Sunset at Woodlands Waterfront


ruikang89

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May 9, 2008
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www.wix.com
4756454532_e9f2159bff.jpg


I bought a Canon EOS 1000D with kit lenses recently and this is one of the few shots that I thought I would like to seek critic for.

1. in what area is critique to be sought?
- The composition of the photo. I tried adhering to the 1/3 rule for photos with horizons. Ie; sky 2/3 water 1/3 or vice versa.
- Horizon. It was taken hand-held as was a last minute trip so I did not have a tripod with me. Horizon might be a bit slanted.
-Post-processing. I'm still picking up post-processing skills using Photoshop CS2. In this photo, only curves and levels were adjusted. Friends told me it looks over-saturated when in fact I did not adjust the colour saturation.

My first attempt on sunsets, but please don't go too lightly on me. Feel free to say a piece of your mind.
 

hi, i think the pic you posted is a tad small to really scrutinise :devil: ,
but i do have some small observations to share

1. i can't put my finger on it but there is some form of distortion on the horizon(maybe its uneven barrel distortion due to cropping)
2. the left side of the pic,(jetty&ship) doesn't add depth/purpose to the photo. in fact i think if you crop it off your pic would look cleaner and balanced. the (jetty&ship) also accentuates the distortion on the horizon
3. over sharpenend (the sea, to me is ok but the sillohoute is too sharp for my liking)
4. orange skyline too saturated
5. your blue sky is of a very nice tone, although i find that theres a bit too much sky in the pic.
6. fantastic timing to catch the sun(perfect for me)
7. this is personal, i find your pic more of a sunrise ;p than sunset actually. like bright, vibrant and shine. i prefer mellowed down colors/purple hues for sunsets.. but no right or wrong regarding this i guess

just sharing my observations.. can correct me if i'm wrong too :sweat: ..

cheers
 

IMHO, i think this photo isnt too bad.
Its aesthetically pleasing. The colours to me are just right, not too under or over saturated and the vignetting gives it a nice feel.

But just as die Blende has mentioned, there's something about the horizon that i cant really put my finger on. I think its straight, just that the composition of the buildings on the right gave it a more "heavy" feel, making look as if its slanted.
 

Maybe I can add a little on the location? the causeway which is on the left side of the photo and the shoreline of JB (the buildings) in actual location, are something like at tangent to each other, so this maybe why the horizon looks a bit unnatural. :)

taking a photo of it looks like they are in a straight line but in fact physically they are not, there is angle turn at the small building, in front of the lamppost on the right of the photo.

i tried to take a photo there before and I also dunno how to make it look straight, other than post processing. Maybe someone can share with us?:D thanks
 

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Thanks all for your guidance:) Hmm i also feel that there is sth wrong with the horizon, but i can't put it in words as well. As for overly-warm feeling, it must have been due to the white balance setting. I delibrately set it to cloudy wb so that it will have a warmer feel. As for the colour saturation, it kinds of surprised me as well when i tweaked the levels and curves, cos i didn't adjust the saturation at all.
 

i like the spectrum of colours. And the vignetting gives it the feel. Just need something in the foreground (water) or sky to make it perfect. But it's good on it's own.

I think the potential is there. Even with kit lens and K800i, i can see it.
 

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Everyone has pointed out the good parts, here are some bones to pick:

Buildings are not straight - vertical perspective distortion
Colours are slightly oversaturated
Horizon is tilted
 

agree there is some distortion. you can easily correct that in photoshop.

also i would have waited 1 more minute for the sun to hide behind the building so that you minimise losing details.
 

I have taken shots like this before..haaa.

Great colors, sharpness etc but horizon tilted. Even with postprocessing difficult to get the horizon straight. Adjust the building straight, the horizon tilts and vice versa.

Suggest that with a tripod use the live view to compose to make sure your horizon is flat before shooting. Use the lcd display grids as guide to make life easier.

Like what Davee mentioned earlier, the causeway is tangent (or is it perpendicular?) to the buildings thus making it difficult to have a flat horizon from end to end. The only way I could get it flat is to crop..haaa. Not sure if the pros have a solution to overcome this?

Some shots I took 2 weeks ago at the same location - also with kit lens 18-55. http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=714243

PS: you can make the images bigger..looks nicer too.
 

Hmm I have posted a larger version. Which means more flaws can now be seen. =X
Especially the lens flare at the top left hand corner.
4756454532_e9f2159bff_b.jpg
 

I have tried zooming in, but I lose the blue skies, cos the area captured becomes mostly orange instead. My intention was to include the evening blues as well.
 

this is a very good shot...keep it up!!!
 

i light this. flares are inevitibale sometimes. but i think this is a really nice shot. star burst effect on sun is amazing. nice use of the buildings, and i like this shot. its the kind i would wanna buy and hang on my wall to stare at, cause its just pleasing to the eye.

and who said that cheap dslrs cant get gd photos? its the skill that matters. keep up the good work. perhaps u anna just photoshop the flare off
 

i light this. flares are inevitibale sometimes. but i think this is a really nice shot. star burst effect on sun is amazing. nice use of the buildings, and i like this shot. its the kind i would wanna buy and hang on my wall to stare at, cause its just pleasing to the eye.

and who said that cheap dslrs cant get gd photos? its the skill that matters. keep up the good work. perhaps u anna just photoshop the flare off

:thumbsup: very true. kit lens can do wonders. master the use of it and when confident explore other lens.

Today looks sunny...finally. May pop by in the evening to catch another sunset.
 

looks a bit bland. i still :heart: the original...