Thoughts? Coffee shop in Minneapolis

[JDP]

Let me know what ya think, Im pretty happy with it!

 

[abraxas]

I like the tones, sharpness and overall effect of the shot. My eyes go in and right back to the the guys behind the bar. If anything, maybe a little much on the left and top.

 

[Patrolman Pat]

I like this type of shot. Fairly understated lighting that means you have to look into the picture for details. The highlighted chair and table in the foreground draw you straight into the shot, then you have to look around for other subjects like the guys in the background, the prints on the wall etc.
Very nice

 

[The_Traveler]

I agree with the other two commenters that this is an interesting and enjoyable picture. Lots of interesting little things that cause one to think about the reality beyond what you capture here.

I do agree with Abraxas that there is two much on the left. There's not a lot there that contributes except for the wall that balances the busyness
on the right. Additionally the tones and shape of the metal chair bring your eye to the right almost immediately.

I would suggest cropping it to get the chair further off the center and balancing the composition.

This probably makes a great print.
PS - the FAQ for this section asks that the picture be close to 800 pixels in width and also suggests that you post the EXIF.

 

[SYKES3]

JDP, that is my kind of shot! I love it. The Traveler is right on, his cropping is ideal. Very good photography, even better unusual shot! I get tired of the same old same old. So keep after those arty shots, you're good at it. SYKES3

 

[JDP]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the C&C a lot.
I thought about cropping but here's my only reason I never do - I can never manage to keep the dang aspect right! I'll admit though, I haven't seriously played with cropping much. I'll give it a shot though and get one printed!

As for the size/exif info - sorry about that. The size I use is the one Flickr auto-generates as 'medium', the next size up is 1024.
And the exif is:
Camera: Nikon D200
Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 17 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0/6 EV

 

[Patrolman Pat]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the C&C a lot.
I thought about cropping but here's my only reason I never do - I can never manage to keep the dang aspect right!

Going slightly OT now and maybe a good discusiion for a new thread but why are we condition to accept certain aspect ratios for photos. Is it just a throwback to film days?
I've been madly cropping some of my sons soccer team photos to only show the part of the shot that I want, and to hell wiht the size and aspect ratio. Some look OK, some just look down right weird, but I'd rather capture the player, or a scene without the superfluous background, than conform to accepted size formats.

 

[The_Traveler]

Going slightly OT now and maybe a good discusiion for a new thread but why are we condition to accept certain aspect ratios for photos. Is it just a throwback to film days?
I've been madly cropping some of my sons soccer team photos to only show the part of the shot that I want, and to hell with the size and aspect ratio. Some look OK, some just look down right weird, but I'd rather capture the player, or a scene without the superfluous background, than conform to accepted size formats.

Printing, matting and framing costs for off-size pictures are vastly more expensive than 8 x 10. or other standard sizes.

You can go to more effort and add borders so you can print them on standard size paper but they will still have to have custom mats.

 

[Patrolman Pat]

Good point Traveller. I don't print many pics, and the few that I do, if they are weird sizes are only printed because I really like them and am prepared to pay extra. Most of my shots just spend their lives as didgital images stuck on a hard drive somewhere.