Bob Wills  


Charles Fort by Bob Wills

October 2021 - Charles Fort

October 2021 - Bob Wills

Original

About the Image(s)

I took a 12-day driving tour of southern Ireland, pre-Covid, and this image is from Charles Fort, a 17th Century star shaped fort, in Kinsale. I had a hard time finding a detailed shot that captured my travel experience. I tried shooting through many of the large through windows. This shot was from a hill across the entrance gate. I don’t take many good travel photos and I may never have another chance at my ancestral island. Let me know if this works at all. I shot this handheld but propped on a wall. I used f16 to increase the sharpness.

In LR I auto adjusted tone, calibrated the reds, blues and greens, and cropped. In PS I replaced the sky, added a reflected gradient, and think it is as I remembered it except for the gray sky

X-T1, 18-135 mm @ 26.6 (40) mm, 800 ISO, 1.180 sec@ f16, Manual mode.
Bob Wills


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




Robert Knight   Robert Knight
(Group 45)
I think the crop works because it creates a leading line using the path through the image and concentrates on the buildings that the path leads to but I find the position of the tourists distracting. Someone really needs to be up by the top right hand building maybe looking back into the scene rather than a group at bottom left. My interpretation is that you have tried to match the scene to the new sky by softening it whereas my recollection of Ireland is the green so I would have tried to change the sky to match the rest of the scene. The image illustrates the contrast between the old and new buildings very well and certainly would be a place I would like to visit.   Posted: 10/09/2021 15:59:32
Bob Wills   Bob Wills
Thanks Bob. You may be correct. The problem I saw with the groups at the gate, is that the gate is blue and modern, not the story I wished to tell. I should take the people out. My family is from Galway and my wife's from Roscommon and they were much greener areas. We were lucky and it stayed fairly warm and dry while there.   Posted: 10/09/2021 16:23:42
Robert Knight   Robert Knight
(Group 45)
Were the original and cropped images the same image? I ask because there is more of the roofs of the buildings in your final image. I am not suggesting a different crop to include the tourists top right in the original but probably cheat a bit and move one of them into the final image. My wife says it is cheating but I say it is art.   Posted: 10/09/2021 17:07:55
Bob Wills   Bob Wills
Thanks Bob. I am struggling with my health, and it is making me miss things. It doesn't appear to be the same, but sometimes I add more to the canvas and use by using content aware crop which does a decent job usually.
I just don't remember. Maybe you should remove the original.

The series of images from this spot are in order in LR, but sometimes I've accidently deleted images I've renamed for DDG. That may have happened.   Posted: 10/09/2021 19:57:59



Zina Mirsky   Zina Mirsky
(Group 55)
I like the original best because of the extreme aging visible in the rocks/stone - it is a focal point into the rest of the image that sets the tone of antiquity. The people are there; that's what we face when we travel. In the cropped image, they become more important. In the original, they just are what they are and our eyes can bypass them to the rest of the image. This would be a wonderful place to visit with or without tourists! Be well.../z   Posted: 10/12/2021 19:42:04
Bob Wills   Bob Wills
Thanks, Zina. You are right of course. The crop changes the story significantly. As Robert stated they may not be the same image, but from the same day. I'm definitely not as sharp as I once was. Thanks for the wellness thought   Posted: 10/13/2021 08:53:33



Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
(Group 32)
Hello Bob, I really like your final composition, and I think you are right about taking the people out. They are not needed to understand the scale of the view, and the composition empty of people is interesting, historical, and tranquil.   Posted: 10/26/2021 15:14:52