Clockunder said:
Other than the factors (such as angle, composition etc.) mentioned by others, an often forgotten but extremely important thing to note is the light condition of the scene.
Often, the time of the day and the weather make or break the photo.
Shots taken at the "right" time of the day and under the "right" weather can bring out the essence of the picture because light condition affects the contrast between different things in the picture and their colours and saturation.
The picture above might have been taken at the "wrong" time under the "wrong" weather condition to have the appearance of the picture you have in mind.
I agree with Clockunder and Fword about the time of day and the lack of focus. My first impression when i look at the photo is... "Ok... now... what am I looking at. I see some house....a vending machine... etc"
What Is the picture about? Oftentimes I find that photographers try to squeeze everything in one picture. The eye is like the camera. It only has one point of focus (Perhaps i am wrong in this assumption). Hence we have to guide the eye of the viewer to what we want them to see. It is NOT objective. Photography, like all art, is subjective. Subject to the photographer's interpretation of what lies before us. Our job is then to present what WE see, not what the scene is to the viewer. If the viewer picks up something else.... sweet. That'll be interesting. But the worse thing to happen is when the viewer goes... erm.... ok.. what am I supposed to look our for.
Then again, the flip side to this is when we create art, we want the viewer to 'work' a little. That deals with context already. But there still has to be something there.
Ergo, aesthetically speaking, perhaps less can be more. It might just be a case of changing your position to a more frontal or lower perspective.Perhaps front on would be good as fword had suggested.
Personally, i'd just avoid all the clutter in the bottom and focus on the nice colors of the buildings. The colors are striking, yet designs somewhat uniform. Its a nice study of conservation and modernity.
Oh well.. I've spoken too much me thinks. Just some nuggests to chew on. My fingers are tired now.
