Merging

Image Critiques Abstract Nature Critiques
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Merging – less contrast.jpg
Merging – less contrast.jpg1600×1600 802 KB

Merging – more contrast.jpg
Merging – more contrast.jpg1600×1600 818 KB

Slightly stronger contrast

Merging – colour.jpg
Merging – colour.jpg1600×1600 1.09 MB

Original colour version

Critique Style Requested: Initial Reaction

Please share your immediate response to the image before reading the photographer’s intent (obscured text below) or other comments. The photographer seeks a genuinely unbiased first impression.

Questions to guide your feedback

Hi all!
It’s been a while (as usual) as I’ve been working hard on an exhibition and a new website for myself, but here I come with a “quick question”. This photo is to be part of a series due to be finalised very very soon (preferably tomorrow :disappointed_relieved:). One of the other’s has already been up for critique here, which was very helpful. It and two others are now printed and were part the aforementioned exhibition.

My main problem with this photo is whether to go with colour or monochrome. Please let me hear your initial emotional response to the B&W/colour conundrum and then go on to the hidden part below which allowing it to add to your response.

As secondary question – if you see any better names for this image, I’m all ears! :slightly_smiling_face:

Other Information

Please leave your feedback before viewing the blurred information below, once you have replied, click to reveal the text and see if your assessment aligns with the photographer. Remember, this if for their benefit to learn what your unbiased reaction is.

Image Description

This photo is to be part of a series (called Coriolis) that is currently a B&W/colour mix. This I understand is a bit “controversial” and perhaps “risky” (I’m looking at entering it in the PX3 and IPA competitions). But as I’m not quite yet done processing this idea, I might split it into a “Mono” and a “Colour” Coriolis pair or chapters of series (the number of photos I decide on in the end play a part in this too) but to my eye, there is a point in mixing them.

The physical subject is the same, although the names (in this case – “Merging”, still a WIP) don’t imply it and are a bit all over the place for a series*, and to me mixing colour and monochrome shows and highlights different aspects and emotions from the same subjects. This is of course nothing new but I think that it’s interesting and that it might perhaps add to rather than distract from this particular subject. PLEASE LET ME KNOW if you disagree (and preferably why).

One last thing about the colour variant, I might have to go quite a bit stronger on the colours to match another series member (Attraction, already in my portfolio here), which I’m not sure suits it very well… :thinking:

*Some names that are already (or very close to) finalised are “HC SVNT DRACONES”, Attraction, Llamrei, Leviathan, Neptune (or Poseidon), Phoenix, The Struggle, Smaug…

Specific Feedback

So, to sum it up:

  1. What’s your initial reaction to the B&W and colour versions and my dilemma with them.
  2. How do you feel about mixing B&W and colour photos in the same (print) series?
  3. Do you have better name than “Merging” for me?

Should you be up for “a bonus”, any thoughts on the below listed feedback aspects, are always welcome and a great learning resource.

Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.

Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image.

Emotional: Feedback on the emotional impact and artistic value of the image.

Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus, reproduction of colors and details, processing, and print quality.

Critique Template

Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.

  • Vision and Purpose:
  • Conceptual:
  • Emotional Impact and Mood:
  • Composition:
  • Balance and Visual Weight:
  • Depth and Dimension:
  • Color:
  • Lighting:
  • Processing:
  • Technical:
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The colour version has the most impact with me, Stephane. It feels like it has a lot more depth for some reason and is pulling my eye into a vortex, whereas the black and white versions feel more two-dimensional, like a spiral instead of a vortex.

The colour version really appeals to me and I’d go with a title something like “Into the Vortex” or “Into the Storm”.

I get the feeling of viewing a storm or whirlpool from directly above with this image and I have no idea what the original was, but I like it a lot. There’s a hint of immensity and a touch of danger about it like one of the Hubble images.

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Stephane, the color version resonates more with me. Just STUNNING.
Maelstrom or Tourbillion?
Congrats on the exhibition!

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Thank you, @Dennis_Plank and @SandyR-B, for your insights, thoughts and kind words. It’s interesting how I get the opposite to your experience, Dennis – where I see a stronger 3-dimensionality with the B&W one (it’s actually why I’m leaning towards it).

Do any of you have any thoughts on mixing colour and B&W images in the same series?

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I haven’t really thought about mixing the two, Stephane. I don’t think I’d try putting just one color in a set of black and white as I think it would look out of place. A more or less even mix would probably work.

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Thanks @Dennis_Plank and yes, we’re definitely talking about an even mix.

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Excellent image Stéphane! Of the two black and white images, I prefer the second with the stronger contrast. Then when I scrolled to the color version, I preferred it over the monochrome ones. The color version appeared to have more impact and depth for some reason.

