L'Chams 52's - Stare - p5

L'Cham

L'Cham

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Steve
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Hi all, I'm new to the forum so forgive me if this isn't done right. I really like the idea of doing the 52 shots as a way to encourage myself to use my new camera a lot more. Unfortunately I've only just joined so I missed week one and can't see myself getting out in time to do week two. So I thought I'd post a couple of shots I've taken with a Sony Cybershot with the hope I'll get some constructive comments that I can take and use with my DSLR. I've chosen these two shots because 1) I quite like them and 2) they are in locations I plan to visit again so I hope to get better ones next time.

Week 1 - CURVED
This is of a tree on the edge of Lake Windermere. I love the curve of the trunk leaning away from the camera. This was very slightly cropped to remove the nose of a dog that crept into the shot as I was taking it.
DSC00116Fixed.jpg


Week 2 - POETRY
This is a piece that stands in Tossa De Marr in Spain. I really struggled to think of how to represent poetry because every time I thought of poems I thought of love poems or sad songs. In the end this kinda summed up what came to mind. The heart for love with a tear drop.
DSC00116.jpg


Oh, can someone advise if I'm supposed to post all of my 52's in one thread and just change the title when it's updated? Or do I start a new thread for each piece?
 
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Welcome to the 52's - This is where you're going to learn so much!
Can't comment on the pictures as the stupid work proxy has blocked them :(

As for your question - yep, stick all the 52's in this thread and update your title so that people know to have a look at your most recent stuff :wave:
 
Cheers Nick, you've been a huge help with all this. I'll have to buy you a beer next time I'm in Leicester seeing the wife's Dad.
 
:wave: L'Cham and welcome to the 52.
I really do hope that you get a lot out of this.

First shot is a stunning curve and really well spotted.
My only complaint with this one is that the far bank and hills in the background are impinging on the main focal point and making things look a bit muddled.
I think trying a different angle or lower viewpoint could have made a difference or a narrower DOF to throw the b/g out of focus and keep the attention on the foreground tree.

Second shot is again nicely spotted and a beautiful monument.
I keep trying to read the plaque on the bottom and can't quite get there, so maybe that could do with being a bit sharper.
Like the first shot, I'm finding the background a bit distracting and again I think that a narrower DOF would have helped things.

Good start though and I'm looking forward to seeing more (y)
 
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You're at it again Sarah... :D ...

The tree has excellent curvature and fits the theme well. I can't decide if it's level or not, I think having the background in focus is a little distracting.

The Poem shot, I can see you're thinking and the statue looks great. It might have worked better with a couple of steps to the left to put the dark green of the trees behind it, removing the clutter on the lower left, and the sky on the upper left.

I'm not sure you could have done much with the DOF though, looking at the EXIF.
 
First shot. I like it very much. I can just imagine an Otter playing among the roots of that tree! I agree with the comment about having the background more out of focus. Lovely curves though.

The poem shot.
The background is a bit busy for me.I keep wondering if you had lain down on the ground & shot up against the dark foliage of the tree. Might have been able to get the plaque a wee bit sharper too.
 
Thanks for the great feedback everyone. Now that I have a dSLR and have learning about things like DOF and composition I look forward to visiting these sites again and trying out what I've learnt. I'll be visiting the site of the heart again in March so I'll try to post an educated shot.
 
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Welcome to the 52's

Week 1 This shot fits the curved theme very well.(y)

Week 2 Nice simple shot, although a narrow DOF might have worked a little better to blur the less interesting background.

:)
 
Liking week 1, but then I would as I like trees. Any pic with a tree is going to get a (y) from me, and a curvy one like this wins on both levels :D


Week two. Hmm... yes, poetic. Is it poetry or a poem? I suspect that depends on your definition of poetry, the word has come to define many things in the modern world rather than just the written verse. Like poetry in motion I guess - which this is not. However, some forms can be poetry, like a sleek car can be sheer poetry to look at. I am struggling here to get a meaning, I realise your thinking and understand it, but without a hint at what (verse?) you were thinking a bit more specifically then to me it's a sculpture I am afraid.

Arthur
 
Week 3 - CHOPPED

IMG_0391.jpg


After mulling over the chopped food, wood and felled trees, I decided I wanted to try something a bit different. So I popped around the local charity shops to pick up my subject. I contemplated severing everything from the torso but changed my mind as it would have to be shot nude and I thought that might appear perverse. Originally as well I shot with coloured glass in front of the flash but took the advice of some friends and went for an over iso’d black and white. I felt it was important to have the head facing the camera with the eyes looking directly at the viewer. I think it adds a level of eeriness to the finished.
I think what I really learned from this shot was to not be afraid to change from your original idea. Especially in a controlled environment where you can shot, evaluate and shoot again.
Oh and to close my blinds when taking a hacksaw to a child’s toy when you’re neighbours know you don’t have kids.
 
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L'Cham said:
I decided I wanted to try something a bit different
Click to expand...

Psycho parent chops the heads off the kids dolls. I can relate to that. If I trip over another bloody Barbie doll...

Interesting and slightly distrurbing shot.
 
68lbs said:
Psycho parent chops the heads off the kids dolls. I can relate to that. If I trip over another bloody Barbie doll...

Interesting and slightly distrurbing shot.
Click to expand...

:LOL:
Not only could one of my neighbours spotted me with hacksaw and doll in hand you should have seen the looks I got as I bought a doll for 50p(+50p donation) from my local charity shop. Snobby sods.
 
Oh and to close my blinds when taking a hacksaw to a child’s toy when you’re neighbours know you don’t have kids.
Click to expand...

Also - close blinds when you do have kids and make sure you wait until they're at school. :)

Nice set of shots so far. Chopped looks a little soft - was that intentional? Great subject and well done for going with what you thought was best.

