Some of these seem to be casual snapshots and do not really follow any concept for an image.
Assignment (make the best image that you can).
1) "Still Life" Make a still life image with some sort of artificial light source. This could be a bowl of fruit, flower in a vase or anything else that you want.
2) "Portrait" Make a portrait of yourself or of someone else. You can use artificial or natural light. Try to make a posed or at least semi-formal sitting. Keep sharpest focus on the eyes and work to capture some emotion or sense of the individual. Sometimes people photography is out of your "comfort zone".
3) "Landscape" Make a landscape. Sometimes the quality of light is more important than the location. To add interest or a focus to the image, put something in the foreground.
General tips: Try to tighten up your process. If you are really interested in a critique of your work, make the images the best work that you are capable of. If you are printing in the darkroom, work on contrast control and keep all of the technical variables under strict control. No dust on negatives, and work as clean as possible. If you are just scanning your negatives, it can be hard to visualize what those negatives are really capable of. Some of these sort of ideas can provide a focus to your photography. Last but not least, have fun. Enjoy what you are doing.
Then in your own words:- "And please be as brutally honest as you can". They don't convey that emotion to me, but some of the shot angles are interesting.
One word themes can certainly apply to those photos, but so can others. Just because you want to express those things, doesn't mean the viewer is going to hear see them. You might want to dig deeper. WHAT about the buildings express loneliness? WHAT about the clouds express uncertainty? See if you can capture your answer in the frame. Try to build a body of work around one "expression", but with different subjects, and hopefully the viewer can see the common thread that binds these differing subjects together.
What do you consider your strongest image in this series?
For me it's #2, the old truck. What distinguishes the image from the rest of your series, is we see the truck on its own, without a lot of distractions. It's well known that automobiles due to having headlamps which stand-in as eye and the grill or bumper which is like a mouth, are perceived as having a bit of personality due to these face-like features. I think this comes across in the image, the truck appears to be facing a direction, rather than merely pointing. So we see the truck as an individual, rather than just an example of a truck. We see the truck from a low vantage point, it looms over us.
For the majority of the images, I feel like I'm far away from the action. I remember waiting anxiously for a telephoto lens so that I could get close to the action, but for some reason, zooming in really doesn't work. I'd suggest getting closer to the subject, so that it fills the frame.
For a beginning photographer, this is a strong group of images. They suffer a bit, I think, from too many clichés... old abandoned cars and buildings, but the second picture of an abandoned car has a nice dynamic quality. I like your cloud texture picture quite a lot. It's a frequently photographed trope, but you've done it well here. And just because something's been done a lot, doesn't mean you shouldn't. Find YOUR way to do it. There are some technical issues that I'm sure you can resolve with practice. I would just keep shooting... keep it loose, like you've done. Lots of subjects, and you'll see yourself improve as you make more pictures. And with practice, you'll start to see your photographic voice emerge.
As an aside, it's always a good idea to study the history of photography. Look at the work of lots of different photographers. See what you like, what inspires, what moves you, and try some of those ideas for yourself, in your way.
If you've got a whole class staring at your work, why would you care what anyone here thinks? :confused:
its hard to just critique images that are loaded to a website like this.
pick the 3 or 4 that you like the best and continue in the vein of those images you like
its like anything, the more that you practice the better you will get ... don't forget to keep having fun.
john
Would you prefer brutally honest, or honestly brutal?
Those were the two I was going to comment on as well. The clouds got my attention, and the shot with the outstretched hands was interesting. On that one, I'd prefer to have seen different framing (pan the camera to the right), but a great idea none the less.
Not really sure what the OP is looking for here. The analog prints look better than mine, so my compliments there. Of course, mine are really pretty lousy (just figured out why, btw, so there may be some hope...).
In the spirit of brutal honesty, I'd be pleased to never see another photograph of a rusted out hulk of a pickup truck. It was probably cool the first time it was done, but its hopelessly over-done by now.
I would suggest telling us a story with the photos. Keep on aiming for that emotion in each photo, but let that be implicit in an explicit story. Where did you find the truck? How did you get there? Can you see it from far away or does it surprise you all of a sudden?
#1 is lacking in contrast.
#2 is better. unusual, but effective, composition.
#3 has a problem with perhaps a light leak on the left, and needs spotting. Check your camera for a hair intruding into the upper left of the film gate, which gives that black line in the lower right of your prints. I don't find the composition interesting. Prints like this should never be exhibited.
#4 has an intriguing subject. There is little reason to crowd the lights towards the left. Shadows should be darker.
#5. Intriguing. More contrast might provide more impact. It may be the best of all of the 15.
#6 is an uninteresting snapshot with flash. There is a problem with flare or a light leak along the left and a third of the way in from the left.
#7 may be better than #6, but still not good.
#8 This effectively shows desolation. The person who did the graffiti added much to the photo.
#9 is an uninteresting record of what must have been an interesting cloud formation. The viewer of a photograph sees only that photo, not the subject as you saw it. It is up to the photographer to present that subject in the strongest possible way.
#10 The graffiti alone might have been a better subject.
#11 Flash doesn't provide good illumination for this subject, and causes horrible flare on the right 2/5.
#12 has much better lighting to show the desolation of the subject.
#13 has better graphic quality than most of the other B&W photos. A few words of explanation might help us who aren't familiar with racing. Are they sharing thumbs up?
#14 is another good auto racing record photo.
#15 is a better cloud photo than #3, but also needs spotting.
Posting JPG prints rather than BPP format would speed up downloading with little loss in quality. Also, downloading the B&W photos as greyscale would be faster. Expressing emotions in photos works best with appropriate subjects and good technique. As JCC suggests, different people may see different emotions in the same photo. If these comments sound harsh, your work is better than what I was doing at the beginning.
