Hi Bill,
Thanks for your detailed response and for taking the time to look at
the
image. And without a doubt, I'll allow you to share your opinions. :)
Now I'll share a few of my own. I've read quite a few books on how to
create excellent photos by some of the top name photographers in the
field. I'm quite aware of the shoot low technique, blur the water
technique, only shoot in subdued light, morning, late evening, blah,
blah, blah. I'm not trying to be disrespectful to you. The fact is, I
did most of the things you suggested; shutter speed was 1/4 (there
wasn't much water movement to begin with), I shot low, at least I was
kneeling in the snow looking through the camera viewfinder and the time
of day was about 4pm. You're not aware that this area is surrounded by
rather large hills and if I waited much longer, there wouldn't be much
light at all. The light was a bit harsh due to a cloudless sky. Is
there room for improvement in this photograph? Absolutely. I'd be a
fool if I wrote that there wasn't.
I might be sounding defensive but in reality I'm frustrated. Let's see
if I can explain. When I go out to shoot, I try my best to completely
empty my mind of any expected shots and just try to experience the
natural surroundings. I get an intuitive feeling when I sense a scene
to be photographed and I just try to follow those instincts. Sometimes
it works, sometimes it doesn't and it's obvious from what you wrote
that in this case, it didn't. :) In this image, what struck me was the
beauty of the area to the right of the photograph that is lit in late
evening light in stark contrast to the woods behind that in are in
darkness. To me there is something special about the young beech and
evergreen with the few older trees and I specifically placed them in
the rule of thirds power position. I also liked the way the stream
formed a nice "Y" shape around them. I thought about cropping a bit
more on the left and probably will if this image ever goes to an
enlargement. My point is, what you see is what I felt. If it doesn't
work for you, that's OK and I think at this point I would rather you
expressed that you disliked it or that it didn't move you than to quote
the "nature photographer's way of doing things" approach.
It may seem I'm being harsh but the fact is I will never, ever, ever be
the type of photographer that drags my multi thousand dollar equipment
out to a sight that I thoroughly researched for best vantage point,
best time of year, best hour to photograph, know when the sun sets or
rises and where, setup my equipment, look through the viewfinder and
then say to myself, "nah, this will never sell." And that probably
means I'll never be noticed or be successful financially as a
photographer, but at this point, I don't care. I do photography as a
means to find my way back to my inner self and share it with anyone who
finds it interesting.
Richard
p.s.
Bill, I know you meant well... I'm just in a real funky mood right now,
one of those moments where life just doesn't make any sense.
--- NSURIT@xxxxxxx wrote:
>
>
> In a message dated 2/1/2005 9:12:34 AM Central Standard Time,
> sylv4700@xxxxxxxxx writes:
>
> people.simons-rock.edu/rlovison/temp/Winter6.html
>
>
>
> Richard, I am assuming that by posting your image you want critiques
> from
> the peanut gallery. So here goes one man's opinion.
>
> 1) Crop much tighter . . . perhaps just the part of the stream that
> is going
> over the rocks. There are several good photos in this scene and
> isolating
> them might have resulted in more interesting images. Look for the
> simple
> rather than the all inclusive. What patterns might you have
> captured? Is there
> an emotion trapped in that scene? Is there part of you in trapped
> in that
> scene?
>
> 2) Try using a slower shutter speed to really blur the water and show
> its
> movement, rather than kind of showing it. I'm thinking perhaps a
> 1/2, 1/4 or
> 1/8.
>
> 3) Shoot either earlier or later in the day, when the light is a bit
> less
> harsh. Get there right before day break or right before or slightly
> after
> sundown and capture the array of color produced at that time of the
> day. It will
> be reflected in the water and will wash across the rest of your
> scene.
>
> 4) In this shot, I might have gotten much lower to the ground, rather
> than
> either shooting from a fairly fully extended tripod or handheld
> standing up at
> eye level.
>
> Thank you for sharing your images and allowing me to share my
> opinions.
> Bill Barber
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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