* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #888 / Revived #108 on 2025 04 23*

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 (almost 17 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 a photo or photo-based image that you have made and get critique on it. And in return you give other people your honest but constructive opinion of their images.

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 or essay 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 or essay that you have made and would like to get comments on.
An entry can either be a single image or a short essay. With an essay we mean not a collection of random images without any connection, seeking C&C on more than one of them. We mean instead a limited number (3 to 10) of connected images that together try to tell a story, create a fuller picture of a situation, event or location, etc.
• Add a clear title to your post to distinguish your entry.
• Look at the other images/essays 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.
• Please stay on topic, i.e. concentrate on the image and the photographic comments, without getting into politics or other distractions. No non-photographic arguments.

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.

PLEASE NOTE CLEARLY:
Unless the original poster specifically states (for every individual posting offered for C&C) that they do not want their image(s) to be downloaded, altered or reposted, it is understood that within the context of this thread, other participants are free to download and alter the posted image and repost it in a reply for C&C purposes. That reposted image may remain permanently within the week's thread, or you may remove it after a short period of time if you prefer. The downloaded and altered images are not to be used for any other purposes nor uploaded anywhere else than within the context of the C&C in this thread. No copyright disputes here!

Encourage - it is a scary business putting your work up for other people to judge!

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.

Have fun, be respectful and let’s stick together!

KASHAN HAMMAM TEAHOUSE

I recently de-archived/restored an older gallery that had been auto-archived by my hosting site Zenfolio, in order to show one of the images to somebody.
It was a happy re-encounter with a first batch of images I had uploaded from a simply wonderful trip to Iran. April 2014. (Jeez, time flies!!)

Gallery: Iran - First B&W Impressions by RoelH

The gallery is filled mostly with images processed with the in-camera dramatic B&W art filter (a relatively new feature of my camera at the time). The effect can be very cheesy and over the top, but for some of the images in darker settings (fisheye inside buildings etc) it worked remarkably well.
Also layered landscapes got a very specific look (kitschy, but still OK). I tweaked the JPGs minimally in Lightroom and they could go online.

This image is processed a bit less extravagantly than others.

On some of the final days of our trip (after a night train ride south to Shiraz from Tehran, and then a slow itinerary back north by car via Persepolis, Isfahan & Yazd) we were in Kashan and the surrounding region. Great place (although less touristic than some other cities), great people encounters.

In the Kashan Bazaar, an old hammam (bath house) had been repurposed as a teahouse.

The architecture remained, with a central fountain surrounded by geometrically shaped rooms, and domed ceilings in which colourful glass bricks were cemented to allow in minimal light. The effect can be very poetic, like there is a starry night above. (We have seen the same in some bath houses in Budapest etc).

In this case, walking around the room, I saw a ray of sunlight piercing through one of the pieces of glass and positioned myself to get it straight into my lens.
This filled the room with reflections and light artefacts on dustmites, almost like there was a mirrorball suspended there.

Must have been a rainbow somewhere

The sun was shining while it was raining. Standing on the balcony, I didn't a rainbow, but you can see the water drops in the branches glistening in the sunlight. Those drops look a bit bigger and more noticable when they are somewhat defocussed. the rain drops in the air are nicely viusible too.

Reflections make interesting patterns at times. This one caught my eye.

Some of the 260 islands in Matsushima Bay, Japan.

Only 3 weeks ago

It's hard to believe, but Great White Frozen North (Canada, Ontario) still had snow. Today we have semblance of Spring - plus 11C. Onward and upward...

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bug

I was trying to photograph the tree above me when my brother decided to be a menace. I just think these pictures are very funny.

Great and unique Starburst effect. This image has superb atmosphere reflecting the unusual location.

I like those goggles. This shot probably has more meaning to you than to rest of us, but it's certainly interesting. It almost has this arctic Explorer feel...

I like this unusual location and rugednes of the rocks. Very natural environment indeed.

I prefer Arvo's version, rule of 3rd and all that. Very well seen.

Well seen and captured. I feel like I am right there watching it happen.

Swearing Fealty to the King and Queen

The last of the pelicans have left the dam but before they left, they acknowledged the rightful royalty. The pelicans took over for three weeks, cavorting in the choice fishing spots that have long been claimed, often by battle, by particular herons and egrets, even playing in sacred spots, taking risks no sensible fisher birds would take, and making a general mess of Dam Order. In the final days, the pelicans lost one of their own in this nonsense, backed away from the most dangerous areas and from the long-held fishing spots. Then they withdrew completely from the dam, and now have left for their summer homes which is thought to be somewhere in the midwest.

"No, no, Bruce. It's not you! It's me!

"You're great! Really! Any girl would be lucky to have you as her boyfriend! They'll be chasing after you . . .

"I just don't know who I am anymore . . . I need space to find myself . . .

Rich

Thanks, and I like your crop.