Ian.
 
I like what you've done with "chopped".If I was going to be critical I'd say all of these are a little soft. That could be a focus issue or a problem with your sharpening process in post production.
 
The23rdman said:
I like what you've done with "chopped".If I was going to be critical I'd say all of these are a little soft. That could be a focus issue or a problem with your sharpening process in post production.
Click to expand...

Could be a little of both :LOL:

I have very little PP knowledge so this was mostly done in camera and I've still very new to all this. Tried to get the focus fixed on the eyes.

edit: Oh and the first two shots were done on a point and click camera. That's why the DOF is poor.
 
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Nick T said:
I like the way your chopped doll turned out - and I know how long you spent working on it. So well done on the final image, and good on you for putting the effort in :clap:
Click to expand...

Cheers man, just pleased I didn't stick with the colored flash.
 
68lbs said:
Psycho parent chops the heads off the kids dolls. I can relate to that. If I trip over another bloody Barbie doll...

Interesting and slightly distrurbing shot.
Click to expand...

lucky i've got a lad, so no doll's to trip over, but i seam to go flying across the room when standing on cars :bang:


love the shot mate, quite dark and disturbing with the eye's looking at you, and the harsh shaddows, works really well (y)
 
L'Cham said:
Oh and to close my blinds when taking a hacksaw to a child’s toy when you’re neighbours know you don’t have kids.
Click to expand...

I would say that's adviseable yes :LOL: :LOL: :LOL:

Quite a disturbing, eerie shot but I like the way you've thought outside of the box for this. (y)
The dark shadows and grainy PP work well with it, but I'd like the eyes to be a bit sharper and more piercing.

Very nice take on the theme nevertheless.
 
Nice idea and much easier than using a real body :D Like the light, almost like the door's been opened by someone discovering the grisly scene for the first time. And then in pops Grissom. Slightly soft around the face as has been pointed out but a good shot nonetheless.
 
Thanks for the comments everyone. I'm very new to this so I'm very grateful for all comments and suggestions.

When I took the shot I was hoping for the focus to be softer on the body and for the head to be sharp. I'm starting to think that it might have been better to go with a slightly deeper DOF which would have kept the clarity in the face. Still, I'm happy with the result and I've learnt from it. Happy days. :D
 
Liking the shots so far L'Cham!

The chopped one is very 'Dexter', so love that!

I'll have to have a think and see if I can come up with something for the next theme and join in.
 
Ahhh Ewood, that was actually my initial plan but I couldn't get a doll that I could split up like the one found in the fridge. Was even thinking of cleaning my fridge out to get a nice crip look. Then I thought I'll just see what's on TV. :LOL:
 
It's worked very well. Eerie and rather macabre but the processing works well.. I think it might look a little soft, but in the context, I'm not sure that's too much of a problem...
 
Thanks John, just got Street to get on with now. Taking the camera out tonight but if I can't get anything worthy I'll be heading out and about around town at the weekend so I'll see what I can pick up then.
 
Week 4 - STREET


Right I've finally got around to getting 'Street' done. After mooching around my local streets this morning taking pictures of snowy streets, street signs and a illuminated keep left sign I decided that enough was enough and I got out there.

Newcastle2010-01-30-1.jpg


This was a really tough one for me as it's the first time I've photographed someone I don't know up close. But the whole reason for me joining TP and the 52's was to push myself to get out of my comfort zone.
This shot is of someone busking in Newcastle city centre. I threw some change in his case and still slightly nervous about it, took one shot and carried on around town.

Anyway, enough waffle, C&C please.
 
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Well done! I've still not plucked up the courage to do that. :)
 
Nice shot, gutsy too if you've never done it before! Pity there're no onions or stripey t shirt though... :D

Arthur
 
Thanks guys. :)

Problem is if he was wearing strips they would probably have been black and white vertical ones in Newcastle Arthur. Or even worse the away kit which is disgusting yellow and orange ones. :puke:
 
i like that , at least now we know what mario does when he is not pluming or rescuing princess :D

i all seriousness i like it, it takes balls to do snaps like that , so well done, the only thing i would like to see is a slightly larger crop that had the end of his elbow in.

good stuff :D
 
That's a lovely shot. The only thing I would have done was to have included a bit more on the right side, so as to see all of the accordian and his left hand, and maybe crop a bit closer to the top of his head to remove some of the bright colours in the background.
 
Great tips Richard and Derek. Hopefully this will give me the confidence to do more and take my time composing the shot properly. Would have liked to of maybe have a DOF to blur out the background a little more but didn't really want to swap lenses on the street.
 
:clap: :clap: :clap:
Well done Steve on getting out there and trying something new.
Is it something that you want to try again?
Just curious, because street photography has never really appealed to me, but I do wonder whether I should have tried it this week.

Difficult for me to offer any C&C, because this really isn't "my type" of photography but it looks like you found an interesting character for your first attempt.(y)
 
Here's a mono conversion for those who wanted it. I think I prefer the colour to be honest.

IMG_0872bw-1.jpg


Thanks Sarah, this isn't something I want to get into I would just hope it makes me a little more confident.
 
Hi Steve - I've looked at your thread several times, but somehow not got round to comenting - sorry!

Big 'well done' for getting out there and taking this shot. I think you've caught a brilliant expression on his face - he's looking directly at the camera - and playing that tune just for you! :) Seriously - you've got a good shot there - and although the b&w conversion is good, I prefer the colour one. :clap::clap::clap:

I hope this encourages you to get out there and do it again. :)

Jean
 
I like your take on chopped, very macabre.

Have to agree with comments before, first thing I thought of when I looked at your street shot was onions followed by the theme tune to Allo Allo :D

(y)
 
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