* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #798 / Revived #018 on 2023 08 02 *

Welcome to the Wednesday Comments and Critique (No Theme & No Brand) thread!

We are dedicated to continuing the great tradition of this C&C thread because we are convinced that looking at, and talking about images is vital for better photography.

Our tried and tested concept (15 years and running!) is a weekly "peer-to-peer" photo comments & critique encounter, in which you GIVE and RECEIVE.
The idea is simple: you post an image and get critique on it, and in return give other people your opinion of their images, or vice versa.

Any Theme, Any Camera, Any Style, Any Subject.

We are still figuring out how to create the convenience of threaded view on this new forum.
For now, let us agree that you post an image with a title and short explanation, and that all comments include the image as a quote.
Replies to comments may or may not include quotes.

THREAD GUIDELINES – THE SHORT & SWEET VERSION
• This thread does not care about brands. It’s not about the tool, but the image.
• Post one image that you would like to get comments on (exceptions: see below).
• Add a clear title to your post to reflect the image’s title and distinguish your entry.
• Look at the other images and give your comments on at least one of those.
• For comments, try to go beyond a simple pat on the back or a short dismissal.
• Do you like an image (or essay) ? Try to explain WHY it appeals to you.
• Negative feedback is OK (we all want to learn), but be polite and constructive.
Try to explain why the image (or essay) does not appeal to you and how it might be improved.

We will start with single images.
Re-establishing our C&C for essays will be a next step.
Please limit any individual contribution to a single image. This avoids confusion.

The critique you give is vital.
What was your first impression? What catches your eye about an image? Why?
What do you like, and what distracts you? What would you change?

Fiddle with the image in your head - composition, perspective, color balance, exposure.
It is understood that unless the original poster specifically states that they do not want an altered image posted that you are free to alter the posted image and repost it in a reply for C&C purposes (no use for other purposes!). That reposted image may remain permanently or you may remove it after a short period of time if you prefer. No copyright disputes here!

More general feedback is also welcome.
Do you know something about taking the same sort of image that would make matters easier - share your own as an example in your reply. Encourage - it is a scary business putting your work up for other people to judge!

And finally, here are some useful hints for navigating and familiarizing yourself with the forum mechanics of DPRevived:
• Unfortunately, there is no threaded view (yet). We can’t simply keep images and their related comments together like we used to. So please make clear about which image you are commenting.
• To do that, you may make good use of the “quote” feature. This allows you to keep the image in your reply. Excess content can be deleted. The “preview” button allows you to look at what you are going to post.
• There is a difference between the “reply” button that sits at the top of the forum, and the reply buttons under every post.
• A few threads in this new forum with useful navigation information:
dprevived.com/t/how-to-use-this-site/387/
and
dprevived.com/t/how-to-embed-photos-into-your-post-directly-from-flickr/456/
(this applies also, with modifications, to other photo hosting websites)
and
dprevived.com/t/how-to-quote/1014/

Have fun and let’s stick together!

Into the Clouds
(OSTERFELDERKOPF towards HOCHALM)

First, I must apologize for not having done my duty in last week's edition.
I started the thread and posted an image (and I thank you all for your comments) but I failed to post any comments on anybody else's image.
That is not the way it should be and I am sorry.
But I was away all week and often in spots without WiFi or decent cell phone provider coverage.
Please accept this as my excuse.
More importantly, I am now back and happy to see that our thread is thriving:
last week we saw so many great contributions and equally useful comments and suggestions.
That is what it is all about, so this really gives me great pleasure.

My contribution this week is an image from the day before yesterday, early in a very long and exhausting hike.
This image helps to explain why I have been off the grid last week...

