"Meniscus"

[Quentin_Moyer]

I took this shot with the intention of creating an image with mystique, something that might perplex the viewer or make them have to guess at how I created it.
That being said, here it is.



It's a drop of blue dye in a glass of water under a home made light tent.
I shot this with an E-PL1 and its kit 14-42mm lens and an old Vivitar auto thyristor flash gun, all mounted on a Vanguard 203AP tripod.
-Aperture Priority mode
-1/60th sec. exposure
-37mm (35mm equivalent)
-f/7.1
-ISO 200
- +/-0 exposure comp.
-RAW, edited and compressed in the GIMP

 

[D-B-J]

What does this have to do with a meniscus?

 

[Quentin_Moyer]

I named it so simply because the meniscus is the term for the surface of the liquid (water in this case) Sorry for insulting you if you already knew that.

 

[D-B-J]

But there is no meniscus here. The meniscus is the curvature at the top of a liquid in a tube, and the curve depends on the liquid density and such. But i see no meniscus.

 

[Quentin_Moyer]

If it matters, I've considered "Below the Meniscus"? Naming shots isn't my thing, but I appreciate your knowledge of adhesive/cohesive forces

 

[tyler_h]

But there is no meniscus here. The meniscus is the curvature at the top of a liquid in a tube, and the curve depends on the liquid density and such. But i see no meniscus.

My thoughts exactly but I wasn't sure if I should comment on that lol.

On the actual shot; the uneven lighting and little bits of dark vignetting (or whatever it is) on the bottom annoy me. I also think it is cropped a little too close at the top; needs a little more breathing room.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

Meniscus describes the curved shape the surface of a liquid makes due to capillary action of it's container. A meniscus can be concave as well as convex.Not to be too critical of your title, but...Osmosis or diffusion would be more appropriate for your actual subject.I think your background is too dark. This has been done many times, and I have yet to see some not treat the whole plume as the subject, and instead go for tighter shots of some of the unique swirling actions. A lot can be experimented with this subject matter. Hot or cold liquids with hot or cold or both colors. Different liquids and solvents of varying viscosity...science!Keep experimenting and find that WOW! Shot.

 

[Quentin_Moyer]

@Tyler_h, those vignettes on the bottom are, in fact, the edges of the concave meniscus, which I cropped out for the most part. Now I'm not particularly sure why I left them there. Thanks for the input though.

 

[D-B-J]

If it matters, I've considered "Below the Meniscus"? Naming shots isn't my thing, but I appreciate your knowledge of adhesive/cohesive forces

I may be a science nerd..

But as for critiquing your shot: nothing seems to be in sharp focus, and the lighting is definitely uneven. And i think a more appropriate title would be "diffusion" or something of that nature. But for me, i find the shot not too intriguing.

Regards,
Jake

 

[Quentin_Moyer]

Thanks a bunch, it's better than hearing "WOOWWWW!!" on every single shot on places like Facebook- doesn't really offer many ways to improve.
EDIT: Sorry Bitter Jeweler, I totally missed your post. I'll have to try some different liquids with varying densities/solubility and see what kinds of effects I get.
It might be time to break out some petri dishes again..