weekly blakesters 52 for 2013 Finally Complete! Last 3 weeks added

superpippo said:
Hi Iain

I had a quick look at this last night before I went to the pub and did not comment - but the thread hs been busy since then!!

Your usual very high standard. :clap: Beautifully and expertly crafted props which brought a smile to my face. My only minor gripe was that I did not see the connection straight away, altho I accept entirely the thinking. So then i tried to decide why, and I think that it is because the conductor does not stand out enough for me - initially I just thought that he was a musician - so perhaps my only crit would be that, in an ideal way, he should be more forward/detached/in control of the others. :thinking:

Lovely dark b/g which made me think of black velvet curtains from which the star of the show is about to appear. Excellent lighting - real show biz/filmic quality.
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Thanks Alan, I agree its a tenuous link to the theme and not one which is obvious. I thought about having the conductor seperate but tried different compositions which only served to put either the conductor or musicians oof.
This I felt was quite distracting, so what we have here is a compromise :D
 
Following on from the points made by Graham, I post this alternative version with more room at the bottom and the pianist turned slightly so as to add more dimension.


Direction Edit by iain blake, on Flickr
 
blakester said:
Thanks Alan, I agree its a tenuous link to the theme and not one which is obvious. I thought about having the conductor seperate but tried different compositions which only served to put either the conductor or musicians oof.
This I felt was quite distracting, so what we have here is a compromise :D
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No, i did not think it tenuous once I had seen the shot properly. I think it a
Great idea and well on theme. Like the edit too with the depth and the loss of the hightlight on the double bass
 
words...I have no words....:notworthy::notworthy:
 
Juxtaposition....two well thought out and set up shots, I'm leaning a little towards the second for me even if the edges of the smaller toes are a little less defined.

Letter...If you were really really really serious about this shot they should all have been the same letter :D good work again.

Electric....Titled..this is one I made earlier :LOL: very creative and very well made, fits the theme perfectly.

Direction....With electric I was going to say where's the rest of the band and here they are. Brilliant as always it's just the music conductor needs to stand out a little more as it took me a while to realise what he was.
 
foggy4ever said:
Juxtaposition....two well thought out and set up shots, I'm leaning a little towards the second for me even if the edges of the smaller toes are a little less defined.

Letter...If you were really really really serious about this shot they should all have been the same letter :D good work again.

Electric....Titled..this is one I made earlier :LOL: very creative and very well made, fits the theme perfectly.

Direction....With electric I was going to say where's the rest of the band and here they are. Brilliant as always it's just the music conductor needs to stand out a little more as it took me a while to realise what he was.
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Cheers f4e (y)
Letter, those little pasta pieces were tiny, when i bought them I had a thought that they would just be a wee bit smaller than alphabet spaghetti, I was wrong. So there's no chance I fancied sorting through them :LOL:

Electric, yes in true Blue Peter style it should be "here's one I made earlier" :LOL: He is using a different guitar to his earlier appearance.

Direction, yes i wanted the conductor seperate and could have spread the figures out a little to isolate him but I was limited to the width of the base.

Thanks again for looking/commenting, much appreciated. (y)
 
excellent work as always and superb models it must have been difficult to light with all those reflective surfaces :clap: :clap:
 
alsjazzera said:
excellent work as always and superb models it must have been difficult to light with all those reflective surfaces :clap: :clap:
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Cheers Allan (y)

The lighting was very simple, I had ocf held above the models at various angles and distance. I was looking for the spotlight effect to try and not cast any shadows. Some reflected the flash more than others, it was then a matter of choice as to which one had the least blown bits. Thanks again
 
blakester said:
Although both my girls are grown up and temporarily flown the nest Marsha, we still have all their toys in the house. Kids toys have a lot of photographic potential IMHO. The bright colours are very appealing. Arty bits and pieces especially.
I never pursued any art subjects at school, opting for more technical subjects which initially took me into engineering when I left school. I have no regrets about that but wish I'd taken up photography sooner. It is only very recently I have explored my arty side :LOL:
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I bet a lot of your old school friends would be a bit taken aback to think you have a fetish for feet of the pebble kind! And you wander around London with a crystal ball taking photos of it! My school friends would die of shock if they knew I was allowed to speak to aircraft unsupervised!

blakester said:
The meet andy is referring to is the Cumbria meet in June, it would be lovely to have you along, child care permitting of course :D
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I've had a look at the thread. I'll probably not be able to go :( With Hubby still on his course and me possibly needing an op later this year. But who knows what the next two months will bring :)
 
Hi Iain:wave:

Electric: simply amazing idea and well 'built', creativity once again shines through. Good use of the different colour wires correlating with the plug.