Click to see at full size.
For those interested:
Our 19km hike was mostly downhill (starting at 2000m elevation, at the top end of the Alpspitzbahn, which does not really go to the Alpspitz but from the valley, in the direction of that high peak, but ending at Osterfelderkopf).
But although it was less exhausting than doing the same hike uphill, it was still pretty strenuous because of the terrain that requires constant attention.
Moreover, we strung three individual hikes together in order to get a really great full day (Osterfelderkopf to Kreuzeck over Hochalm; Kreuzeck to Höllentalangerhûtte and Höllentalangerhûtte through Höllentalklamm to Hammersbach and then on the the valley station of the Alpspitzbahn at 750m elevation).
Total altitude difference 1250m, but with some ups and downs along the way.
We had a blissful day with great weather.

A general explanation about my responses.
I try to reply to every posted image. When one person posts more than one image (unless it is a number of photos intended to be looked at as a series), I will usually only reply to the first image the person has posted for the week.
I'm interested in both the image and the way people respond to it. The discussion following an image is nearly as important to me as the image. It's part of deepening my understanding of the way an image works.
Especially with flat view, I find it difficult to sort out the flow of discussions. I miss things. Therefore I limit my replies for the week to the first image I come across from a participant.
When images are posted late in the week, I find that discussion generally doesn't develop around those shots. As I value the opinions, I rarely comment on anything posted later than around Sunday.
It isn't that I'm ignoring other images and posts. Additionally, it's time consuming and there are limits to how much I have available.

Beach.

Excellent shot and great to hear that you had a good time! What I like particulary about it are the lines in your image which seem to get less steep as our eyes move upwards and provide a nice transition between the green grass on the mountain and the sky. The composition is great as well and while many would center the person on the x-axis, I think it's very well balanced as it is. I like the fog as well and the colors are great and work nicely together with the lines/layers.

Great shots. I find the first one more effective, not only because of the colors, but also because the beach umbrellas merge into one another very well and create a nice rippling line (like an additional layer of waves of sand and straw. With the path and grass in front also slightly wobbling, the whole image gives the vibe of a big constantly moving busy thing (which our earth actually is, when we stop and think about it) beneath a sky that gives it some stability. Very well done!

Here's my interpretation:

Here's something abstract with another title influenced by space... showing something which I assume everyone knows too well:

Cracks in spacetime by simple.joy, on Flickr

Fog rising from a small canyon in early morning

A few of you might have seen my separate thread in critique forum in April. I've done many edits and versions, partly based on input (dprevived and elsewhere), and partly my own explorations. My preferred is the monochrome, though I'm not positive the selenium toning is best.

Downtown variety.

Superb shot showing us glory of mountain hike. I feel like following that path down to the bottom.

Great atmosphere in those captures. My personal preference would be to attempt more true b&w interpretation. I think it would lends itself more to more authentic image.
Colour version has merit also. It is rather up to creator to choose...

Summer

WhyNot

I second your feelings. I just hope that we will have flat view resolved by Fall, because it truly limits everyone's responses.

Fascinating how the curve changes the feeling even though all the details are the same. I posted these as a follow up to the discussion I had with Linda last week about impressionism and impressionistic filters. From a train window as I caught snatches of famous holiday localities between trees and buildings. Simplejoy's version feels to me as though we look at the scene and get an impression from a static observer. I'm moving to the beach not rushing past it.

Great shots which emphasize movement. Like 2 takes, they both give us two different optical interpretation of various speeds employed in capturing the beach scene.

Fab shot! Yes, we have water and the bench, but it is definitely occupied. Humorous and highly effective. Well done. An excellent candidate for entry in "Lonely bench " thread.

Love your experiments in optical illusion.
It's almost an image from a space program...
Excellent effort.

At full magnification, this image is spectacular! What intrigued me was that the focus is everywhere good, so I looked at the EXIF data to see what I could glean from it, for my own use. 😉 Then I saw that it was made with an iPhone... and I was amazed. That said, I have an iPhone SE2 and, as a camera, I find it ergonomically terribly clumsy; so I am not about to abandon my Canon R6.

Seriously, Roel, though snatched on the run, this a highly evocative photo. Many thanks for sharing it!

David