Memories from India


DracZ

Member
Jan 24, 2007
44
0
6
Singapore

IMG_6223 by ian.teo, on Flickr

1. In which area is critique or feedback to be given?
Composition, post-processing (Lightroom was used in this instance) etc.
Anything one can think of, if it needs to be said please give your most honest opinion :)

2. What were you hoping to achieve with this image?
Simply to capture the moment.

3. Under what circumstance was the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
Shot in Kerala, India - whilst waiting for the sunset I noticed a group of people who'd begun to stretch out their saris into the oncoming breeze in the effort of drying them. The strong sunlight coupled with the beautiful textures and prints of the saris made for a wondrous moment. This is one of my personal favorites out of the lot.

4. Thread-starter's personal thoughts about the image?

Definitely eager to gain some feedback. I'd purchased the 550D and a few lenses specifically for the trip, this shot was taken within the first month of my first DSLR, so please go easy :) At the same any constructive criticism is extremely welcome.
 

:thumbsup::)

Very nicely composed. Not so much of the the moment, because of the subject's face turning directly at the camera. But overall photo tells the viewer about what the subject was doing at that 'moment'.

Nice! Bro, you can definitely tell this is 1 of best. Good job! :D
 

Prefer the hand to be slightly lower so that more of the sari can be seen and make the hand smaller as well.

Any reason for processing this as b&w? I don't know what's your workflow but the result is pretty bad. The murky grey of the image really lost a lot of the intended impact. Better to stick with colour while you practise b&w.

Below is my edit of your image. Slight curve for contrast. Increase brightness. A lot of dodging for the face & clothes. USM and finally ran it through a tonal contrast filter plugin by Color Efex Pro.
DracZMemoriesfromIndiausm.jpg



hmm blacks are a lot deeper on my photoshop than browser.
 

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edited your image using photoscape (backlight, deepen), to give a more contrasty b&w image.
5491117081_6f782c10d5_o.jpg
 

edited your image using photoscape (backlight, deepen), to give a more contrasty b&w image.
5491117081_6f782c10d5_o.jpg

This one feels too smooth and details (facial, clothing.. etc) are lost. Just my personal opinion.
 

This one feels too smooth and details (facial, clothing.. etc) are lost. Just my personal opinion.

no problem, just sharpen the image further.
5492228640_977336c9ab_o.jpg
 

:thumbsup::)

Very nicely composed. Not so much of the the moment, because of the subject's face turning directly at the camera. But overall photo tells the viewer about what the subject was doing at that 'moment'.

Nice! Bro, you can definitely tell this is 1 of best. Good job! :D

Much appreciated ;)

Prefer the hand to be slightly lower so that more of the sari can be seen and make the hand smaller as well.

Any reason for processing this as b&w? I don't know what's your workflow but the result is pretty bad. The murky grey of the image really lost a lot of the intended impact. Better to stick with colour while you practise b&w.

Below is my edit of your image. Slight curve for contrast. Increase brightness. A lot of dodging for the face & clothes. USM and finally ran it through a tonal contrast filter plugin by Color Efex Pro.

hmm blacks are a lot deeper on my photoshop than browser.

Whilst I appreciate the brutal honesty, perhaps you missed the part where I requested "constructive criticism". Simply telling me what I ought to stick to due to my lack of expertise on the topic, then jabbering on about what a proper edit ought to look like, doesn't quite meet the definition of "constructive".

In any case, I applaud your efforts. One day, with sufficient practice and advice from clear experts such as your kind self, I too hope to be able to post process my images to such lofty standards. For one, the introduction of garish banding in the sky is just, stunning to say the least. I really wish I had thought of that earlier.

no problem, just sharpen the image further.
5492228640_977336c9ab_o.jpg

I love this, thank you. I'll download photoscape and see if I can recreate the same effect. The increase in definition and sharpness whilst maintaining tonal differences between the articles of clothing and his skin tone makes this such an improvement IMHO.
 

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This pic is a keeper. The facial expression, albeit soft in the original version, establishes a natural connection between the subject and the camera.To me, that is the key.

Couple of suggestions:
1. The overall pic appears dark on my screen. Can try pushing up the brightness, or raise the levels.
2. His left hand is drawing too much attention. I would tone down its brightness so that more attention can be diverted to the face.
3. I really feel that the vignette is too strong, notably, both top corners.

Cheers
 

Much appreciated ;)
Whilst I appreciate the brutal honesty, perhaps you missed the part where I requested "constructive criticism". Simply telling me what I ought to stick to due to my lack of expertise on the topic, then jabbering on about what a proper edit ought to look like, doesn't quite meet the definition of "constructive".

In any case, I applaud your efforts. One day, with sufficient practice and advice from clear experts such as your kind self, I too hope to be able to post process my images to such lofty standards. For one, the introduction of garish banding in the sky is just, stunning to say the least. I really wish I had thought of that earlier.

It is your right to disagree with criticism and comments and defend your own decisions for your final photo output. Baring any lost in translation for your message, I have to say your comeback is unnecessary sarcastic and impolite.
 

