RJ, some great shots there, representing some memories that should last a lifetime. I think the set is fantastic, and you should be very proud. but you asked for critique, so without any claim to special knowledge or skill or credential etc, here goes:
Thanks, Chris, for both the kind words and the feedback. It's hard to improve without critique, so I appreciate your taking the time to respond.
1) Tumbledown house. I really like shots like this, but the wires above are a real problem here.
Interesting point. Ordinarily I would agree and would look for angles that minimised those wires, although in this case I feel like they are important as they convey how ramshackle that place really was (this is local motel/guest house accommodation) and I
think they add context (but maybe not?). Looking at the photo again, I think that the photo's biggest weakness is that it isn't as suited to the square format as some of the other photos.
2) Wife pointing at the wall... she is so prominent she demands to be the "subject", and she's out of focus, which is disturbing. There were a few shots like this where I thought you were really struggling to get enough DoF, and MF isn't your friend from that point of view (even most 35mm lenses will have had difficuty). There's also a general problem with many of the Wall vistas, including this, from the haze. Sadly it's sufficient to soften all detail and contrast, but doesn't quite soften enough to be a romantic mist, so generally it takes from the shots rather than adds to them. OTOH, I really like this sort of composition, the pointing the finger really leading the eye into those distant towers.
I have very deliberately chosen to use medium format for its thin depth of field. For me, the picture is about the huge, steep section of the Wall we were about to climb, not about my wife. My wife was used as a framing device and I have intentionally blurred her with a large aperture as that isn't what I want people looking at. I know that I've heard folks say not to have 'foreground bokeh' or OOF foregrounds, but they do it all the time in movies (lots of over the shoulder shots, etc.) and I feel that it adds depth and character to the photograph. It'd be interesting to hear what others think about this as well though, but I'd say I always aim for selective focusing with large apertures in most of my pics.
With regard to the haze, I actually really like it in
most of these photos; it looks soft and filmy to me.
3) Towers on peaks. In this one, perhaps my favourite, you've got nice contrast in the foreground, a great composition leading up the succession of misty ridges. I think you've really worked the haze well here; great shot!
4) Red ribbon... nice colour contrast of the ribbon and stones.
Thanks! Obviously I have no control over the haze, but the bits of the wall in the foreground were closer than some of the sections in other photos, so it looks a bit clearer.
5 and 6) Receding Wall... both have the haze problem, but I think no 6 works better with the foreground tower.
I actually really like the haze in these, I thought it looked better than the pics I've seen without the haze from others. I thought it added to the film look, but I guess I could be looking at these with rose-tinted glasses.
7) Day 2, hazy sunrise... it's a little difficult to work out what's going on here, eg not sure if that's a _really_ hazy sunrise, or the moon setting. Without the other contextual clues, I woudn't have guessed this as the Wall.
Well, first thing is that I don't think that the square format worked as well here and I really needed a longer lens (I only owned an 80mm lens for my SQ-a at the time). It was an
incredibly hazy sunrise, so much so that you could stare directly at the sun, and it looked like nothing I've ever seen before in person, so I can imagine that it's even more difficult to figure out what's going on from this picture.
RJ, some great shots there, representing some memories that should last a lifetime. I think the set is fantastic, and you should be very proud. but you asked for critique, so without any claim to special knowledge or skill or credential etc, here goes:
8 and 10) Wall through archway. Both of these are a type of shot I really like, although I think they would work better with the greater DoF from a smaller film. In 8, the subject is the Wall but it's out of focus; in 10 the Wall is in focus, but is less interesting compositionally: the little tower top centre in 8 is excellent.
Again, I've very deliberately used large apertures for these; I personally find it a bit boring when everything is in focus and it's one of the reasons I love to shoot medium format. I have another version of number 8 with the wall in focus on my home computer, but I've already posted a bunch of pictures of the wall, so I wanted to highlight the interior of the very stark tower instead with this picture.
I really like the OOF foregrounds, but maybe it's just me?
9) Really like the composition here, such a shame about the haze, but you've done a great job with it.
Thanks regarding the composition. I thought that the haze looked just about right here, but I could be wrong.
12) Really like this one, too, with this feeling you're about to descend the invisible stairs (such a shame steps don't work well from the top). As someone else said, you've really worked the square format well in these.
Thanks, I really liked the autumn colours in this final shot.
I do really like the square format and I think it generally works really well for me. It's not necessarily the best format for all situations, but I'm stubborn, so I'll try it anyway!
Thanks again for the feedback.
