Your photos (238)


Hints and tips
by Philip Grosset



If you'd like to submit photos for criticism,
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with comments from Philip Grosset

"Just a photo i snapped was trying to get the wings fully open." (Martin Mcafee, Larne, N. Ireland)

I think this is a very attractive photo, pin sharp and with very pleasing colours but ....
I would be inclined to remove the empty area on the right, as here. I've also very slightly trimmed away the top so that there is slightly more space below the butterfly than above it. It makes a fine picture.
Reply from Martin Mcafee: "Hi thanks very much for your help, i think cropping the photo really works. Could you recommend a good photo package for working with digital photos?"
Photoshop Elements should do all you want - and more.

"This photo attached was taken one winter morning from my garden when we had a lot of snow." (Fraser Menzies, Inverness, Scotland)
Your photo on the left raises the whole question of lens flare, caused here, I presume, by shooting directly into the rising sun. There are experienced photographers who deliberately introduce lens flare to build up a sense of drama - but I must say I find it distracting. If this is the effect you really want, that's up to you, but I think it might have been better if you had been able to take the photo just a little earlier when only half the sun had appeared over the horizon. You might then have got more of the effect shown in my version on the right.

"The pic was taken at the botanic garden in san diego, ca. i have recently bought the sony a230 slr camera and love it. i really love taking pics of flowers and am looking for info and tips to help me get better at it. my name is david and am looking forward to receiving your comments. thanks." (David Barwick)
This is a very pleasing photo. I just tweaked it a little on Photoshop to make it a fraction sharper and more vibrant, but not enough to make a really significant difference. It is sharp and colorful and you've effectively thrown the background out of focus to concentrate attention just where you want it. Congratulations!



"Flower caught my interest in a pond at a nearby park. The green"blob" on the right seems to be a distraction, but if I crop it I get a centered flower, not sure if that works. This was shot with a 250 lens." (Enrico Seebach)
The flower in your photo above looks a bit lost in all the gloom, so on the right I've come in closer (without centering it) and lightened it a bit.


(If you'd like to see even more photos sent to me for review, most of the older ones (nos. 1-100) are still available at my OLDER PHOTOS website.)


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