Old Mill.

[PerfectlyFlawed]

Some pictures I took of the old abandoned flour mill down on 'Mill Ave.'

I couldnt get close enough or the composition i wanted... got home and wasnt super thrilled about the way the pictures turned out. So i ended up doing quite a bit more PP on them than usual.. to make them look older.

Just getting out of the house.. playing with manual settings, trying to get better. Thoughts?
Comments, critique and criticism welcome.


1. These first two are the same image, just different PP. ( which looks better, if either?)
Exposure 0.005 sec (1/200) Aperture f/8.0 Focal Length 86 mm ISO Speed 200

2.

3.
Exposure 0.005 sec (1/200) Aperture f/8.0 Focal Length 200 mm ISO Speed 200

4. Few stories up... missing structures... and a door to nowhere.
Exposure 0.02 sec (1/50) Aperture f/8.0 Focal Length 165 mm ISO Speed 200

 

[LCARSx32]

I like #3 & #4 the most.

#1-2 I think would be a good candidate for a vertical crop, ditching everything to the right of the building. The vertical crop would accentuate the height of the building, plus the vertical lines of the building just beg for a vertical crop. That radio tower off to the right (would make a great subject on it's own!), the building, and the jet all compete for your attention. It's confusing as to which is the subject.

You could also to a tight horizontal crop on #1-2, just a bit below the top set of windows. This crop would contrast the old world industrial-ness of the top of the building and it's antennas vs. the new shiny sleekness of the jet.

Another option would be a tight crop of the four windows. I would do a centered (horizontally and vertically), square crop to show the [broken] geometric patterns of the windows. You might want to use #3 for this crop, if you do it though, since it's a closer shot.

My only complaints on #3 and #4 are the odd vignetting. What editing software are you using? If it's photoshop, you can use the "Lens Correction" filter (under "Distort" in the "Filter" menu) to make a very natural looking vignette. Just slide the vignette amount towards "darken".

BTW: I like the sepia look for #1.

I like this tower. We have one near St. Louis. It's across the river in Illinois. It's very similar. Even the "doors to nowhere", lol.

 

[Morpheuss]

cool shots I love the border on 3 and 4 it makes me wonder what it would look like on 1 and 2

 

[MHRISH]

I really like the "door to nowhere" photo. It is very well composed and exposed. The only thing that might make it more interesting is if you had framed more loosely beneath the door to show how high it was from the ground. I love the textures and the black and white is very effective for this subject.

 

[Taylor510ce]

I really like #4 although the perspective is slightly skewed.

 

[white]

 

[PerfectlyFlawed]

#1-2 I think would be a good candidate for a vertical crop, The vertical crop would accentuate the height of the building, plus the vertical lines of the building just beg for a vertical crop.

I have to agree here.. lol, ill work with it and see what i can do to it.

That radio tower off to the right (would make a great subject on it's own!), the building, and the jet all compete for your attention. It's confusing as to which is the subject.

You're right, and i think the plane is too modern...which sort of throws off the shots. At the time i thought it would be pretty cool to catch one flying in over the building. The area i was at wasnt far from the airport ( sky harbor ) and the planes fly in super close... But oh well..lol

My only complaints on #3 and #4 are the odd vignetting. What editing software are you using? If it's photoshop, you can use the "Lens Correction" filter (under "Distort" in the "Filter" menu) to make a very natural looking vignette. Just slide the vignette amount towards "darken".

I used PSP x2 ( *gasp* ...haha, no not PhotoShop ) lol

I was actualy doing my normal---contrast, unsharp-mask, etc etc.. cleaning it up a little... then i noticed this settings under Image fx. "Time Machine"..is what i believe it was called.. It has preset actions or whatever from 1800 to 1900 something.. tells you what camera they used that got the look like that back in the day or some crap.... i was just playing with it... and decided it looked kind of cool.

I cant figure out how to do the vignetting on my own.. so i used the "time machine" settings. Lame , right?

 

[score04w]

i like #4, the door to nowhere, pic looks eerie and i like it.

 

[PerfectlyFlawed]

I really like the "door to nowhere" photo. It is very well composed and exposed. The only thing that might make it more interesting is if you had framed more loosely beneath the door to show how high it was from the ground. I love the textures and the black and white is very effective for this subject.

I agree. i REALLY wanted to get more of the subject below the door... i wanted to emphasize the depth and height... However, I didnt want to pay the parking meter to jump out and get a shot...LOL.. ( yeah yeah... i know)
So where I was, I had an obstructed view. Theres a HUGE ugly green fence surrounding it, which makes me mad. I want to go inside there. You can still see all of the original furniture and equipment inside through the windows.eh, I couldnt find anywhere to park. busy night , busy location. =/

NEXT TIME, im going on foot... im determined for a reshoot:lmao:

 

[PerfectlyFlawed]

I really like #4 although the perspective is slightly skewed.

hmm? lol

 

[PerfectlyFlawed]

I'm Kind of diggin the edit, White. Is it to...."vertical" lol.. or is that a normal crop?
I like the lonely little window down closer to the silhouetted trees....lol

 

[white]

I'm Kind of diggin the edit, White. Is it to...."vertical" lol.. or is that a normal crop?
I like the lonely little window down closer to the silhouetted trees....lol

I don't think it's too vertical. I only had the small jpeg you posted to work with, so you'll probably be able to make a better version. It looks slightly crooked, too, now that I look at it with fresh eyes. I personally like the crop because it divides the picture into three different tones (black, white, gray) with different shapes.