If this is going to be part of an exhibition and the other prints are black and white, I would keep it in black and white for uniformity. I would try to bring out the highlights and definition of that upper left section spiral. I think that would help the black and white version to match closer to the color version.

Oh one title that came to mind was “La Tormenta” which translates to The Storm. Congrats on the exhibition!

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Thank you very much, @Alfredo_Mora! :blush:
As colour seems to be common choice, I’ve tried to match the colours and intensity to in the series that has been finalised (and tweaked since appearing here) and printed.
Here’s how that looks for now:

Merging Colour v2
Merging Colour v21500×1500 834 KB

and the one I’m trying to match:
Attraction final 240405
Attraction final 2404051125×1500 423 KB

…and its post here on NPN…

Not sure that I lie it though. The colours, especially the red/brown part seems too much…

The idea, if I’ll mix black and white, is to have the same number of both, perhaps something like this (there are quite a few more candidates to chose from):

Skärmavbild 2024-06-03 kl. 21.05.07
Skärmavbild 2024-06-03 kl. 21.05.072472×1360 2.69 MB

Re. “that upper left section spiral”, If I understand which one you mean(?), I’ve actually elected to tone it down in the new colour version, as it wasn’t much of a spiral, but more of a straight line…

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Fabulous image. Makes me think of turmoil, or even some cataclysmic event. I thought b&w was best but have to agree that the color is better. However, I prefer different shades of one color over multiple colors. So I guess a color caste rather than full color.

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Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions, @Igor_Doncov. They’re most appreciated. Although I don’t think they this photo will end up being monochromatic, there will likely be others in this series that will. The trick is “just” to make them all fit together. :hot_face: :smile:

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It looks like your color and tonality match pretty well between the two, Stephane. Perhaps just a bit more blue in the outer arms?

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I tend to gravitate to black and white, but here, to me, the color version is hands down the winner. Absolutely stunning! My honest opinion on the six images: Beautiful work, but I find all the different size ratios/crops very distracting. Perhaps stick to square ratio , or three square ratio/crop and three equal sized vertical portrait crops. I hope that makes sense…

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@Dennis_Plank – thanks, I’ll have a look at those arms! :+1: :blush:

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Thanks you very much, @J_Fritz_Rumpf! That aspect ratio “mess” bothers me too. Not as much organized on a wall as close together with little placement control on a monitor, but still.

This far (thank you @lesley1!) the best “solution” I have is to put them in pairs (one b&w and one colour) in each aspect ratio. Unfortunately, turning this into colour, breaks the pairs I have this far, so I need to go digging in the archives for more unprocessed candidates… :wink:

I’ve always had issues with sticking to a pre-determined aspect ratio but for this subject, I find it to be pretty much impossible as there’s no way of predicting what kind of shape I’ll get (or if it’ll even be any interesting). So for every semi-interesting shot, I easily get 10-20 duds.

If I had a 50-60MP camera, I could shoot wider and crop but for this kind of fast shooting, I’m stuck at 20MP with my gear and need to nail the composition quickly as things evolve pretty fast and it’s hard to predict where it will show up. I also shoot these handheld and rely heavily on extremely good stabilization to “avoid ICM” at these shutter speeds and focal lengths. Sure, a gimbal head might perhaps do the trick but I wouldn’t need it for anything else and rarely get the opportunity to shoot this subject…

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Hi Stéphane,

I might be too late to the party here, but the color version of your OP has the most emotional impact for me. I think mixing the color and b&w work if the color was muted. It seems like the color version in your OP is less saturated than the ones you posted later on. Could be the prints look different than online, though. Great series!

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Thank you for chiming in, @Bonnie_Lampley. Good observations as always. :blush:

Time is limited (as always :roll_eyes:) but I’m currently still working at finding a way of uniting both worlds (b&w and colour). One obstacle is that three of these, including one in colour is already finalized, printed and released, so I need to match any other colour ones to it, at the risk of needing to sacrifice “something”.

In the end, running these as two separate series might be the best course but I need to test this idea out a bit more before giving up the “united series” idea. :slightly_smiling_face:

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I loved the first B&W when I saw it loved the sense of movement and then the dog like appearance in the middle. Like a god peering out from behind the universe. After seeing the 3 I much prefer the color one.

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Thank you, @mr1. The consensus seems strong in here. :slightly_smiling_face:

Did you see the new colour version in this reply? How do you feel about that one compared to the original colour version?

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I still prefer the first color one. The newer one has less movement in it for my eyes. Also I love the whiteness of the head in the first one. It seems like a creature of light. I do like the 2 nd one though.

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OK, thanks Michael. :+1: