recommended a 3-step. I've had occasion where the 2-step wasn't tall enough and the 3-steppers don't weigh that much more.

Pops