C&C on one of my favourite photos

[thereyougo!]

The camera is functional. That's all I get from this.

Very funny. Perhaps you would like to add something useful rather than being a smart ass.

OP - I would have liked to have seen more of the fountain and less of the one behind it which while it is OOF is distracting. If you shot this in portrait and changed your viewpoint you would have had a better chance of getting the droplets more in context.

 

[kamerageek]

I disagree with all who say you need context, and to zoom out. Perhaps you should zoom in and eliminate distracting backgrounds, and focus even more on your subject, which is obviously the action of the water. This would have been a good opportunity to shoot vertically as well.

I'd say 75%, or more, of my photography is about removing context, and leaving the viewer guessing.

Context is not about composition. That's a different animal entirely.

I actually agree with this as well. Although it wasn't my first thought when I viewed the picture.

Also, where in Chicago is this? I dont live far form there.

This is from the Centennial Plaza on the north side of the river. It's not far from the lake.

 

[baturn]

In my opinion this photo is a success simply because it inspired this much discussion. Perhaps if you had both a wider and narrower view and displayed all three as a set?

 

[KmH]

Others can't show you any different approaches to interpreting the image - My Photos Are NOT OK to Edit

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

KmH, did you mean 'interpreting'?



:greenpbl:

 

[kamerageek]

I disagree with all who say you need context, and to zoom out. Perhaps you should zoom in and eliminate distracting backgrounds, and focus even more on your subject, which is obviously the action of the water. This would have been a good opportunity to shoot vertically as well.

I'd say 75%, or more, of my photography is about removing context, and leaving the viewer guessing.

Context is not about composition. That's a different animal entirely.

Agree with this - you need to go one way or the other. Was this shot in raw? If so, work on the conversion. The image has white and black, but appears to lack contrast in the mid-tones, at least here on my work monitor.

I shoot in raw 100% of the time and I'm learning more appreciation for why that's a good thing. I've been trying to make an effort to get the best shot I can on the camera so that I don't have to do a lot of post processing. I'll see what I can do with this image though.

 

[GooniesNeverSayDie11]

I agree with Bitter, that you could have gone in tighter and did something a little less "conventional" and also eliminate background elements, as well as shoot vertical if it benefits the shot. It might look interesting as a monochrome conversion as well with the right adjustments ( although it almost seems monochrome as it is )

One piece of advice I will add( and this is not to undermine your image, but it did make me think of this, and it is a point worth making ) -- Don't confuse the novelty of a shot, with a shot being good. When I see a shot like this, often times I find that the photographer was simply enamored with their newly found ability to freeze water drops in midair. While this can be a very cool and unique element to add to an image, it rarely MAKES the image. Its no different than a macro shooter who just does extreme closeups of everything, regardless of composition and subject interest, simply because they think they can get by on the novelty of magnification. Also, like the person that does a slow shutter speed to get a silky effect on a flowing stream only to not take care to avoid getting the side of a Mcdonalds in the shot. I hope this makes sense. Now, with abstract work, this sort of goes out the window, because you are finding the unique elements in oftentimes mundane things. This is why I think in this image, tighter would be better, because you would get a slightly more abstract feel.

 

[KmH]

KmH, did you mean 'interpreting'?



:greenpbl:

Yep! :thumbup: I thought something looked amiss.

 

[kamerageek]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. It gave me a lot of food for thought.