theonlyD800inthehameau
Photography by theonlydeadheadinthehameau
Ropes and Rigging
Posted on November 21, 2016
I’m participating for the first time in the ‘Mundane Monday’ challenge hosted by PhoTrablogger. There are two aspects to the challenge: to find beauty in mundane objects and/or to place the mundane in a beautiful or interesting frame.
This image takes the second option. It was captured while on a late afternoon boat trip on Sydney Harbour a few years ago. The canoe at the centre of the photograph is a fairly mundane object in itself (although it was nice of it to be orange against the blue water). However, the rigging in which it is framed provides the real interest and – literally – focus.
Composition: The Outtakes
Posted on April 19, 2016
We’re having what the French call a pause pour reflexion in Cee’s Compose Yourself Photo Challenge this time around. A time to think about the ground we’ve covered already and also an opportunity to show some images that didn’t quite make the cut for posting under the various topics that we’ve dealt with in the past months. Here’s a selection of mine:
Perspective
Now, what is this a picture of? Is it the building on the right (the apartment block in Abu Dhabi where we lived for ten years)? Or is it the glass-plated building on the left? Or perhaps it’s the reflection of the former in the latter?
Diagonal Lines
I used an image of two giraffes in my first posting on the topic of diagonal lines, but I could equally have used this profile of a horse – one of many in the fields around here.
Now two images that cover more than one aspect of the various topics we’ve looked at so far:
Leading Lines & Analogous Colours
A hillside vineyard near the village of Ay, in the Champagne region shows blue and green together, as well as leading lines
Geometry and Contrasting Colours
Orange and blue dominate this image of a seal at Taronga Zoo in Sydney. Obviously the balanced ball is one geometric shape but the curve of the seal’s body is like an arc of a circle.
Symmetry
Posted on January 13, 2016
Something in the human brain is attracted to symmetry; we find it – almost always – aesthetically pleasing. And, as Cee points out this week, it can appear in many different guises.
To begin with, here are two images from the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. The first is yet another (no apologies though) chandelier, pictured from below, which is an example of circular symmetry, while the second is the top of a dome, which is obviously an example of left/right symmetry.
Although symmetry is an important element of Islamic art, it also features extensively in secular situations in Arab countries. Here is part of the seawall on the Abu Dhabi Corniche and – more prosaically – the underground carpark of the Dubai Mall.
It’s also possible to see symmetry in multiple subjects: like these two conjoined kites from the Blond airshow and a set of measuring jugs from a museum in Sarlat.
And finally, the symmetry of reflections on the Dordogne River
Lessons learnt
Posted on December 31, 2015
This week, as part of her ongoing Compose Yourself Challenge, Cee Neuner has offered up five of her own photographs for participants to offer a critique and, if they choose, edit themselves. I like to think that I can take it as well as dish it out, so although it seems a little churlish to ‘have a go’ at the work of someone who does so much for the photoblogging community, I’m going to take up the offer. It’s at times like this it’s important to remember that there’s all the difference between critique and criticism.
As Cee points out, all five of these images are straight out of the camera, with no post-processing whatsoever. In my view, there’s something that can be done with three of them, although with ‘Coloured Chairs’ and ‘Taxi Cab’ I’d just be inclined to press ‘delete’ and move on. Perhaps they illustrate Cee’s dictum that you should never take just one photo.
As for the others, I’ve done my own editing on them and present the before and after side by side, with a few notes on what I did and why.
Marina
- Photography 101: Horizons should be horizontal
- The setting sun is blown out, and the rest of the image is underexposed. I cropped out the left hand side to eliminate the glare and also whatever it is at top left (it surely isn’t the subject).
- Moving around the sliders lightened the remaining image, bringing out more detail in the foreground as well as enhancing the colour of the sky.
Red Umbrella
Anything red is pretty much guaranteed to make a good subject (as well as the classic foreground object), but in the original the umbrella is a bit lost somewhere in the middle, so I cropped it to put the umbrellas in the left third of the image, and also bring out the diagonals of the wall and pavement (sorry, ‘sidewalk’). A bit of punch from boosting Clarity and Vibrance and I think you have an interesting image.
Doors
- This is a fascinating door, although I think the image would work better if it was taken from directly in front (a problem I always have) as it’s impossible (at least within my limited abilities) to get all the verticals in the image properly vertical. I’ve straightened it as far as I could.
- I also cropped to remove the distractions on the left side.
- The picture was obviously taken in bright sunlight so looks a little washed out. I adjusted exposure by -1 stop and played around with the tone curve to increase contrast and detail, and also enhance the colour of the door.
Horizontal Lines
Posted on November 14, 2015
I have to saythat I’m completely in agreement with Cee when it comes not only to horizons but also other horizontal lines actually being horizontal; I use the Straighten Tool in Lightroom to correct my own errors – as far as possible.
Oradour-sur-Glane, with the Monts de Blond in the background.
Some other images featuring strong horizontal lines:
Finally, a couple of other images with multiple horizons:
Cee’s Compose Yourself Photo Challenge: Horizontal Lines and Horizon
Leading Lines
Posted on November 2, 2015
Leading lines could well be the first basic tool of composition that I picked up on and have stuck with ever since – to the extent that in many cases the leading lines are the image. Anyway, I seem to have plenty of them, of which these are a few – and, hopefully, varied – examples.
And finally, in a shameless attempt to earn a gold star, two images of curved leading lines
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