NickDs 52 for 2022 - Week 52 - Showcase.

Interesting! There were a number of things there that I didn't know.
 
Interesting object. Had to Google to get. But more info. Nicely composed and lit - and a lovely colour and detail on the carving too.

What happened to the rest of it? (Genuine question)
 
I like the shot Nick. I think that it would be good to see the entire gourd to get some context around how it all fits together. I enjoyed the accompanying information.
 
Boots said:
Interesting! There were a number of things there that I didn't know.
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Thanks!
My Father in Law is Argentinian, so we have a fair amount of Mate paraphernalia kicking around.

SimonH said:
Interesting object. Had to Google to get. But more info. Nicely composed and lit - and a lovely colour and detail on the carving too.

What happened to the rest of it? (Genuine question)
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Cheers!
This particular gourd is quite plain, so I chose to crop it out. I figured that the collar and the view inside said 'receptacle' enough, without the inclusion of the rest.

Fuji Dave said:
Never heard of it but still a good shot.
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Thank you!
It is one of those things you can't post without a bit of explanation.

Darkslinger said:
I like the shot Nick. I think that it would be good to see the entire gourd to get some context around how it all fits together. I enjoyed the accompanying information.
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Thanks!
I did take a few shots of the full gourd, but went with the crop in the end, as I didn't think the rest of it really added anything. I could be wrong... that often happens!

Mate 2.jpg
 
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Thanks Nick, the colour of the gourd blended in with the background so much that I thought that, at first, I thought that the blue rim the all there was to it :D .

This helps me wrap my head around it.
 
Interesting object.. something I had never heard of. At first I thought it was one of those old-fashioned finger wetting pads, doh!!
 
Darkslinger said:
Thanks Nick, the colour of the gourd blended in with the background so much that I thought that, at first, I thought that the blue rim the all there was to it :D .

This helps me wrap my head around it.
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No problem!
I do have a habit of focussing on a particular aspect of something rather than the whole. It's probably not helpful for the viewer.

LC2 said:
Oh, now I get it - I think it needs the full gourd to give context personally.
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Yup, that seems to be a recurring theme, duly noted. :D

HelenC said:
Interesting object.. something I had never heard of. At first I thought it was one of those old-fashioned finger wetting pads, doh!!
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Ha... Mr vague strikes again. Reflecting on the first image, I guess it could be anything.
 
Week 4 - Bottle.

You can picture the exchange in the marketing meeting... 'right chaps, we need ideas, our usual bottles don't attract enough dust and debris...'

Honestly, I have no idea how this got in to our home, how long it's been here, or where it came from... but it seems to have always been around. I'm pretty sure the only reason it's still around is that I figured it'd come in handy for a photograph one day... turns out that day is today!

Dusty Old Thing by Nick, on Flickr
 
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I like this dusty old thing a lot Nick. Very well shot.
 
That's a bottle with lots of character! Nicely done too, good lighting and I like the composition.
 
As above. Great subject, cracking lighting. Ticks all the boxes, great photo.
 
Love the colour pop on this. The red against the black really works. And it's beautifully lit.

My only criticism would be that it looks off centre by a bit. IMHO, it should either be obviously off-centre or bang on centre.

I also can't work out if it's upright or it's just the fact we can only see half of the bottle that's tricking the eyes.
 
Lovely light and box tick.
 
I've probably got similar objects that exist only for a future photo, though it does result in a lot of "junk"
It's definitely a bottle with lots of character.
 
Today is the day! Definitely worth hanging on to it. Definitely a bottle of more interest than usual. I love the subdued lighting and the reflection really adds to it.
 
Darkslinger said:
I like this dusty old thing a lot Nick. Very well shot.
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Thanks!
It's an odd item, but it is quite photogenic.

FlyPhot said:
That's a bottle with lots of character! Nicely done too, good lighting and I like the composition.
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Cheers!
I turned the lights off and lit it with the LED light on my phone, so I could mess around with what placement worked best.

Boots said:
Cracking bottle, great lighting - well done!
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Thank you!
I think the fairly hard light is ok. I did consider lifting the shadows a touch, but when I uploaded it I realised I liked it as it was.

SimonH said:
As above. Great subject, cracking lighting. Ticks all the boxes, great photo.
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Thanks!
I do keep meaning to look into some proper off camera flash, but so often end up using a torch, or my phone I wonder if I'd bother to use it.

Peter123 said:
Well lit. A character bottle.
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Cheers!
There's definitely something about it... Lord knows what horrors lie within though. It's obviously pretty old.

Kell said:
Love the colour pop on this. The red against the black really works. And it's beautifully lit.

My only criticism would be that it looks off centre by a bit. IMHO, it should either be obviously off-centre or bang on centre.

I also can't work out if it's upright or it's just the fact we can only see half of the bottle that's tricking the eyes.
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Thank you!
It is off centre by a bit. I had to crop a little as I used a prime and my BG didn't cleanly fill the frame, so I had the leeway to recompose. I experimented with the usual rules, neither of which worked for me, and the slightly off centre look works ok to my eye.

