A Couple of Still Lifes

[Josh-H]

A couple of Still Life Images that had been sitting in my Lightroom databse for 2 years and that I just got around to processing  

A Cascade of Dandelions
Canon EOS5D 1/ 16-35mm F2.8L @ F8 1/200th ISO400 - PP LR2.4
[attachment=15121:Cascade.jpg]

Private Residence
Canon EOS5D 1/ 16-35mm F2.8L @ F8 1/6th ISO100 - PP LR2.4
[attachment=15122:Montselv...Edit2007.jpg]

Comments Welcome.

[budjames]

They look a little over sharpened for my tastes.

Bud

[button]

These shots seem tonally flat to me- my eye wanders around without any direction.  I think some burning here and there would help create structure.  For example, burn the windows (not the casings) in #1.  In #2, burn the the bottom darker parts of the left wooden wall and door, as well as the stone floor.

Also, I see some rectilinear distortion in #2: the door and pipe in the corner lean to the right, while the left brick wall leans a bit to the left.  This focuses my eye on technique rather than that shot itself (I think you could fix this in PS w/ free transform or perhaps liquify).

Compositionally, you have some engaging elements in these shots which I like.  Overall, good job!

John

[cmi]

The first doesnt convince me. On the one hand, the flowers as they are growing there are a not too common view, and this is interesting. On the other hand, they appear somewhat peripheral to me, not in the center of interest. I think I would have, while preserving the format, closed up much more on the flowers without loosing the information that they are growing at a stair.

I like the second much more, but also would have zoomed in. I'll attach a crop.

Christian

[PeterAit]

The first doesnt convince me. On the one hand, the flowers as they are growing there are a not too common view, and this is interesting. On the other hand, they appear somewhat peripheral to me, not in the center of interest. I think I would have, while preserving the format, closed up much more on the flowers without loosing the information that they are growing at a stair.

I like the second much more, but also would have zoomed in. I'll attach a crop.

Christian

Your crop destroys the photo, IMHO. The statue is now touching the frame, and this is one of the interesting things in the photos. Your crop is pretty much a photo of a cat, nice enough but ho-hum. The original photo is full of interesting little mysteries - what are those cut white tubes at the left, and the black metal (?) items hanging next to them? What is that basket-looking item at the top right? Why is the door marked "private?"

I cannot decide if I like the purple bucket, though!

Peter

[wolfnowl]

A Cascade of Dandelions

You mean daisies?

The first one has some potential... can't quite my finger on it, though.  The second one has lots of places to look but again, they both seem a bit flat.

Mike.

[John R]

I like both compositions. The first is striking in that it captures a different and somewhat whimsical view of something we see everyday but pass by. Could it be better with more light, perhaps, but that is what we are dealt with. I note the harsh shadows just above stairs, so the photographer has made the best of it, as I see it.

The second is like the first in that it is taken in overcast or shadow light. Again, could it be better with brighter but more diffuse light, of course, but all the elements go well together and the photo is thus compelling in its composition. I see the pail as part of the modern mixed with the old and rustic.

JMR

[jule]

Thanks Josh for posting your images.

Of the two images, I think the fiirst has the most potential. As the images stands, for me the image as is is very ho- hum.It doesn't really do anything for me, but I had a thought about taking the colour away so that texture and shape were the main elements of the image. I know all too often if an image doesn't seem to work, giving it the old black and white makeover seems to always be suggested, and in this instant, for me, this may be an interesting option.

I am travelling using an uncalibrated screen, so I won't offer an example, but I had a quick experiment, and the different texture of the flowers and foliage against the horizontal tonings of the steps, and the geometric shapes of the window on the left, is far more interesting to me in black and white than in colour.

Julie