Image edits to fit accepted norms set by judges.

Cluster

Cluster

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Name
Dave
Edit My Images
Yes
Here's one of my favourite images from the last couple of years. (This may have been posted before the recent edits).
Taken on a fixed focus/aperture/shutter P&S. It is on film, but that is not relevant to my post.

View attachment 482141ShadowsSm.jpg

Now a new member of a photographic club, I'm planning on entering this in our mono section for projected images. Some of the other members have seen my image and suggested that the judge might not like: (1) The very dark bottom corners, totally blocked. (2) The blobs of light at the top right, causing some distraction ("bright areas compete for attention"), (3) The image is essentially two images, top half and bottom half.

I had decided not to enter it. No-one enters film images and the resolution isn't great. Now I am rethinking my entries, I had incorporated a few edits as per suggestions received.
(3) the image is split into two, it is what it is. I feel that the metalwork of the bridge helps emphasise the oppressive shadows below and add to the "narrative". No change as the only change available is to scrap the entry.
(2), The blobs of light in the top right. I'm not sure about this, I thought it helped balance, but I can accept that some may see it as distracting. Maybe crop.
(1) The dark of the bottom corners is what made the image, but I do agree that some detail in the shadows might work. Edited.

I must say that this image is one the the first ever images that I have applied selective editing to, courtesy of several Darktable tutorials.

Here is the latest version...... I'm not sold on the big crop to cut the light in the top right corner..... Maybe I should give it to them as I like it, rather than anticipating the judges comments.

Out From The ShadowsSm2.jpg

What do you think?
EDIT, for some reason, the image appears darker when posted than when viewed in my image viewer......
 
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Great leading lines in the second Dave

Arrows at the girl with dog and the other side pointing at the lovely sand bank at the rivers edge.
Second is better IMO
 
I know someone who used to be secretary of a camera club and he had a note book with the preferences of individual judges. I prefer the first but suspect some judges may say that the bottom corners are blocked whereas the second has more detail.
 
Now that I can flick between the two versions, I can see how the light blobs in the top RH corner are the first thing to grab my attention as I switch to the top image.
 
The crop is better on the second but....the lady walking the dog doesn't quite stand out so much...probably lifting the shadows and reduced contrast a little too much.

I am a regular club-competition entrant and I tend to find judges a bit of a mixed bag, once they are fixated on a particular flaw on one image that is being judged then any other images with the same 'flaw' will be marked accordingly. We regularly have images submitted to international salons in our comps that get judged down to 7/10, and every time we have the 7.5/8/8.5 lottery - where the comments don't quite match the mark given...
 
Why are you kidding yourself that these are accepted norms by judges when you colleagues told you the same and I agree with them. The image is in two halves and the blocked up areas at the bottom are awful and presumable due to using film which has a much poorer dynamic range than digital.

Dave
 
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