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5 In A Row - David Storm

davidstorm
Posted 01/09/2014 - 20:53 Link
Hi everyone, David Trout has kindly asked me to be the 'five in a row' person this week, so I will be putting up for your critique five of my shots. To me, this is all about pushing the limits a bit and provoking some thought and comment, so you will not necessarily be seeing my 'normal output'. I may put a couple on that you would recognise as mine, but I will also try to give you some that are a bit different. So, here goes, the first image tonight, that I am fully expecting will get an absolute slating from you!! I will do my best to explain the thought process behind each shot.

1. Focussing on the little things whilst still seeing the wider picture

A lot of you will know that I like my macro! I take a lot of 'bug' shots with all manner of lenses, of late the DA*300 with or without tubes or Teleconverter has been my preferred weapon. I also do a lot with proper macro lenses or 50mm primes on tubes and then there's the butchered zoom! This one is different, it's shot with the Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4 HSM OS which focusses amazingly close for a mid-range zoom. For this shot I deliberately opened it up to max aperture and widest zoom and got as close as possible to the main subject, which is a Greenbottle fly on Chicken Poo! The result is wafer thin DOF and our garden (complete with Tibetan Terrier) in the OOF background, hence the rather long title of this image.

Comment Image
Flickr

Nicola's Apartments, Kassiopi, Corfu

Some cameras, some lenses, some bits 'n' bobs
autumnlight
Posted 02/09/2014 - 13:51 Link
Hi David, sorry to see i'm the only one to comment...

I love the overall composition and POV, lovely light, the only criticism i can find is the main focus on the fly, i find it a little small in the frame and not very noticeable, maybe something a little larger would have caught my eye, maybe a dog bone because of the way your gorgeous little dog is looking straight at the camera, i know it's easy to put this criticism forward as animals are so hard to capture when and where you want them, i hope i don't sound to critical as it is just my opinion and others may disagree, i have to say i really find the background delightful! this is a great start to your five a day, just hope i can find five to equal!
Edited by autumnlight: 02/09/2014 - 13:52
davidtrout
Posted 02/09/2014 - 13:53 Link
First time I've ever been invited to comment of a picture of bird poo, I'm just hoping the Storm family doesn't have a pet Great Dane.
This sort of picture is ideal for 5-in-a-row providing it encourages honest comment from other members of PUF. Response to the series has so far been limited.
David's first picture may not win many photo competitions but hopefully it will get people thinking about what they are trying to portray in their photographs.
OK its a bit of fun but it raises the question, can you focus on the small details and at the same time see the wider picture? Technically its not easy in photography. In any case do we want all this detail in one image?
No doubt someone will have some answers.
David

PPG: http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/davidtrout
johnriley
Posted 02/09/2014 - 14:10 Link
I think trying something different is to be encouraged. This one doesn't work IMHO as there's far too much of the image totally out of focus. It's not at all clear what the main focus is actually showing us, which doesn't help.
Best regards, John
swarf
Posted 02/09/2014 - 14:13 Link
David

I'm with Maria on this one. The fly is lost in the frame, and was almost the last thing I saw. Perhaps this was your objective - in which case you succeeded. I found that the first things that I focussed in on were the red flowers and the dog's face (once I realsied that it was a dog!)

As it is, I'm afraid that it doesn't work for me. Would it be stronger if the poo and its associated fly were in the line of focus further left on the boards and so further away from the strong highlight?

Phil
K-5iiS; K-r; ME Super; ME; DA* 16-50 f2.8; DA 18-135 WR; DA 55-300 WR; HD DA 15mm F4 ED AL Limited; FA 50mm f1.4; A50mm f1.7; DAL 18-55mm; M40mm f2.8; + assorted non-Pentax lenses

My Flikr Page link
bforbes
Posted 02/09/2014 - 14:34 Link
I thinking the same as Maria, the focused subject is too small, as I go straight to the dog. Maybe if could have moved your position so the fly etc. was separated from the shadow?
michaelblue
Posted 02/09/2014 - 19:18 Link
I think the idea here is great but I have to agree with the others that the main subject (the fly) is just too small in the frame, a slightly larger subject would have been better, particularly as the dog is seemingly looking straight at it.

