Michael Duke, QPSA  


Cambridge by Michael Duke, QPSA

November 2019 - Cambridge

November 2019 - Michael Duke, QPSA

Original

About the Image(s)


I've just got back from Italy - I have not had a chance to download any to my computer, so here is one from my trip earlier this month to Cambridge. I was thinking about which is better - colour or mono. Either way I know I need to do some work, so all suggestions are welcome.


This round’s discussion is now closed!
12 comments posted




Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
I like the color shot better because of the variations in the green tones, and the bit of red bushes. However, it is just fine in mono. The others are more adept at comments about post-processing, so I will not try to comment on that. My one suggestion is to crop in a bit, making the punters a little more noticeable--see my try at it. I also like that your viewpoint is a bit off-center of the waterway.   Posted: 11/01/2019 14:43:02
Comment Image
Lance Lewin   Lance Lewin
(Groups 83 & 87)
Stephen, I feel this takes away the entire sense of Place. I especially miss the (full) lovely brick wall that lines the left side of the composition - the added texture is intriguing.

LAL
Group 83   Posted: 11/02/2019 17:19:11



Lance Lewin   Lance Lewin
(Groups 83 & 87)
On Composition:
Hi Michael. Wonderful composition. I love the BW rendering and your decision to leave the buildings, the two boaters and other artifacts that define the space, it all work well. Stephen's crop is OK, and works well to highlight the two boats, but then loses the wider more defining perspective you have chosen. Thank you.

Kind regards,
Lance - Group-83
visualizingart.com   Posted: 11/02/2019 17:25:06



 
Stephen and Lance - thanks for both of your comments as both of you have seen things that I did want to achieve. Stephen - the 'off-center' was definitely intentional as I always find that exact geometry is a distraction to the atmosphere of such an image. Lance - thanks to you too. I did wonder if I had left too much in the image to keep the perspective, but I am glad you picked up on it and made a positive comment. I appreciate it.

Thanks again to both of you.   Posted: 11/02/2019 18:26:04



Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
Yes, I agree that the wider perspective shows the context better. One must choose the emphasis to taste and display needs.   Posted: 11/02/2019 22:31:41



 
Michael: It looks like a wonderful trip. I have to preface my comments with an admission that my eyes have been bothering me and I may not be seeing as clearly as I should. The original photo looks a little hazy to me. Where were you standing or cruising when you took the photo? Stephen's rendition addressed some of the same issues I had -- I am glad that he cropped out the tree on the right side. I loved seeing the architecture on the left side of the original photo but I am not sure whether you can have both in the photo... I used to belong to a Photo Club where we talked about the "wow" factor-- I don't feel that the Black and White has that "wow" factor because it is coming off on my monitor as too grey! I would love to see you, when you have the time, work on getting that wow factor in this photo because I think it is there...   Posted: 11/11/2019 09:31:31



Tom McCreary   Tom McCreary
I also like the brick work on the left side, but the partial building on the right side is a distraction to me. I did just a quick and dirty "content aware fill" of the building in your color version. Then I used "dehaze" in the RAW filter to make the colors move vibrant, and converted to B&W in Photoshop. I do like the image and the composition, and the 2 boats add a lot to the image.   Posted: 11/11/2019 14:47:30
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Dear all - this has to be one of those images that gets so many different attitudes going so I will stick to the technicalities only. We all seem to have differing opinions on what to leave in or kick out and what has wow factor or doesn't (sorry Gloria, but some other people I know would disagree, but this is where subjectives come in) and this is one of the reasons that I love photography. However..................sticking to technicality. I totally accept about haze and this is where I am glad of the suggestions. In fact Tom your 'dehaze' use came at a perfect moment and I am so glad that you bought that up BEFORE I start working on a batch of photographs that I captured in Florence in Italy where I was exhibiting some of my creative images at the Florence Biennial. Your timing couldn't have been better! Thanks all for the input. I really do appreciate it   Posted: 11/11/2019 15:05:47
Tom McCreary   Tom McCreary
I really like the "dehaze" filter for landscapes. However, I have found that it can be overdone. Hope that it works well for you.   Posted: 11/11/2019 19:27:48



Jennifer Doerrie   Jennifer Doerrie
I like the composition as you have it here. As an alternative to a dehaze filter, some of the art filters might increase the contrast. I don't have too many on my computer, so this is not the best example. This is a Topaz Adjust "vibrant" filter. It's effect is stronger than I had in mind, but conveys the idea, anyway.   Posted: 11/14/2019 01:42:36
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Dehazing would be my choice as well, I would up the contrast just a bit, but I wouldn't crop anything out. I agree with you the sense of place is lost with a tighter crop. The color version is lovely, but for me this image in B&W really brings out the textures. Very nice.   Posted: 11/17/2019 15:13:37



Diana Magor   Diana Magor
I have very similar pictures taken in Cambridge too. I like all the suggestions for the post processing. I have found the dehaze filter is very useful as long as it is used frugally! I usually start with checking there is no clipping of the whites and blacks and then move on to the darks and lights and end up with a tweak to the dehaze in that order and this seems to work for my landscapes. The I convert to mono and at that point i use the colour filters to change the dynamics. Then i go to Nik and whatever preset I use i always use control points to alter different bits of the original -darkening or lightening clouds/sky/corners/highlights etc. I quite enjoy fiddling!   Posted: 11/24/2019 16:33:05