-Oy- said:
Lovely light and box tick.
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Thanks!
Lighting by Motorola... lighting support by near microwave oven!

StuartPearson said:
I've probably got similar objects that exist only for a future photo, though it does result in a lot of "junk"
It's definitely a bottle with lots of character.
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Cheers!
I think most of us have things like this. Given how handy they can be for the 52 challenge I'd hoard more if we had more space (and a cleaner to do the dusting).

Bebop said:
Today is the day! Definitely worth hanging on to it. Definitely a bottle of more interest than usual. I love the subdued lighting and the reflection really adds to it.
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Thank you!
The reflection is in the top of a black chest freezer. I've used it before (and will probably use it again), as it provides just enough subtle reflection to anchor the subject.
 
Lovely bottle.. no reason not to hang on to something so decorative. I love the lighting, it really highlights the variety of textures.
 
HelenC said:
Lovely bottle.. no reason not to hang on to something so decorative. I love the lighting, it really highlights the variety of textures.
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Thanks!
It annoys me every time I have to dust it, but it's going nowhere!
 
Week 5 - Snappers Choice.

I've been wanting to get down to see this little fella since he was born around 3 months ago, but didn't have the opportunity until today.
Meet Loki, London Zoo's new Sumatran Tiger Cub. These beautiful things are critically endangered, so Loki's arrival is great news. Tricky to get an image, as he was indoors, behind thick glass (at least I hope it's thick), and even thicker crowds, but at least I got a few record shots. I could have watched him all day.

Loki by Nick, on Flickr
 
You’ve done well there Nick. It’s a lovely portrait, sharp eyes and nice background blur.
 
Well our house just went awwwww! Great picture you’ve done well capturing that through glass. I like the thoughtful look he has.
 
So cute... given the circumstances you've done really well to capture a natural looking shot.
 
What a beautiful shot Nick. Spot on with the focus. We all want kittens when we see them, the problem is that they grow up to be cats... :D
 
Considering the enclosure glass this is a very sharp -- and very cute -- image.
 
Awww cute kitty FTW!
 
Lovely sharp image, loads of aww factor ... has the Mrs Chevin's seal of approval.
 
Great image, the gaze looks intent. I would never have guessed it's taken behind glass.
 
Peter123 said:
You’ve done well there Nick. It’s a lovely portrait, sharp eyes and nice background blur.
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Thanks!
I'm quite pleased with what I got. We did return to that enclosure a number of times to see if the crowd had thinned and I could get a better shot, but he was a big draw.

Simonbrown16 said:
Well our house just went awwwww! Great picture you’ve done well capturing that through glass. I like the thoughtful look he has.
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Cheers!
Out of the dozen or so keepers I grabbed, his look was always wistful and wondering, but this one was my favourite.

HelenC said:
So cute... given the circumstances you've done really well to capture a natural looking shot.
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Thank you!
At one stage the mother was playing with him, and I would have loved to have grabbed a few shots of that, but that would have entailed being as rude as some of my fellow photographers were, so I left it.

Fuji Dave said:
That is so damn cute on the scale, love it and great to see a new cub.
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Thanks!
He was certainly a crowd pleaser, a beautiful little creature.

Darkslinger said:
What a beautiful shot Nick. Spot on with the focus. We all want kittens when we see them, the problem is that they grow up to be cats... :D
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Cheers!
It's true... and this one will grow up to be a cat that sees us as meat!

Cloudforest said:
That's just beautiful. Nicely taken Nick.
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Thank you!
It's a bit of a cheap shot really, a subject like this can carry a image regardless of how good or bad the shot is.

ShinySideUp said:
Considering the enclosure glass this is a very sharp -- and very cute -- image.
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Thanks!
Reflections were the enemy. Anyone with light coloured clothing washed out the glass. I got low in the corner and tried my best to shield the end of the lens with my hand.


-Oy- said:
Awww cute kitty FTW!
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Cheers!
Yup... Cute man-eating kitty!

Chevin said:
Lovely sharp image, loads of aww factor ... has the Mrs Chevin's seal of approval.
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Thank you!
Everyone was quite taken with him!

StuartPearson said:
Great image, the gaze looks intent. I would never have guessed it's taken behind glass.
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Thanks!
Yeah, I'm not quite sure how I got away with it. It was necessarily thick, and pretty grubby, but on the shots where I managed to minimise the reflections the lens did a great job of looking past any interference.
 
NickD said:
It's a bit of a cheap shot really, a subject like this can carry a image regardless of how good or bad the shot is.
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While this is very true, your shot is definitely one of the good ones. Possibly a tiny bit cold but nothing that a hint of WB tweaking can't cure.
 
Nod said:
While this is very true, your shot is definitely one of the good ones. Possibly a tiny bit cold but nothing that a hint of WB tweaking can't cure.
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Thanks!
I'd not noticed the temperature, but now you mention it, you're not wrong!
 
Happens (occasionally!!!)
 
Bebop said:
What a gorgeous cub. You can't tell it is through glass at all - amazingly sharp eyes! Well done.
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Thanks!

Unfortunately he's not well, he started having seizures last week. Here's hoping they get to the bottom of it.
 
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