Direction: In awe again at your artistic creativity. At first I didn't get the link with the conductor leading so I think a reposition of the orchestra to show that may be better. The figures are absolutely superb. Can't add any more, its been said already. :clap:
 
The goblin said:
I bet a lot of your old school friends would be a bit taken aback to think you have a fetish for feet of the pebble kind! And you wander around London with a crystal ball taking photos of it! My school friends would die of shock if they knew I was allowed to speak to aircraft unsupervised!


I've had a look at the thread. I'll probably not be able to go :( With Hubby still on his course and me possibly needing an op later this year. But who knows what the next two months will bring :)
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:LOL: I am sure there are many who would think my antics in photography weird :LOL: I don't worry about it any more, anyway whats strange about carrying a crystal ball around? Doesn't everyone? :LOL:

Well fingers crossed that you would be able to come along, it would be lovely to see you again and have a wander around with our cameras. Who knows I might even take my camera out of my rucksack this time ;)

Mad Hatter said:
Hi Iain:wave:

Electric: simply amazing idea and well 'built', creativity once again shines through. Good use of the different colour wires correlating with the plug.

Direction: In awe again at your artistic creativity. At first I didn't get the link with the conductor leading so I think a reposition of the orchestra to show that may be better. The figures are absolutely superb. Can't add any more, its been said already. :clap:
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Cheers Dave (y)

Direction, I agree about the composition, I am going to reshoot to get it as perfect as I can taking onboard everyones critique and suggestions.
 
I BLOODY HATE SHOW OFFS :sulk:

Seriously Iain, Very impressive, the edited version is my favourite. (y)
 
Mentalblock said:
Hello Mr Talented.
Can't crit the pictures, still loving the things you made.
Did you get an A+ in art and CDT?
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:LOL: Cheers Neil (y)
Funnily enough, I never took art as an 'O' grade (Scottish exam system), I wish I had though.
I am indulging myself a wee bit with these models etc. I enjoy making them as much as the photography if I am being honest ;)
 
Week 13 - Tacky, again a little late but I got there in the end.
Surprising as I nearly never bothered for this theme, I was that uninspired :shake:
This week has very much been a post and be damned really.

My thinking was tacky as in sticky for the bubblegum or my trainers whichever you think are tackier :LOL:

C&C welcome but not expected :(


Week 13 - Tacky by iain blake, on Flickr
 
:shake: having read your preamble I wasn't expecting much. More fool me :bonk:

Another cracker. Great perspective, nice colours and you've handled the harsh light well.

Crit, well, tad off the left to mirror the right.

Adidas, tacky...never!!! :D

Cheers
 
posiview said:
:shake: having read your preamble I wasn't expecting much. More fool me :bonk:

Another cracker. Great perspective, nice colours and you've handled the harsh light well.

Crit, well, tad off the left to mirror the right.

Adidas, tacky...never!!! :D

Cheers
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Cheers Andy, you're too kind (y)

I hear what you are saying about the crop from the left, I thought about it but as my right foot is raised, and the composition is not symmetrical, I thought I'd leave the space on the left IYSWIM ;)
 
I like it nicely on theme, I assume its plastercine as that seems like a lot of chewing gum, the slightly over saturated colour works really well (y)
 
alsjazzera said:
I like it nicely on theme, I assume its plastercine as that seems like a lot of chewing gum, the slightly over saturated colour works really well (y)
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Cheers Allan, yes you are quite correct. I bought bubblegum thinking it would be a bright pink colour only to find no artificial colourings in it, so it was an anaemic shade of grey :puke:

I was after the over saturated look, thanks for noticing (y)
 
I find doing this '52 thing is like my long distance training plans... sometimes it's a carrot and sometimes it's a stick.