This pic is a keeper. The facial expression, albeit soft in the original version, establishes a natural connection between the subject and the camera.To me, that is the key.

Couple of suggestions:
1. The overall pic appears dark on my screen. Can try pushing up the brightness, or raise the levels.
2. His left hand is drawing too much attention. I would tone down its brightness so that more attention can be diverted to the face.
3. I really feel that the vignette is too strong, notably, both top corners.

Cheers

Lekech, thank you for the feedback :) I've actually neglected to calibrate the monitor properly since getting a new one, *might* explain the perceived difference in brightness etc. that everyone is commenting on, lol. Will do that and tweak the image again with your suggestions in mind.
With regards to the left hand, it definitely does distract from the subject's face, but personally it adds a special something to the feel of the picture with its "imperfection".

It is your right to disagree with criticism and comments and defend your own decisions for your final photo output. Baring any lost in translation for your message, I have to say your comeback is unnecessary sarcastic and impolite.

My issue with his comment stems from the fact I freely admitted my own inexperience in the matter, thus the purpose of this thread and the whole point of asking for help in the first place. Being a seemingly more senior member of these forums - and photographer one would assume, you would think that he word his advice in manner less crass and befitting someone of greater experience. Perhaps his original intention was to merely provide that advice and not to belittle the person in the process, but that's the way I perceived it.

Here's his comment again:
Prefer the hand to be slightly lower so that more of the sari can be seen and make the hand smaller as well.

Any reason for processing this as b&w? I don't know what's your workflow but the result is pretty bad. The murky grey of the image really lost a lot of the intended impact. Better to stick with colour while you practise b&w.

Below is my edit of your image. Slight curve for contrast. Increase brightness. A lot of dodging for the face & clothes. USM and finally ran it through a tonal contrast filter plugin by Color Efex Pro.

This is how I would've worded the exact same "advice"

Perhaps it would've been advantageous to position the hand in a slightly less prominent position in the frame? It would've allowed more of the sari to be seen etc.

Any reason for processing this as a B&W? Unfortunately the current image lacks sufficient contrast and as a result is somewhat murky.

I've done my own interpretation of your photo - slight curve for contrast. Increase brightness. A lot of dodging for the face & clothes. USM and finally ran it through a tonal contrast filter plugin by Color Efex Pro.

Hope that helps :)


Place yourself in my shoes, would you have reacted differently?
 

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I would say the true "unconstructive comments" are those that say thats its good/bad without explaining why, the poster has made the effort to go beyond that to share his thoughts and alternative workflow.

I did try to place myself in the situation, I guess the idea that I would have reacted differently was what prompted me to give my original input.
I thought the person was being rather frank and direct without the intention to be rude or demeaning. I suppose its all a matter of our interpretation of tone from written words. :)
 

DracZ,

IMO there's no need to react so sensitively to foxtwo's critique. He was stating his preference, and had taken the time and effort to suggest an improved edit of your photo. You have every right to disagree with his points, and continue with the discourse without making sarcastic remarks in return. We are all here to learn from each other, and to politely agree to disagree at times. :)

Having said that, I disagree with foxtwo and Lekech that the man's hand should be given less prominence in the photo because to me, his gnarled and discoloured hand tells a powerful story of years of hard toil and labour in the man's life. But that's the beauty of photo critique, we don't always have to agree with each other in order to appreciate photography.

Keep shooting!

cheers,
z.
 

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I would say the true "unconstructive comments" are those that say thats its good/bad without explaining why, the poster has made the effort to go beyond that to share his thoughts and alternative workflow.

I did try to place myself in the situation, I guess the idea that I would have reacted differently was what prompted me to give my original input.
I thought the person was being rather frank and direct without the intention to be rude or demeaning. I suppose its all a matter of our interpretation of tone from written words. :)

Lets just put it down to the poster having worded his reply rather poorly. To add insult to injury his alternative workflow is a horrid example of how to post-process an image. It completely destroyed the feel of the original and looks like a B&W HDR image. zaren in contrast was able to achieve a much better interpretation of the original, conveying his sense of what a positive result should be - without insulting the OP in the process.
 

DracZ,

IMO there's no need to react so sensitively to foxtwo's critique. He was stating his preference, and had taken the time and effort to suggest an improved edit of your photo. You have every right to disagree with his points, and continue with the discourse without making sarcastic remarks in return. We are all here to learn from each other, and to politely agree to disagree at times. :)

Having said that, I disagree with foxtwo and Lekech that the man's hand should be given less prominence in the photo because to me, his gnarled and discoloured hand tells a powerful story of years of hard toil and labour in the man's life. But that's the beauty of photo critique, we don't always have to agree with each other in order to appreciate photography.

Keep shooting!

cheers,
z.

zaren, I appreciate any good community, and have reacted with care and respect to those who have done the same when interacting with myself. In writing a critique it is prudent that one should word the response carefully. I might have overreacted but for a senior member to tell a first time poster and admitted novice that he should "stick to color, B&W is hard" and that "I don't know what your workflow is, but the result is pretty bad", that is overtly harsh don't you think? In any case I have no intention of perusing the matter further. My apologies to anyone caught in the crossfire :)