What Is Wrong With This Pic?

SteveAdti

Guys and Girls cant put my finger on why i feel this pic doesnt work . Any comments and advice/criticism appreciated.
Maybe it just needed a blue sky?
Thanks

magicbastarder

technically; the highlights are blown.
aesthetically; it's a snap. the problem with it is it offers nothing people haven't seen before, and the same photo will have been taken by dozens of people that day. if you get a chance to go back, have a look for unusual viewpoints or detail which you might have missed before.

Also, I'm not sure if it's like that in real life or not, but your tower is falling to the left. A little straightening could do it the world of good.


EDIT: Actually, maybe my eyes are wonky... upon taking a closer look, it seems only ever so slightly off... maybe it's the perspective?

garancafan

magicbastarder wrote: »

technically; the highlights are blown.
aesthetically; it's a snap.

I'm sure that your comments are very helpful. If you could include a link to a glossary that includes the words "highlights, blown and snap" then maybe many, including the OP, would benefit.

magicbastarder

you mean a dictionary?

Procasinator

I think the path - figuratively and literally - to the tower confuses the matter. You get a path in the immediate foreground, but cannot follow it as it is cropped on the right (the direction it is heading).

The path then winds up to the left and appears to reach the base of the tower.

I can't help but feel this makes the tower appear to the left more. We are taken to the right for a little bit in the bottom of the image, but the rest takes us to the left. The tombstone on the bottom left doesn't help. Even a lot of the tombstones in the picture point to the left.

The photo might have been better if you stepped back or right and get the first loop in the path (assuming there is one), as it might help balance the picture.

A sky with more detail would probably be nice, too.

(from an amateur point of view)

Procasinator

I think a crop helps improve the situation a little. Takes the tower a bit further away the center. Can't help but think otherwise it looks a bit.. how do you say.. phallic.

gbee

IMO the shot is technically over exposed or a bad HDR.

In overcast days I've found digicams to over expose like this so metering becomes very important.

The white featureless sky is making it look like a cut-out, a blue sky would not suit this, but the sky is blown away totally.

You could try HDR in this situation or go for the dramatic and underexpose.

Compositionally, it depends on what you wanted, as I don't see too many features nearby, having the tower in the middle was probably best, I'd be looking to have the tower as part of the landscape by having it to one side on the rule of thirds.

It's an ideal shot though for manipulation in post, you might like to square thing up in PS but it's not too bad.

garancafan

magicbastarder wrote: »

you mean a dictionary?

A glossary of photographic terms would be more useful.

shofukan

I'm inclined to say that it doesn't look quite right because the distinction between the trees in the hilltop is massive.. It's a big jump from green to white, no blurring, treetops etc. Just Bang and it's there..
Massive contrast.. Subconsciously draws the eye.. Doesn't look natural..

bitter_lemon

i haven't a clue what any of yous are going on about. i'd love to straighten those head stones though!
the tower is real tall because the man had to watch over the graveyard back in the olden days and needed a good looky outey.

whats like the problem?

magicbastarder

garancafan wrote: »

A glossary of photographic terms would be more useful.

it's somewhat redundant requiring a glossary of photographic terms on a photographic discussion board, surely? until a poster tells me that they're a photographic neophyte, i think it's safe to assume they know what words like 'snap' mean.

pullandbang

bitter_lemon wrote: »

i haven't a clue what any of yous are going on about. i'd love to straighten those head stones though!
the tower is real tall because the man had to watch over the graveyard back in the olden days and needed a good looky outey.

whats like the problem?

I think the problem is that you have no caps on your keyboard....like!

Freddie59

Just looks overexposed to me. Looks like it was taken a a very grey, overcast day.

City-Exile

It's a common problem that photographing an iconic building is difficult, because it's so hard to find a new/creative angle. How do you come up with something that looks different to everything that's been done before!?

There's no easy answer.
Move around, look for a view that appeals to you, try to capture that view.

