Your photos (160)


Hints and tips
by Philip Grosset



If you'd like to submit photos for criticism,
click here.

with comments from Philip Grosset




"I would like your professional opinion of these 4 pictures. They have all been cropped from the original picture. I have tried to use your advise about the "rule of thirds". I've also tried to get as close as possible without spoiling the effect I was after. Plus they were enhanced using PhotoSuite III SE for the first time. The first one is my youngest daughter. The picture was kinda washed out, so I saturated the color a little. I also flipped it around so she's looking the opposite way it was originally taken. The second one is a picture of a sunrise on Bois Blanc Island, MI. It also has color saturation boosted. The third one is our cat Meeko being silly. It was taken at night with lamplight shining on him, that's why it appears so yellow. I also softened the wall behind him as it had some dirty spots which I thought detracted from the picture. And lastly, our cat Tigger. I just thought he was so cute laying on the couch like this. The color saturation has been boosted in this picture as well. You may have noticed the purple in the upper right-hand corner of this last picture. The picture must have been exposed or at the end of the roll. Maybe you know! Any suggestions you may have would be very welcome. I love taking pictures and hope to get a camera with a more powerful zoom lens someday so I can take close-up (macro?) nature photographs. These were all taken with a Canon Tele 80 point and shoot camera. Thank you!" (Karen L. Lower, Ionia, Michigan)
Girl
I think this is a very pleasing portrait with pleasant coloring and an effective background. All I would suggest is that a lower camera angle that showed more of your daughter's face might made it even appealing - but I wouldn't want to miss out on the knowing look!.



This is certainly dramatic, but the boosted color saturation also makes it look just a bit unreal. The use of silhouttes in the foreground is highly effective.
Sunset


Cat
Another really attractive picture, much helped by your softening of the wall in the background.


Cat Cat darkened
Your photo on the left looks a little burnt out, so in my version on the right I've darkened it, and also blurred the slightly distracting lines in the background. I cut out that purple bit in the top right too! Another very pleasing picture.
You seem to be getting on really well. If you're interested in macro, a digital camera might be one to aim for (see my Going Digital page).

SunsetReply from Karen L Lower: "Thank you for your valuable comments on my recent submissions. I really like what you did to the bottom picture with the blurred background. How did you get rid of the purple? You must have a much more powerful photo editing program than mine.
I've attached the uncropped, unsaturated, original sunrise picture for comparison. I think you're right about saturating the color too much so it looks unreal. I thought my original was a little washed out. Guess I went a little too far trying to fix it. Thanks again."

I got rid of the purple by using the clone tool with Photoshop.




"My name is Andrea Raber. I work as a dispatcher at my local sheriff's office. Photography is, for now, a hobby, and a way to relieve stress. I would love your opinion on the pics I'm sending. I've taken one photography class, and plan on continuing. Hopefully one day, this will be more than a hobby. There is really no agenda with my pictures, I see something I like, and I take a picture. The first picture was taken on a road trip to Maine last summer, I just liked the "dinghy's" at the little dock. The second is of a flower I grew in my backyard, I don't have a macro lens, so I took the lens off my camera and held it on backwards to get the closeup. The third is my youngest daughter, Paige, we were outside at a concert. She is one of my favorite subjects. The fourth is Paige again, on a weekend trip to Cape Hatteras, NC. I wanted to get a silhouette. I have lots of other favorites, and some are on my website ...any comments are greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time."
Harbour
This photo looks rather gloomy and isn't too sharp. Perhaps the weather was against you.

Flower I'm afraid this photo is completely out of focus. This is not the same thing as soft focus (there's an explanation of the difference between the two on my people page). When reversing a lens, you can only focus your subject by changing the camera-subject distance - all very hazardous if your camera is hand-held!

Girl cropped
Girl
On the left: your attractive picture of your daughter.Her face is in shadow, though, so on the right I've lightened it (you could have done this by using a reflector or fill-in flash) and also come in slightly closer to concentrate attention on her expression.
Silhouette
Silhouette cropped
Your photo on the left is imaginative and striking, and the silhouette is very effective. All I've done on the right is come in a fraction closer. This conveniently excludes the few little clouds at the top, and concentrates even more attention on the sun and the silhouette.

HarbourYou've got some attractive photos on your website too, and I was interested to see that you'd considerably improved your dinghies picture by adding the white framing that helps to make the washed-out effect look deliberate. But the large copyright notice in the middle doesn't do it any good at all!

Reply from Andrea Raber: "Thank you for your quick response, and the helpful comments on my photos. I hope to continue to improve."




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