Aussie bush

[D J]

some pics i took on the weekend:
http://www.%%%%%%%%.com/teamdat/aussie%20bush1.jpg
http://www.%%%%%%%%.com/teamdat/aussie%20bush2.jpg

please critique! I am contemplating entering some photography into a local show. I thought the second photo would be a lot better at a lower angle, kind of like the top one, although i'm not to sure that the top one shows enough. (i.e. wider angle like the lower one may be nicer)

[CWB]

the bottom pix is better .

overcast sky = flat lighting = tough to force perspective .

the balance is pretty good ... ansel adams used objects/placement to draw the eye into the picture . if the eye has a path to follow , it will .
you have three major points ... they are staggered as they go back into the picture ... the clump of grass in the right foreground , the mud puddle towards the left (the eye follows the edge of the road) and that black tree in the midground . all of this leads into the vanishing point . the pix is busy enough to draw attention , but not overwhelming .
if you have photoshop (or a similar program) you might try adjusting some of the parameters ... no foul in this as it was done in the exposure/printing side of chemical photography .
just a suggestion here ... try setting up your camera and taking several shots changing only the vertical height ... sometimes dropping a foot makes a big difference .

i would like to have the full file of that pix and play with it ... just for fun .

[CWB]

i took the pix that was posted ... cropped to 8X10 and did a little correction work . just for fun .

http://uploads.webrats.com/files/959/aussie%20bush2CTU.jpg

[scubaculture]

Where in Aus was this? Whatever you did to the pic really worked!

[Juan.Camaney]

use a mega wide lens and take the top one with it vertically to make a really really tall picture. its awesome. the bottom one is lacking something.

[D J]

thanks heaps for comments/suggestions! Pics were taken between Perth and Brookton in Western Australia.

CWB, what did you do other than crop? contrast or something?

Pics were taken with a sony cybershot. not a real new one. just a point and shoot camera, but it does the job just fine.

[CWB]

http://uploads.webrats.com/files/959/aussie%20bush1TUC.jpg


it was more than contrast (i actually didn't use that) ... 3 level color balance , channel clipping/limits , max white/black level limit/expansion and color saturation levels ... about 30 minutes per pix ... it is best to walk away from it for a bit and then return .

[Fixer8]

http://uploads.webrats.com/files/1112/aussie%2520bush2.jpg
I'm just a beginner at this re-touching lark but I had a go.

[morranon]

God I love Australia!

I would suggest investing in some nice neg if you can be bothered with the cost. Fuji velvia is nice at the 50 or 100 speeds. Nice film really does wonders for your colours etc. Using slide film and then processing it as normal neg instead of making slides (cross-processing) will give you interesting contrast and colour tones - the Ghost Gums could really stand out! You have great light in Oz so use it to your advantage - pick a different time of day to shoot (sun up/ sun down) and see what you get.

Peter Lik eat your heart out! : )

[STW]

wasn't this pic taken with a digital camera? If so, buying expensive film wouldn't make a difference. :mstad:

[morranon]

wasn't this pic taken with a digital camera? If so, buying expensive film wouldn't make a difference. :mstad:

Hmmm...I suppose not! :duh: He'll just have to learn to use Photoshop then!