NYC C&C -- Meh?

[DerekSalem]

I used to live there for a time (everybody remembers college and the mistakes that come with it) but I go back to visit friends once or twice a year now. This week was one of those times. Only took about 120 shots but most are of things that tourists usually see (a girl that went with us had never been to the city before so we did a lot of that stuff). I know they're not amazing but just lookin for thoughts on what I should have done to improve the shots or PP. On that note, not a *ton* of PP but mostly just movin some sliders.

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4)

And I'm not putting this one up for C&C, but we just happened to be going to the Apple store on 5th on Friday...the day the iPad 2 launched. This is something we didn't realize until we got there. I think it was around 2pm when I took this shot, but by the time we left FAO Schwartz (the door's right on the other side of the cube from where I was standing in the picture) the entire pavilion was full of people and they were lining up across the street. There were probably 200-300 people there *easily*.

 

[TheOtherBob]

I hesitate to do C&C because...well, I'm just not that good at it! So whatever salt you might have on hand, take it with this. But overall I think these aren't too bad -- but you're right that some of them strike me as "meh."

The first one, in Battery Park, seems to be a composition issue -- the subject is lost among the buildings. This is a huge problem with NYC pictures -- there's so much there that it can swallow your subject. A thinner DOF might help, or simply taking the shot from a different direction. The color also seems just a bit washed out.

The second one is pretty good -- the only advice I might give is that if the light were coming the other direction it might help with the shadows on the face. I might also include a bit more pedestal -- and to really make it interesting, maybe something else going on in the picture (since it's a pretty common shot from a pretty common angle). A plane going by, or a helicopter or birds or something...I don't know what. It's a nice, well-done shot -- it's just a little "standard," maybe.

The third one, though, is crooked and a little dark. It's fine -- but not nearly as good as the second one.

Four I liked -- maybe just play around with off-camera flash a bit to make it a little less dark and give it a bit more pop.

But my favorite one? Five. I know you weren't asking for C&C on that, but it's a great shot down Fifth, with a real "slice of life in New York" feel to it. It might need to be leveled out slightly -- and the angle might be slightly more interesting from further up or lower down. But I really like that shot.

So I hope that's helpful -- like I said, I don't usually do C&C, so I'm not that good at it. But in my uneducated opinion, these are on the right track and just need little tweaks to be great.

 

[DerekSalem]

wow I posted up a nice big reply before thanking you for your C&C and saying I wish I could shoot again. I'm back in Cleveland since last night and probably won't be back for a few months. Basically I agree with most of your thoughts and would do it again that way most likely if I were there right now. Don't know why it didn't post my reply