Day 11: July 2010 Photo-a-Day Thread

[Colin Southern]

Sorry I'm late!

[rick55]

Canon 500D, EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, f/8, 1/90s, ISO 200, 3 flashes on RF triggers. 430EX and Vivitar 285 bounced off the ceiling, 580EX through an umbrella from the right. Two shots at focused at just off the right and just off the left of the front of the chisel, combined with Helicon Focus. PAD slideshow.

A bit of still life, a chisel with the sharp edge against a cabinet scraper. I used Helicon Focus to get the whole front edge in focus.

I'd really appreciate C&C : this isn't my usual thing.

Cheers,
Rick

[carregwen]

Rick

I think this is a good composition with the positioning of the chisel and it's strong edge lines. I'm not sure about the front face of it though (the dark bit at the front). Because there's not much light on it and it's very bright underneath it tends to make the front face look rather perpendicular, instead of angled. Does that make sense? I think you could have reduced the exposure a little, and added some more contrast. This stuff isn't easy to get right is it? Good effort.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Rick,

I think Rob has the lighting side of things well covered.

This is a lot more effort than I usually go to for PAD (my loss) and puts me to shame.

Very good attempt, it just needs a little more time experimenting with lighting angles, which given the flat, multi-angular nature of the subject is made all the more complex.

Cheers,

[Klickit]

Rick, I like the composition - the angles are a repeated theme, as are the lines on the chizel and the table surface. The contrast to me is good, as there are areas all through the range from very light (but not overblown) to very dark (but not quite into pure black) but I do find the little bits of crud/dust on the bench/tabletop a bit distracting. I think you need a really clean environment to emphasise the sharp, clean angularity of the subject.

[Klickit]

Over the Wall is In.



Because I'm a curious sort of person - OK Rob, nosey if you want - I really like to see what is hidden or forbidden. Today's image was taken at a spot we pass frequently when out walking the dog. Usually, the walks are at night, but we did a daytime one this time and I had the D80 with me, thinking of today's photo. We've passed this tin fence a whole lot of times and it is far too high for any of us, even the corgi, to see over. So I just poked the camera over the fence and let fly. What you see is what I got.

[Colin Southern]

I've got a friend heading across to the USA tomorrow -- and he's kindly volunteered to hand deliver Agata's canvas print for me (via some helicopter police -- so I hope they don't order her out of her appartment, and then winch it down to her!). So to say thanks I thought I'd give him a free impromptu photoshoot, and pop one onto a canvas.

We got quite a few good shots - so I just picked one I liked for my PAD shot today ...

[Donald]

What a wonderfully sensible name!

[wilgk]

& even more sensible is the spelling!
we have a trend here at our school that follows thus: the younger the parents = the stranger the spellings of the child's name....
e.g Mikkinzie - Lochlin - Jiorji to name but a few.
I 'kid' you not.

[Colin Southern]

& even more sensible is the spelling!
we have a trend here at our school that follows thus: the younger the parents = the stranger the spellings of the child's name....
e.g Mikkinzie - Lochlin - Jiorji to name but a few.
I 'kid' you not.

I know - I feel sorry for the poor kids having to go through their entire lives spelling their names for others

[carregwen]

This is a view from the high level cycle path from Llanelli, West Wales to the National Botanic Garden.

PAD gallery

EXIF

[rick55]

Thanks, Rob, Dave, and Kit, for the encouragement and comments. As you say, I really struggled with the lighting: with so many reflective faces at various angles, it seemed that every variation I tried had one face that was blown, and I ended up instead with one that was dark. I'll try again today, maybe with just one light bounced overhead, then adjust the rest to fill different parts without blowing anything, see if I can get it right.

As for the dust on the cabinet scraper (reflector), I'm not sure what that is: I cleaned it with acetone, and you can't see anything by eye. I suspect it's grains that reflect flash, like the bright spots you see on snow sometimes. I think maybe all I can do is clean it in PP, or use a different reflector.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Cheers,
Rick

[rick55]

Interesting, Kit. You could crop in on that big rusty framework on the left: that leg with the twist that's bent downwards really catches my eye: that and the popped woven metal. Even with the background (a bit distracting), it's pretty neat.

Cheers,
Rick

[rick55]

Very nice, Colin - very sweet pose. Maybe a bit much nostril, if I'd be nitpicky?

Cheers,
Rick

[rick55]

This is a wonderful shot, Rob. The timing was perfect, with no cloud shadow on the field in the foreground, keeping that un-distracting, but cloud shadows in the distant scene to add interest. Absolutely beautiful.

As a thought, would it be worth cloning out the plant in the bottom right? The foliage in bottom center running to lower left is nice, and provides an anchor, but the one on the right is disconnected from them by the crop, and that makes it sort of jarring to my eye.

Cheers,
Rick

[carregwen]

As a thought, would it be worth cloning out the plant in the bottom right? The foliage in bottom center running to lower left is nice, and provides an anchor, but the one on the right is disconnected from them by the crop, and that makes it sort of jarring to my eye.

Cheers,
Rick

I thought that when I took it, but when it came out I thought it added some balance. What do others think? This was shot with my new Panasonic G1. It's a damn fine camera for something that slips in a small rucsac.

[Donald]

I thought that when I took it, but when it came out I thought it added some balance. What do others think?

When I first looked at it, the thought was - 'That's the difference between a photographer and, with respect, a snapshooter'; i.e. the very constructive construction of the foreground .

Now that Rick has come in with this comment, I've looked again. I think I'd keep that bit of foliage in it. Tried to 'see' it, without that included. I think I would end up with a sort of 'Okay, so what - very pretty' feeling about the image. So, I think your construction of the foreground works.

[James G]

Attingham Park.

Near Shrewsbury, been meaning to visit for a couple of years... today I did

James

[carregwen]

I like this one - it's refreshingly different, and quite subtle.

[rick55]

I like this one - it's refreshingly different, and quite subtle.

I agree with Rob: the focus on the heads of whatever-they-are, with the wonderful detail, combined with the colorful flowers defocused in the background, produces an exceptional image. I also like the butterfly "upside-down," but this one is special.

Cheers,
Rick