Critique Fest

[RickV]

A bit late with my version but I blame the time zone...
There's a lot that could be pulled out of this shot if you're into rocks.
Edited to suit my printer so the artifacts are a bit gross on a monitor.

[Peter Mounier]

Hopefully my post didn't kill this thread! If the image stinks just say so. Or maybe someone else will post something and we can move on...

Your post didn't kill the thread. I, for one, had to get to work. Also I wanted to think about your image for awhile because it's way different compared to what I shoot.
I like the shot with the fence in focus. I'd like to see more detail in the gears that are the in background though. Not more sharpness, but just a bit more tonality in the highs. Personally, I don't like the look of blown out highlights. I know it was done for for the graphic and gritty look, so it's really just my opinion and sense of aesthetics. Also the one where the fence is out of focus doesn't do anything for me, even in contrast to the other one so I would not do a diptych with it. I would consider adding something to the fence to achieve some tension, like a "Keep Out" sign, or a dead bird hanging in the fence, or just a feather.


Peter

[Peter Mounier]

RickV
Better late than never I say!
Thanks for your comment. I like your version.
I may have to move this image from the "hopeless" bin in my head to the "maybe" bin.

Peter

[Marko Trebusak]

Ken, this is a very good idea. I like the resulting discussion, so let's throw something into the mill: here is a raw scan of one of my soft focus negatives. I'm probably guilty to diminish the effect of the lens by developing quite flat and working my way into the negative in Photoshop. Let's see, what others can come out with, before showing my "final" version.

Cheers,
Marko

[nray]

FWIW,
I thought the vase a distraction.


Focusing on the hole, otherwise your eye wanders too much.

[Greg Miller]

Using luminosity to control the viewers eye into and through the scene.

[Greg Miller]

For test 1, I would not change the composition by cropping or tilting. I like the counter balance of the bud and the base of the vase. The original composition has a very nice balance between the two. And I think the negative space around the objects is just right. Cropping in tighter destroys the overall balance IMHO.

[Ken Lee]

Ken, this is a very good idea. I like the resulting discussion, so let's throw something into the mill: here is a raw scan of one of my soft focus negatives. I'm probably guilty to diminish the effect of the lens by developing quite flat and working my way into the negative in Photoshop. Let's see, what others can come out with, before showing my "final" version.

I would like to see more fog. It would make the image more poetic, and further soften the trees in the distance.

[Ken Lee]

Using luminosity to control the viewers eye into and through the scene.

That's lovely, quite a nice improvement. You have to click on the thumbnail to see it large. Thanks !

[Greg Miller]

Here's a warm tones version using a B&W adjustment layer with tint set to hue of 42 and saturation of 8.