My first critique post - Agony


leeks

New Member
Sep 18, 2009
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North East
1. In which area is critique or feedback to be given?
Mainly composition, title, sharpness and other comments are welcome

2. What were you hoping to achieve with this image?
That pic was taken outside Nanjing Massacre Museum, and i was hoping to capture the feel of that place.

3. Under what circumstance was the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
mid day afternoon, candid shot, as tourist are flocking pass me by busloads.

4. Thread-starter's personal thoughts about the image.
hope i took that pic a couple of steps to the left, so that the facial expression of the statue and (apparently) her dead toddle can be seen more clearly. not sharp enough, i think.


light1.jpg
 

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Well it's quite sharp but I'd place the statue more to the right instead of right in the middle. Your photo tells a story too! Great job.
 

Thanks derrickder. BTW, would you have done anything differently if you are there in front of the statue?
 

What I think is nice esp with other tourists is that it gives the viewer a good sense of how large is this statue since we have the family on the left to take reference to the size.

Maybe you didn't plan for it but this picture gives a deeper meaning, on the right is an adult mourning for the dead child, on the left is a happy united family with the kid. Kinda contrasting ideas which I like.

Others: Due to the harsh lighting, the colour looks a little flat, a little more contrast would suit my taste.
 

What I think is nice esp with other tourists is that it gives the viewer a good sense of how large is this statue since we have the family on the left to take reference to the size.

Maybe you didn't plan for it but this picture gives a deeper meaning, on the right is an adult mourning for the dead child, on the left is a happy united family with the kid. Kinda contrasting ideas which I like.

Others: Due to the harsh lighting, the colour looks a little flat, a little more contrast would suit my taste.

thanks gundam for the C&C. :)
 

would taking the pic from the statue right shoulder be better?
showing the leading line and maybe will be juz nice to the face area
 

i think you executed the shot poorly if you had wanted it to emphasize on the agony of the statue.
Firstly, there's far too many distractions that detracts viewers from the statue itself. I find the inclusion of the family in the frame very redundant.
If you insist on having them, the idea of showing the relavitiy of size of humans and the statue would be more appropriate.

Then, the angle just don't work. Agony ( or any other emotions) are more prominent on the face. By shooting it at such a wide angle, we lose the connection. The eyes move about too much. What you need to do is find a placing which allows (or traps) the viewer to just elements of the statue that denotes agony. It is ultimately about thinking thru before shooting, not just sniping away.
 

3. Under what circumstance was the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
mid day afternoon, candid shot, as tourist are flocking pass me by busloads.

light1.jpg

if you are looking for a candid shot, this may help to improve your image..... then again it is my pov anyway.

it look interesting to have a family looking at the agony face, however, the leading line from perspective view of the wall seem to lead the viewer just shy of looking at the family. imho, if the family looking at the face of the agony can be placed further left, just away from the ending point of the perspective wall, probably you will get a much strong connection between the face and family looking at it.

and make sure there won't be any distracting background element.
 

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I find the tourists a bit of a distraction. Ask just the little girl to stand there and look up can still create that perspective, move statue to the right and close in a bit more on the girl.
 

thanks all for your c&c.

will note all comments and hopefully my future pics will be better.
 

Dear Leeks. Crop to square. Simple as that. (start from left side)

Also, someone above posted that this pix is not sharp. How much sharper does this picture need to be?