Gardens by the bay


JShinoda99

New Member
Feb 1, 2011
20
0
0
13427582143_dee603f4bf.jpg


I am still pretty new in photography and starting to experiment and learn on PP. Would really greatly appreciate any C&C from the pros here.

1. In what area is critique to be sought?
How does the this look? In terms of is it too dark, details, composition etc, DOV, DOF etc

2. What one hopes to achieve with the piece of work?
I guess what i wanted to convey in this was like a 'guardian guarding a paradise' kinda feel

3. Under what circumstance is the picture taken?
nightfall, with no cloud cover. tripod mounted.
F/4.5, 2.5s, iso 800, 23mm

4. What the critique seeker personally thinks of the picture.
I think its ok. can definitely be better in terms of lighting. brightness. Maybe the tree on the left is a little too distracting

Thanks guys!! =)
 

Hi..

First off, I'm not a pro. But I would like to share my thoughts, if welcome to do so.

I think the image is slightly underexposed. I agree with your assessment of the framing. The tree on the left should not be in the frame. Seems to be a slight colour cast, but I can't tell for sure.

Did you use a tripod? If so, you could have opted to lower your ISO and decrease your shutter speed to achieve the same exposure (or maybe 1 stop more since it is a little too dark?)
If you did not use a tripod, I am pretty sure a 2.5s shot would have resulted in camera shake that would degrade the quality of the shot. (But i can't really tell cos I can't see an enlarged version)

Keep shooting and learning! Landscape photog is addictive and fun!
 

Hi..

First off, I'm not a pro. But I would like to share my thoughts, if welcome to do so.

I think the image is slightly underexposed. I agree with your assessment of the framing. The tree on the left should not be in the frame. Seems to be a slight colour cast, but I can't tell for sure.

Did you use a tripod? If so, you could have opted to lower your ISO and decrease your shutter speed to achieve the same exposure (or maybe 1 stop more since it is a little too dark?)
If you did not use a tripod, I am pretty sure a 2.5s shot would have resulted in camera shake that would degrade the quality of the shot. (But i can't really tell cos I can't see an enlarged version)

Keep shooting and learning! Landscape photog is addictive and fun!

Hey Norman, thanks for your thoughts. Yeah i did use a tripod. prolly wld have to decrease my iso as i feel its a little noisy after PP. this is the enlarged version
http://www.flickr.com/photos/56503242@N08/13427582143/
There is another version of it in my album which i feel is alot worse in terms of the 'feeling' if u know what i mean.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/56503242@N08/13265339203/
 

Ah yes! You are a contact on Flickr!


I think in both cases, the composition is a factor. The left is very heavy and the right is kinda flimsy. Also, the alignment of the lion could be better. I too am constantly challenged when it comes to correct framing and composition so it would be best to get a second opinion.

Additionally, the colours are something to consider. The fluorescent colours don't really sit well with the overall dusk colours of the sky.

As you said, a good start will be to reduce ISO. A little brighter would be better. It's kinda underexposed.

In any case, it's great that you are trying different versions.

Have fun keep shooting!
 

Thanks Norman! I will prolly head back to the same spot and see if i can frame a better picture.
 

i would suggest cropping away the left and top for a panoramic image, to accentuate the impact of the lion which is "guarding" the paradise. add some backlight correction for the underexposure.
13427582143_b87b5914af_o_4a.jpg
 

i would suggest cropping away the left and top for a panoramic image, to accentuate the impact of the lion which is "guarding" the paradise. add some backlight correction for the underexposure.
13427582143_b87b5914af_o_4a.jpg

Thanks Zaren!
 

IMO, the tree on the left is showing a bit much but not too much to the point of cropping it all out. You need to leave it there to give a sense of size to your "guardian". Cropping the tree completely, your guardian is either a 2-feet toy or a 20-foot statue.

If you wanna keep the 'dark' feel, consider accenting the shadows on the guardian--as if he is lurking in the shadows guarding the super trees. By accenting I meant to say, the shadows darker and the highlights lighter (or just keep it normal).

The super tree on the right-most is showing too much, the 2 trees near the center already says "we are BIG super trees" and to show the full tree on the right-most just allows for the necessarily silhouetted shrubbery/foliage below it. Cutting it 1/3rd or 1/2 will put more emphasis back to your big, lurking guardian and the attractive trees he is guarding.

You can try ISO 100 whenever you are on tripod but unless you want to stop some motion or you don't want star bursts from the lamps, then that's when you do a >100 ISO. For me, it is always better to composite the still parts (taken with 100 ISO) with the stop-motion parts (taken with >100 ISO)
 

Tend to agree that the trees on the left should be left intact.
I like the color on its branches.
The lion should be just a complement to the colorful trees, which imo, should be the eye catcher.