So well done for digging in and getting something done. BTW the rest of us are on value now :D - keep up!
 
Brian_of_Bozeat said:
I find doing this '52 thing is like my long distance training plans... sometimes it's a carrot and sometimes it's a stick.

So well done for digging in and getting something done. BTW the rest of us are on value now :D - keep up!
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Cheers Brian (y)
I am glad I got something done for it, every once in a while these themes come along and its a struggle for inspiration.

Value, thats taking a bit of thinking about too ;)
I am trying hard to avoid money or anything along those lines.
 
I had a similar idea but went for the obvious, I like the low angle, the letter box crop and the colour of the gum really pops. Not sure about the vignetting though :shrug:
 
Hi Iain :)

Tacky - For a 'Be Damned' shot that works well mate, like the colour, low angle and crop... but you need to lose that post

Brian_of_Bozeat said:
..... BTW the rest of us are on value now :D - keep up!
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You tell him Brian, come on Iain... Keep up :LOL:
 
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Really like this shot. Great idea, wish id thought of it.
 
foggy4ever said:
I had a similar idea but went for the obvious, I like the low angle, the letter box crop and the colour of the gum really pops. Not sure about the vignetting though :shrug:
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Cheers f4e (y)
The vignette I can easily lose probably not to everyone's taste I understand.

Dark Knight said:
Hi Iain :)

Tacky - For a 'Be Damned' shot that works well mate, like the colour, low angle and crop... but you need to lose that post

You tell him Brian, come on Iain... Keep up :LOL:
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:LOL: cheers Dean (y)
I understand about the post too :LOL:

Keep up?? :bat: You are lucky I posted anything at all :LOL: such was my lack of inspiration.

posiview said:
Yeah, don't make him angry, he might up his game :help:
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Cheers Andy I struggled with this one, I really did.

Martin80 said:
Really like this shot. Great idea, wish id thought of it.
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Cheers Martin, this only came to me at the eleventh hour :LOL:
 
I'm getting bored with this now...

Colours, composition, DOF, crop, vignette... all spot on for me. Even the obvious non-chewing gum nature of the chewing gum adds something to it. (y)
 
Works for me - for me it really needs taking that bit off the LHS up to and maybe including the railing.

Nice to see something outside from you too Iain - quite refreshing in fact... the blues working well with the bright pink in the bright sunshine... Like it!
 
NickD said:
I'm getting bored with this now...

Colours, composition, DOF, crop, vignette... all spot on for me. Even the obvious non-chewing gum nature of the chewing gum adds something to it. (y)
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:LOL: Cheers Nick.

overbez said:
Works for me - for me it really needs taking that bit off the LHS up to and maybe including the railing.

Nice to see something outside from you too Iain - quite refreshing in fact... the blues working well with the bright pink in the bright sunshine... Like it!
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Cheers Graham (y)
I hear what you are saying about the lhs but I haven't been able to get back to it, work has been mad busy this week.

Yes, there hasn't been much alfresco work from me has there.
Well, this weeks is going to be another outside photograph :LOL:
As if I am not doing enough hours at work, I went in early to get my take on this weeks theme.
 
Week 14 -Value

I am not sure if this needs a little explanation or not, it is one of the ideas which sprung to mind for the theme.
I see this quotation as a value, a sentiment or an outlook on life. This is where my uncertainty lies just not sure if it is on theme or not :thinking:
Anyway, C&C welcome as always.


Week 14 - Value by iain blake, on Flickr
 
Its certainly a value, Oscar Wilde I believe, not sure i am getting the picture I cant make out how much or little PP has gone into that, its not your usual thing.
:thinking: there is definitely a clash between the stone the quote is on and the BG.
 
Composition works - better than if it were square.

Like the juxtaposition :)D) of the black stone set against the background stones, agree something looks possibly a tad unnatural about the relationship between the two - the bg looks like ground level, which would make the black stone be hovering above the ground horizontally?

But far from detracting that adds an extra dimension of wonder for me - which keeps my eyes on the image for longer which surely must be the aim. (y)
 
The quote is on theme for me.

Strange image, kind of spooky. I'm not sure if I like it or not, however that's not important.

Good use of a wide aperture to isolate the stone from the BG which was your aim so well done (y)
 
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