I'm walking down the street one afternoon. Suddenly, I look up and see you running toward me, a look of angst on your face. You stop, staring at me with obvious agitation.
"Are you OK?" I ask with some concern.
"NO! I'm not OK!" you reply breathlessly.
"What's wrong?"
"Look. Over there. Do you see that?"
"See what?"
"That! Don't you see it? Look what they did."
"They who? I don't see anything."
With your irritation rising to fury you scream back at me,
"What's wrong with you? Are you blind? Look right where I'm pointing! That!! I can't believe you aren't seeing what I'm seeing!"
The thing you are pointing at with your trembling finger? The thing I am so maddeningly oblivious to seeing, but desperately need to see without even realizing it?
THAT is the thing you should be pointing your camera at...
Ken
If you don't mind me asking what was wrong with your photos and how did you figure it out?
I'm walking down the street one afternoon. Suddenly, I look up and see you running toward me, a look of angst on your face. You stop, staring at me with obvious agitation.
"Are you OK?" I ask with some concern.
"NO! I'm not OK!" you reply breathlessly.
"What's wrong?"
"Look. Over there. Do you see that?"
...
THAT is the thing you should be pointing your camera at...
Ken
From the images posted I'd say you are developing your composition skills nicely. Keep shooting, as I often say "break a lens" (versus "break a leg" in the theatre world, naturally)
I liked the first one.
Wonder, do you know the people who own the property or was it a happenstance that you walked by and saw the derelict (beauty)?
It would be interesting to actually meet the people who live there, spend time with them, and involve them in the photo - as their life must be very unique and local.
But suppose they were strangers and you have no way you would overcome shyness to approach them (assume nobody was there anyway)...
Do you know anybody with a property like that? Or is there a special place you know that is messy, but full of stuff that you know exactly what it's good for. Maybe your family has a cabin in the woods that isn't always neat and tidy like your own home and you go up every summer to spend a week... I had one growing up and wish I'd taken interior shots with family... Well I DID take them and the shots are precious to me but some are so dreadfully flawed that I wish I'd exposed them more fully. But mostly I wish I did take more pictures inside the cabin.
That was a bit of a side excursion... But it's from the perspective of an older (55yr) man looking over his youth (the time you're in) and thinking "What would I do in your shoes?". So... I'd have taken more personal photographs. I'd include myself and the people I KNOW... And if I had the guts, I'd take time to get to know people I run into and photograph.
You will just have to wonder how I got all that out of your photograph #1...
- As a group, incoherent.
- #13 is my favourite.
- Rest doesn't quite speak to me (not necessary bad photos).
But I always thought, as long as you are happy with your photos, don't overly worry about how other thinks. First thing first, you have to be proud of them.
#1 is lacking in contrast.
#2 is better. unusual, but effective, composition.
#3 has a problem with perhaps a light leak on the left, and needs spotting. Check your camera for a hair intruding into the upper left of the film gate, which gives that black line in the lower right of your prints. I don't find the composition interesting. Prints like this should never be exhibited.
#4 has an intriguing subject. There is little reason to crowd the lights towards the left. Shadows should be darker.
#5. Intriguing. More contrast might provide more impact. It may be the best of all of the 15.
#6 is an uninteresting snapshot with flash. There is a problem with flare or a light leak along the left and a third of the way in from the left.
#7 may be better than #6, but still not good.
#8 This effectively shows desolation. The person who did the graffiti added much to the photo.
#9 is an uninteresting record of what must have been an interesting cloud formation. The viewer of a photograph sees only that photo, not the subject as you saw it. It is up to the photographer to present that subject in the strongest possible way.
#10 The graffiti alone might have been a better subject.
#11 Flash doesn't provide good illumination for this subject, and causes horrible flare on the right 2/5.
#12 has much better lighting to show the desolation of the subject.
#13 has better graphic quality than most of the other B&W photos. A few words of explanation might help us who aren't familiar with racing. Are they sharing thumbs up?
#14 is another good auto racing record photo.
#15 is a better cloud photo than #3, but also needs spotting.
Posting JPG prints rather than BPP format would speed up downloading with little loss in quality. Also, downloading the B&W photos as greyscale would be faster. Expressing emotions in photos works best with appropriate subjects and good technique. As JCC suggests, different people may see different emotions in the same photo. If these comments sound harsh, your work is better than what I was doing at the beginning.
I appreciate the assignment. I will do it for sure. But I have a question, why?
The way that I look at it, a lot of people think of Photography as art. Photography can be art. I prefer the term "Craft". I think of my Photography as mostly craft. The more that I put into something, the easier it gets and the better the results. There are people that have made a good living by making portraits. They study lighting and can do all of the technical tasks without thinking until it is second nature.
I think that you have made some nice images. You can make them better. You can work to improve the things that could be done better. Experiment with different lighting conditions. Learn how to control contrast. Composition can be improved by changing the depth of field to show the subject apart from it's surroundings. It is OK to come back to a photograph that you have already done in the past and then try different things to make it better. The three parts of the assignment that I listed are all classic fields of photography. If you continue to make images for another 50 years, you can always come back to these three ideas and you can always come up with something new.
There are many other types of photography. Some people work at photojournalism. Others shoot wildlife. Some make street images. Find something that you like and work at it. Practice, practice, practice.
I strongly agree that it is good to look at as many different images as you can and read about the technical aspects and read about famous photographers.
Remember that as long as YOU are happy, then you have accomplished something.
I was walking along a side road when I spotted the trucks. It was around 8pm on a Friday night (What can I say, I do what I love on a Friday night, who needs parties when you have a roll of film and a camera). I will consider taking more personal photos next time I go up to the mountains or even if I just find a cool place somewhere.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?