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Questions to guide your feedback
What’s your reaction to these pilings?
Other Information
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Image Description
It was supposed to rain that day so I decided to get up late. But when I finally came out of the camper a misty fog hung over the beach. I grabbed the camera and hurried down the beach. I knew the light would be temporary. Initially I took pictures of the headland with the misty layer. Then I saw these pilings of what must have been an old pier. As I got closer I tried different compositions. In the end I finally settled on a crop of a 3 by 4 composition.
Technical Details
GFX50R, 45-100mm
Specific Feedback
There isn’t much detail in those posts. Is that acceptable? I reasoned that I want these posts to be mysterious. I don’t want them to be descriptive. Perhaps I’m just trying to justify my decision. I started out with the foreground rocks being almost black and have dodged them. The image was supposed to be about the posts but now the rocks play a role as well. Rocks look man made. This was likely a boat launch ramp before the marina was put in.
Critique Template
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I like the contrast of the first one as it add more mystery to the pilings by hiding the details in the darks, but the composition of the second one is more interesting. The lighting appears to be different in the second as well, so perhaps the same level of contrast can’t be replicated in the second one. In either case, they are both intriguing photographs.
I like them both but I agree that the second one is better. I like the darkness and low contrast of the second one. I might make the brights a little brighter but otherwise I’d leave it alone.
Hi Igor,
These are both quite lovely and dripping with mood. Picking a favorite it would have to be the second version due to the diagonal placement of the pilings as they lead the viewer into the scene. The B&W conversion looks great and it has a nice range of tones throughout. I am also enjoying the fog/cloudy sky as it adds an air of mystery to the scene making me wonder what if anything is out there? The rocks also qwork quite well here as well. Very nicely done; no suggestions from me.
I’ll swim against the stream Igor. While the second image may be the more visually appealing, the first is much more emotive for me. My initial reaction was wrapped around the idea of “a road leading to nowhere.”
There is a strong lead-in to the photo the way you have composed it with the poles shrinking and converging, and the fact that they point to an essentially plain horizon leaves me feeling wonderfully incomplete. My mind wants to know what’s beyond the horizon.
I think your overall low-key processing adds to the overall feeling. There’s a sadness to the incompletion, it’s not a bright and happy image, and I like that.
The foreground rocks provide a grounding, but don’t overwhelm the simplistic complexity of the scene they support.
Dear Igor, thanks for sharing these two versions of the same scene. Here is my immediate reaction.
First version: My eyes are led smoothly from the foreground, through the passage of sentries and into the horizon, terminating in the light cloud. The title, ’Sentries’, not only guide my eye movement, but also give a sense of protection of my eye’s movement. The light cloud gives the image an optimistic and serene feeling.
Second version: The movement of my eyes is blocked forcefully by the nearest sentry; the sentries block the movement towards the horizon, and the sentries take on a hostile appearance. The low-key tonalities and the dark sky create a somber mood, reinforcing the sense of hostility.
Neither of these feel light-hearted or optimistic to me. While the second one has a more dynamic composition, the overall darkness and the visual weight of that foremost piling are ominous, as Leo said. The composition of the first one leads us into the scene, theoretically giving us space to “travel”, but again the tonality is not light hearted. I feel like the pilings are leading me on a road to nowhere.
I didn’t even wonder about the details - these are about mood for me. Seems like there’s enough detail, anyway. The foreground concrete(?) has lots of texture, and we can see the riffling of the water and the floating kelp.
I’m late here and the discussion is most interesting - as are the images! The first feels like something out of a dream – I’m being pulled into a very mysterious space. The second one, yes, I’m blocked but it is still mysteriously fascinating. I wonder about matching the tonalities closer to the first one, though. It feels a bit unapproachable. But there is quite enough detail in the posts – they are mysterious sentinels. Whatever the outcome, I love both of these!!
