Comments....?

[pgriz]

This is good. Forcing ourselves to put into words what we see is work, but it is useful work. Doing a critique carefully educates us as much as the person receiving the critique. Reading other people's critiques, especially when they touch upon perceptions and emphasis is a way of benchmarking one's own ability to see.

Looking at OP’s photo 1, I had to stop and actually LOOK at it to recognize what I was looking at. That was good. However, the framing by Traveller appeals more to me as it emphasizes the focal point (the eye) and surrounds it with contrasting tones and shapes. By making it a larger part of the image, it makes the framed version stronger, in my opinion.

Photo 2 helped me understand photo 1. But from strictly an image point-of-view, is was not as interesting. Here, the center is the folded wing, and while it is brighter in tone (attracting the eye), I am also distracted by the shapes/textures to below and to the right.

The OP’s photo 3 is interesting, but distracting elements are the dark triangle at the top right, and the cut-off hand at the bottom left. The focal point seems to be the baby, and the mother looking at her infant, and I think Traveller’s framing emphasized this, while eliminating the distracting elements.

In the OP’s photo 4, the baby’s hand holding the adult’s hand is the key, but too much of the adult is out of focus and somewhat blurred, therefore the framing that Traveller suggested keeps the essential elements, while getting rid of the distractions.

Photo 5 shows the chimpanzee lying on the platform, looking at us. The expression seems to be both tired and bored, and yet holds my attention. On the other hand, I’m not sure about the vertical elements (the post behind the chimp, and the support that it is holding) as they compete with the face as they are lighter in tone and stronger in shape.

The eye in photo 6 really needs a catchlight to give them a look of life. The beak is interesting, but the overall image appears soft to me.

I think the lesson here is that for any image to be interesting, you need to focus on the key elements and get rid of distractions. Thanks to Traveller for some very useful information. And thanks to Keith for bringing in some useful and pertinent links.

 

[The_Traveler]

John,

I didn't think you were nasty in any way.
No problem.

...but I think that as you become more aware of composition, your tastes will change.

Like tasting wine.
I grew up with sweet grape wines and more conventional wines tasted terrible.
Eventually I started drinking more and different wines and began to appreciate the nuances and now the very sweet grape wines taste like cough syrup.

Feel free to disagree any time.

 

[CBURKE]

#1. Love it, love it even more with the crop! Much better on the color and no over doing the PP lol.

I think on the rest the crop really brought it out. Much better than the first time. You are taking shots that are workable and that is good in my book!

Keep it up.

 

[johnh2005]

...but I think that as you become more aware of composition, your tastes will change.
.

Most definitely! Since coming here, reading the few books I have read, I have gone back to images that I took and liked and have found that after looking at them with a more critical eye, I see things I could have done differently to make them better. With that comes frustration for me. I see a beautiful scene in front of me and I try and try and try to capture it and fail miserably. lol I have gotten so frustrated recently that I offered to sell my gear to my son's girlfriend last night. Luckily for me she declined. I will just keep taking pictures and keep trying to get better.

pgriz, I really appreciate your explanation of your thoughts behind each of the crops The_Traveler did. That really helped me to better understand the thought process behind the crops. It seems that sometimes less is more. Meaning that a tighter crop on the more important details makes for a stronger image because there is less clutter and more focus. I already knew that but this just reinforces it even more for me.

 

[The_Traveler]

It seems that sometimes less is more. Meaning that a tighter crop on the more important details makes for a stronger image because there is less clutter and more focus.

Stay tuned for large blast of personal (mine) conviction.
Ignore if you like.


When you (meaning anyone) takes a picture, you should have a center or centers of interest (COI) in mind. For the picture to be successful and the viewer to understand what you think is important, you need to do several things:

1) place the COI somewhere the viewer will intuitively think is important.
2) minimize distractions. There can be other interesting parts in the photo but they should support the COI

Now, when you crop something off partly, you are still informing the viewer because they certainly know there is a mother attached, but at the same time you are clearly showing that you want them to look at something that is left. It is hard to look at the 4th picture without looking where the mother is grasping the child. The idea of that bond is much stronger because the rest of the mother has been trimmed away.

We don't need all of the mother; what is left, in the other picture where she is cradling the baby, implies the rest but focuses our eyes on what we want the viewer to look at.

For every picture, the photographer should have a definite COI and should, as much as possible, make the viewer see that.
Click through to my site and look at the pictures on the front page; I think they follow that idea.

Lew