I can imagine this working better at night using a little diffused flash on the main subject
Regards,
Michael
davidstorm
Posted 02/09/2014 - 19:59 Link
Thanks all for your comments on the first image, the observations you have made were expected and this was the intent of posting this particular image. This one needs to be seen in its full size to get any real sense of the fly in the foreground, but as I mentioned I purposefully posted one that I knew would be harshly observed!

I wanted to provoke some thought about the different approaches we could take and how a shot like this could work, especially with a larger main subject in the foreground.

Now for the next image. This one is a lot more straightforward but there are a few things worth mentioning before comments are posted about it. Firstly, it's not a studio shot, it was taken in our caravan of all places with just the available light coming through the windows. Secondly, it was shot with a macro lens with aperture wide open, the Sigma DG EX 105mm F2.8 Macro, a lens which is great for portraits with its subtle colour rendering and nice bokeh. Thirdly, it's not a 'posed' shot, it was taken 'as is' in a natural situation. It's a shot of my wife Nicola, which I have hanging on the wall in our living room.

2. My Beautiful Wife

Comment Image
Flickr

Nicola's Apartments, Kassiopi, Corfu

Some cameras, some lenses, some bits 'n' bobs
Edited by davidstorm: 02/09/2014 - 20:00
johnriley
Posted 02/09/2014 - 20:46 Link
The eyes say it all, and the eyes sparkle, as they should. The only minor distraction is the buckle at the bottom of the shot, and the strap. Perhaps these could have been covered by the hair. Small details, but they can make a difference.
Best regards, John
swarf
Posted 02/09/2014 - 21:13 Link
The eyes are great,as is the complimentary colour background. I do agree with John though - the buckle is an unwelcome highlight. I think that I would have cloned it out!

phil
K-5iiS; K-r; ME Super; ME; DA* 16-50 f2.8; DA 18-135 WR; DA 55-300 WR; HD DA 15mm F4 ED AL Limited; FA 50mm f1.4; A50mm f1.7; DAL 18-55mm; M40mm f2.8; + assorted non-Pentax lenses

My Flikr Page link
bforbes
Posted 02/09/2014 - 23:05 Link
Now I find the multiple catch lights in the eyes a little odd. I think it's because they distract from a sense of gaze by hiding the pupil
simonarron
Posted 03/09/2014 - 07:10 Link
I love the thinking behind the first shot, David, but like others feel the greenbottle is just a little too remote to complete the desired effect. Conceptually, though, the idea definitely merits pursuit.

The portrait is great and I didn't even notice the buckle until it was pointed out. I think small details like that can make a photograph look slightly more natural and that's how I prefer things. Sometimes, the quest for perfection lends photos a slight artificial look. I'm all for cloning out seriously intrusive bits and pieces, but to me this is fine just as it is.

Years ago, when I often used to test and review road cars, I'd head out on a shoot and photographers would remove tax discs because they felt the image's purity would otherwise be compromised. I'd point out that tax discs were a fact of life and that cars looked odder without them, but it wasn't my call. I feel the same way about bits of necklace and suchlike.

Yrs looking forward to Storm Chapter 3...
davidtrout
Posted 03/09/2014 - 10:20 Link
Its an honest, uncontrived portrait of an attractive woman, taken informally. As David says its not a studio portrait so things like catch lights and small pieces of jewellery or whatever are not so much an issue. Of course these could have been cloned out afterwards and still can be if David wishes to revisit the image. The strength of the picture for me is the fact that Nicola's face fills the frame. I hate wasting space, except when space is the point of the picture.
David

PPG: http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/davidtrout
Edited by davidtrout: 03/09/2014 - 10:21
autumnlight
Posted 03/09/2014 - 12:51 Link
I love natural light portraits David, this picture of your lovely wife shows how it can be done, the caravan having windows on both sides would have been a great help, her skin tones are spot on and her eyes just lovely
p.s. i quoted above five a day of course i meant five in a row ... getting my fruit and veg mixed up with my photography
Edited by autumnlight: 03/09/2014 - 12:53
michaelblue
Posted 03/09/2014 - 16:49 Link
Since I'm not very good at portrait photography and you're obvoiusely better at it than I am, I don't feel qualified to critique here.

Just a question: Are all those catchlights in her eyes reflections from the windows?
Regards,
Michael

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