Unblinking eye

[Alpha]

It's not just that they're too dark. They're flat. And that's a bigger problem.

 

[doobs]

Agreed, a contrast bump would make this picture much more appealing.

Perhaps a split-filtered print would also make this print really pop.

 

[nealjpage]

I'll have to go back to the darkroom next week, then and give it another shot. The neg's good, so I should be able to bump the contrast quite a bit.

 

[NordicWarrior111]

Hi, I'm new, but I just wanted to say that I liked it. It's different from a lot of the other "car grill" shots that you find around. I would definitely experiment with the contrast, as others have said. And maybe a tip for another shot if you're interesting in trying it...Maybe move the headlight into the right horizontal third, and slightly at an angle, so the lines of the grill move the eye across to the headlight. Right now I feel almost as though the extra space to the right is a bit dead, and I think that's what makes the contrast look so flat. Yes, I think it could use a bit of contrast anyway (then again, I love high contrast), but the large gray side does accentuate the middle-tones, making it look flatter than it actually is. I hope that wasn't too big of a critique...I do like the shot. Also, another fun one might be a tight, high angled close-up of just the exposed bulb fixture, fitting it on a third so the dish of the headlight cup really bends the shot. Anyway, old beat up cars always have a lot of character to them. A lot more than newer cars.

 

[Alpha]

Yeah I think split-filter could really help here. Lay down a base shadow exposure for the interior of the grill and the light with say, a grade 2, and then go back and expose the highlights with a grade 3. If you wanna really get into it, you could mask off the background area to the right and print it with just the 3. I'd recommend a cross-hatch test strip of the car with the two grades to proof.

 

[nealjpage]

That sounds pretty advanced. I'm still a relative novice with my Beseler

However, it sounds exciting to learn. I'll read up on the split-filter deal and see if I can mimic it.

 

[Alpha]

Just google "split-filter printing" or "split-grade printing" and you'll get a lot of info. There's a particularly nice tutorial here (http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00DYfT). In principle, it's really a rather simple technique, but gives you an unparalleled level of precision compared to more basic techniques, especially when dodging and burning are necessary.