Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2004/11/01

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Subject: LIGHT (was: Re: [Leica] WAS: LEICA SEMINAR! 2004. NOW: PHOTOGRAPHIC DISCUSSION. ?)
From: aaron.sandler at duke.edu (Aaron Sandler)
Date: Mon Nov 1 11:55:40 2004

OK, I'll bite, too!  I missed your earlier post (out of town), but I find 
something to like in almost every photo you've shown.  Generally, they are 
what I call "gentle" photographs.  That is to say, the lighting is gentle 
and they're not self-consciously "arty," rather they are nice gentle 
reminders of place.  You may find it harder to get feedback here with 
gentle photos, as people will often quietly enjoy them and then move 
on.  That isn't to say you should change and shoot only for 
LUG-response!  On the contrary, shoot what you like and keep showing and 
the occasional comment will come!

Specifically...in #2 the mistiness and the color of the grass is very 
nice...If you plan to make a print, the highlights in the clouds are a 
little blown for my tastes, although you may be able to improve on this in 
PS and give them a bit more detail.  Or perhaps careful rescanning might 
help, if you feel it's worth it.

#3 is amusing in a (here it comes again) gentle way.  I think if you keep 
looking for scenes like this you will from time-to-time come up with some 
really hilarious moments and juxtapositions.

#4 is a bit too subtle for my tastes...others may disagree.  I would have 
wanted a foreground subject in there to give the eye somewhere else to 
go.  Of course, that's not always possible, but I can't help wishing.

#5 shows a very good eye.  Nice work noticing the light on the building 
with all the strange turrets.  It combines really well with the narrow 
street.  I like the foreground objects (bike, words, woman) to give some 
life to the shot.

Of #6 and #7 (the reflections), I couldn't agree more with Doug.  I _much_ 
prefer the tighter crop, and in fact this is my favorite of your 
series.  Although I do think I would have had a hard time figuring it out 
without seeing the other first.  What about a touch more water on the 
bottom?  Perhaps with a few ripples showing it might work even better both 
in terms of texture and giving us clues as to the water.

Keep posting!

Best,
Aaron


Doug Herr wrote:
>Richard S. Taylor <r.s.taylor@comcast.net> wrote:
>
> > <http://gallery.leica-users.org/PICKS/P6250007_lug>
>
> > (This is actually an unabashed attempt to get someone other than
> > Philippe and William to say something about the photos I posted
> > yesterday.)
>
>Your strategy worked!  In this gallery I've noticed that in all but the 
>reflections on the underside of the bridge the lighting is all diffused so 
>you're relying more on color and form than light and shadow for your 
>compositions.  Of the reflected light photos I like the tighter crop.  In 
>the uncropped photo the bright area at the right is a major distraction 
>but I wonder how long it would have taken me to "get" the cropped photo if 
>I hadn't seen the uncropped one first?


Replies: Reply from r.s.taylor at comcast.net (Richard S. Taylor) (LIGHT (was: Re: [Leica] WAS: LEICA SEMINAR! 2004. NOW: PHOTOGRAPHIC DISCUSSION. ?))