Camera- EOS 55 Lens- 28-135 IS Settings- F11; 1/20 (not very sure), PL filter, on Tripod Film: Kodak ektachrome 100 It was a cloudy evening (around 4:00 PM)

I am new to photography but it is already becoming my favourite hobby. This is my first posting here and I shall gratefully appreciate any comments or remarks regarding this picture. Thanks Sanjay

-- SANJAY KAPOOR (kapoors@ss.abr.affrc.go.jp), September 05, 1999

Answers

Welcome Sanjay, both to this forum and the wonderful world of photography!

It is apparent from this image that you have a good eye for subject matter. One of the many skills that grows with experience is understanding the exposure limitations of film and recognizing scenes that are beyond its capacity to record properly. In this image, that range goes from near pure white (in the sky) to near black (in the foreground bushes), far exceeding what can be properly recored. Had this been a clear day, the polarizing filter would have darkened the sky and added some color. A slight change in composition could have eliminated the foreground bushes, narrowing the tonal range even further. If you wanted to keep the bushes in the image, some fill flash may have brightened them up a bit. Had this shot been taken at dusk with a colorful sunset, it would have been quite dramatic! Perhaps a return to this location during more favorable photographic conditions?

Keep shooting Sanjay, be critical of your own work, always looking for ways to improve it and by all means, have fun!

-- Jim Erhardt (jimerhardt@hotmail.com), September 05, 1999.

I agree with Jim, also this looks like it may have been during low tide, I used to go to the ocean during stormy weather, much more dramatic sea's and breaking waves. What is the location of this shot? Pat

-- pat j. krentz (krentz@cci-29palms.com), September 05, 1999.

Dear Jim and Pat, I thank you both your remarks. I knew that this picture lacked something which did not let it stand out as some of the outstanding pictures I have seen on this forum and photo.net. Thank you for putting its deficiencies in such a simple language. As for Pats question; this place is known as The Twelve Apostles and it is one of the many gorgeous places along The Great Ocean Road South West of Melbourne in Australia. Each rock in this cluster of 12 is more than 50 meters high. I think because of lack of scale I could not do justice to their majestic size. The sea was also quite violent but in this picture (Taken from a height of about 100 meters) it looks quite calm. I would definitely welcome more comments. Thanks,, Sanjay

-- Sanjay Kapoor (kapoors@ss.abr.affrc.go.jp), September 05, 1999.

I think Jim summarized quite well. The reason that the water doesn't look that stormy is because of 2 things...the whites are over-exposed and your slow shutter speed softened the water's texture. A blue sky would certainly help this image. I would also look for better light and a different spot to take the picture (maybe concentrate on only one of the rocks)

-- Bhaskar Thiagarajan (bhaskart@hotmail.com), September 07, 1999.