[Gadget Daddy]

Hiya,

Taken at the breakwater (Redcar) near "Paddys Hole" where some pics have recently been posted
Hdrs complied with Bracketed exposures - OTT but I like `em

Cheers
Pete

1. Sea n Rocks (Hartlepool nuclear power station across the river)

2. Sea Structure

[lightpainter]

As artwork I love them! Bit OTT as you say for photo’s.

[Gadget Daddy]

ah ha but why aren't Photos artwork?

IMO A lot of photos I see on here are a form of art, whether you paint pictures, create sculptures or take photos its about the end product created by the individual (Artist) and how they want it to be perceived by others.

Pete

[jonnypb]

I like number 2 best, it's very artistic!

[ash]

Love the first one, where the waves hit the rocks!

BTW, what programme do you use?

[Biscuit761]

No 2 is superb, would love to know how to do this.

Bill

[lightpainter]

Originally Posted by Biscuit761

No 2 is superb, would love to know how to do this.

Bill

There’s a tutorial in Septembers Digital Photo!

[Fozzybear]

On that second one there's some weird vertical striping over the clouds towards the right? Maybe it's drawn out some sensor structure or something.

Not to my taste, the sea looks rather dirty and grey, but then it's personal taste: a lot of people would probably say my photos are conventional and without experimental 'sparkle', so whatever floats your boat.

[IanW]

Nice.

I have to say, the more HDR I see, the more I like. Agree with previous comments though, HDR is more like art than photo . . . . . . but hey, now you can be good at two things!!

Ian.

[Gadget Daddy]

Originally Posted by ash

Love the first one, where the waves hit the rocks!

BTW, what programme do you use?

Hiya, Thanks for the comments I used Photomatix Pro, Both taken with Bracketed exposures 1.5 stops either side of centre IIRC, you can download it and evaluate it for free, its really easy to use, just choose HDR, then generate, load your pics, then click HDR, tone mapping, its then a case of faffing around with the sliders till you get "the look" your after

HTH
Pete

Originally Posted by Biscuit761

No 2 is superb, would love to know how to do this.

Bill

Hiya Bill, See above, for best results IMO you need to bracket your exposures although this can be circumnavigated by taking a single image and adjusting the exposures in PS and saving out 2-3 different files then combining with the above method

HTH
Pete

Originally Posted by Fozzybear

On that second one there's some weird vertical striping over the clouds towards the right? Maybe it's drawn out some sensor structure or something.

[vulkan75]

As you will know im a fan Of HDR myself and these arnt bad efforts.

Compositionally they dont work very well though.The first is has a very strong foreground..maybe to strong, It just dosnt let your eye break from it and for me its a little uninteresting to be fixed at that point of view.

as or the second its an interesting structure with great textures and tones,but planted right in the middle of the frame like that Deadens the rest of the image.A slightly better crop might do this image wonders...and I rekon it'll look great in mono

Keep it up

[Fozzybear]

Originally Posted by Gadget Daddy

It's not a biggie but on the second shot look at the right hand legs of the wooden structure. Now look up the shot and just below a blobby cloud in the sky there are some vertical streaks where the sky goes paler. They don't really stand out but when you've seen them...

[Pinocchio61]

I like #1 and like the results HDR give, the second shot i agree with Vulcan75 on the wooden structure being bang in the middle of the frame.

Andy

[horribleman]

I actually like the composition on the second one.

[inkinoo]

Originally Posted by Gadget Daddy

ah ha but why aren't Photos artwork?

I'd clasify what you have done as an image. The difference between a photo and an image is the amount of post production. Boosting levels and slight colour correction keeps it as a photo. HDR makes it an image.

[ryart]

Originally Posted by vulkan75

Compositionally they dont work very well though.The first is has a very strong foreground..maybe to strong, It just dosnt let your eye break from it and for me its a little uninteresting to be fixed at that point of view.

as or the second its an interesting structure with great textures and tones,but planted right in the middle of the frame like that Deadens the rest of the image.A slightly better crop might do this image wonders

Interesting how we see things differently. IMO I think the compositions are fine. The wooden structure probably dominated the original scene so why not make it nearly central to emphasise it and with a bit more room to the right hand side of it, as you have done, the lighter area of sea acts as a foil to it beautifully. The only cropping this pic might benefit from is to level the horizon. I think the composition works extremely well for the subject matter, and I am glad that you haven't weakened the picture by trying to impose "compositional rules" such as the rule of thirds on it.

Again with the first picture your composition plays really well on the drama and beauty of the sea and rocks with the background taking, hmm, a background but still important part role in the image. In other words you have presented the scene to us in much the same way that we might have seen it if we were there.

I strongly believe that the subject matter of a picture should dictate the composition and not generalised rules of what makes "good" composition. I once listened with increasing incredulity to a camera club judge assessing photographs as artistic because they conformed to the rule of thirds.

As for the hdr I think it works extremely well in the first picture and actually helps our appreciation of the effects of light you see with water. In the second one it is perhaps a bit ott and takes it from being a representation/viewpoint of the scene into being a rather sinister image to my mind. Either way interesting images which are worthwhile and enjoyable to see... Thanks