I thought I had nailed it with this picture, but now it looks like a green bear, dry-humping the tower.

gbee

City-Exile wrote: »

but now it looks like a green bear,]

Jees, man you could have kept that thought to yourself.:(

Freddie59

City-Exile wrote: »

I
I thought I had nailed it with this picture, but now it looks like a green bear, dry-humping the tower.

Only when you point it out! Very good!:D:D:D

Zillah

garancafan wrote: »

A glossary of photographic terms would be more useful.

Or, maybe you could read one yourself so that you have the most basic level of understanding to take part in a conversation about photographs. Do you expect us to laboriously explain every term we use in every thread on the forum?

Posters are happy to teach newbies, but you need to make a basic effort yourself.

Reoil

Nice photo of a tree, but there's a building in the background.

City-Exile wrote: »

It's a common problem that photographing an iconic building is difficult, because it's so hard to find a new/creative angle. How do you come up with something that looks different to everything that's been done before!?

There's no easy answer.
Move around, look for a view that appeals to you, try to capture that view.

I thought I had nailed it with this picture, but now it looks like a green bear, dry-humping the tower.

smelltheglove

City-Exile wrote: »

I thought I had nailed it with this picture, but now it looks like a green bear, dry-humping the tower.

Haha brilliant:D

I took a few photos at Glendalough and surrounding areas a couple of years ago and used none of them.... The sky was overcast on the day and so none of the images seemed to work. The weather and sky have such a huge bearing on scenery and landscape shots that I almost think theres no point in bothering unless the sky is right!

Did you take the picture in raw? Is there any chance you can pull back the blown out sky a little bit?

ManFromAtlantis

op. to me its just too central in pic. a bit too much in your face.
what you think/

the_monkey

Where is this tower ?

City-Exile

the_monkey wrote: »

Where is this tower ?

It's here...

tricky D

magicbastarder wrote: »

you mean a dictionary?

To be fair, a dictionary won't be much good for 'blown highlights'.

Mind you I came across this mad new radical, cutting edge technology some time ago called a search engine. I'm not sure if people will get the concept of it or if the whole idea will catch on, but it is worth a try.




:pac:

challengemaster

garancafan wrote: »

I'm sure that your comments are very helpful. If you could include a link to a glossary that includes the words "highlights, blown and snap" then maybe many, including the OP, would benefit.

Funniest thing I've read on here in a long time.. I'm actually stunned...

The whole shot is somewhat overexposed, the sky is long gone... Also the subject is almost dead centre of the frame. All meaning it just looks like a snap anyone could have taken.

dinneenp

What's the best way to fix a photo with white skies (like this one)?
If someone could give a rough step-by-step guide I'd appreciate it.

DaireQuinlan

dinneenp wrote: »

What's the best way to fix a photo with white skies (like this one)?
If someone could give a rough step-by-step guide I'd appreciate it.

Best way to fix it is to go back someday when it's not completely overcast and try not to overexpose the sky. Sometimes it's best just to put the camera down and enjoy the view.

challengemaster

dinneenp wrote: »

What's the best way to fix a photo with white skies (like this one)?
If someone could give a rough step-by-step guide I'd appreciate it.

Tripod, multiple exposures, blend in Photoshop using layer masks

5uspect

dinneenp wrote: »

What's the best way to fix a photo with white skies (like this one)?
If someone could give a rough step-by-step guide I'd appreciate it.

Or if that's too much hassle use a grad ND filter to reduce the amount of light coming from the sky. The giant bear thing in the middle is also going to get darkened too tho...

CabanSail

dinneenp wrote: »

What's the best way to fix a photo with white skies (like this one)?
If someone could give a rough step-by-step guide I'd appreciate it.

You can drop a sky in, if that fits within your photographic philosophy.

Put the sky you want to use on a layer below the image & blend them. The selection of the sky has to fit with the image though.