* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #926 / Revived #146 on 2026 01 14*

Sorry for starting this week's party a few hours later than usual because of circumstances. But here we go!

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 or critical 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!

MEKNES

Another quick Iphone photo from the temporary gallery of iphone preview images of our Moroccan trip.
(A work in progress - one of the next days I upload the images of the final four days.)

This is a view on a gate in Meknes.

Meknes is one of the four Royal Cities where subsequent dynasties have made their capital: Fes, Meknes, Marrakech and Rabat.
Visiting all four of those was the main goal of our trip, but we also did some sideshow features, like the Atlas Film Studios and some oasis with ancient kasbahs and ksars deeper south on the way to, and around Ouarzazate.

Palace for Prisoners

Don Jail in Toronto, Canada was built in 1864. Designed by William Thomas, UK born architect, featuring Italianate/Renaissance Revival elements with rusticated stone and distinctive masonry.

Last hanging was in 1962, place closed in 1977 and now sits empty as a heritage building, periodically open for viewing.

Great shot utilizing arch as a frame. That carriage is magnificent - one can just imagine various dignitaries in the past being driven by horses...

The Moment.
Abu Simbel again.
I presume that everyone knows the story of the rescue and rebuilding of this fabulous world treasure. International cooperation at its finest.
The hill/cliff we are looking at is artificial and built to hold the statues and temples that were relocated. Behind the entrance (between the giant statues) are a series of inner temples and portals. Twice a year the rising sun penetrates to the innermost temple and illuminates a carving of the Pharaoh with the gods. With the rebuilding of the statues and the inner temples, this now occurs on day later than at the original site.
When we booked to visit Abu Simbel we didn’t know about the sun and the inner temple and we didn’t know that we had booked for the magic day and moment. The guest house we had booked into was fabulous. They told us exactly how to do it so we would be in the inner sanctum for the big moment. This was no small achievement given the thousands of Egyptians and the celebrities who come to Abu Simbel for the event. Our host organised for us to be early and in the right position in the queue and provided us with breakfast while we waited. You can also be too early and shuffled through before the sun hits. It went like clockwork and we were in the inner temple just as the sun did the illumination.
These aren’t great photos, just a serendipitous record of an unforgettable morning we stumbled into.
1. In the queue, long before dawn.
[]

1. Excitement builds. There were at least 20 large tourist buses, dozens of cars and celebrities arriving by boat.
   

2. In we go.
   

3. The sun comes in
   

4. The moment. The back wall.
   

This is the Merchant Adventurer's, York, taken on a long weekend there in 2023. It was a trip of not too many photos - the weather forecast for the weekend promised lots of sunshine. A promise broken, as is often the case in the British Isles.

Photo page: www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle/55031413997/in/dateposted-public/

I think both of these are examples of photography where the keystone effect works in favour of the work. The modern buildings behind the courthouse look alien. It's a pity the building is closed most of the time.

Cityscape

Apart from showing a slice of the city, it was the patterns and colours, which attracted me to this scene.

The scene is very harmonious, not least due to the colours and the symmetry. The arch frames the gate and carriage very neatly and the carriage is perfectly placed, with the canopy supports continuing the vertical lines of the towers and the wheels directly below the widening battlements over the gateway, and thus forming another symmetric pattern.

The series has a joining thread of a visit to Abu Simbal and follows the visitor from arrival into the , but it also has a common theme of great early morning light being used in different ways.
In the first it is diffused, with lovely pastel colours in the sky. The crowds are arriving, phones at the ready.
In the second, the monumental entrance is bathed in warm and flattering sunlight. It is photographed from a low and near viewpoint, which makes it look even more imposing.
The third uses the light dramatically, and is my favourite. The sunlight is streaming through a window into the dark interior, revealing hieroglyphics and giving a powerful rim lighting to the two figures in the foreground. Their poses have a certain aspect of triumph.
The fourth shows a carving spotlighted by the rays of sunlight through the window, in what must be a display only possible in the early morning, and the camera and phone screen recording the scene subtly suggest this is an important event. I also enjoyed the man's head in perfect profile, ancient Egyptian style!

That is an interesting building, with the impressive entrance in front of the bleak and sinister cell blocks.
I like the second photo showing the detail above the entrance gate, especially how the light is just on one side of the figure's face, with everything else in shadow. The face is suitably stern too. Do you know who he is?

York is a lovely city and this photo does it justice. I don't remember seeing the Merchant Adventurer, so maybe it is time for another visit!

Thank you for comments.
I also wondered about who and why adorns the portal - it turns out The face carving above the entrance to the historic Don Jail in Toronto is a stern countenance of Father Time, intended to instill fear and a sense of judgment in the prisoners entering the building. That's history for you.

Incredible series and very unique insights.
I like this one most.

I know we all have a vision, but (imho) you could try to lop off 1/3 of the top to accentuate the wall, which is the focus of interest after all.

This is fab example of a typical and historic building. The light was with you that day...

Dante comes to mind: “Abandon all hope…”

I love how you showed the lengths people went to, in order to give a neoclassical grandeur to a place that is most often strictly utilitarian. Almost makes it look inviting, which would certainly NOT be the idea…

Passersby enjoy the view, maybe on their daily commute, that the inhabitants only briefly glance upon arrival and departure.

There is a cynical moralism at play there.

Arches (including the wheels) repeating and framing everywhere. The arches of the carriage top fringe are a delicious bonus. The restricted colour tones keep the emphasis on the lines within the image. Unfortunately you just missed the self driving Tesla carpet as it flitted across the blue.

I like the way the grandiose and welcoming entrance quickly becomes more sombre walls. I'd imagine that there was a less artistic "tradesman's entrance" for the arriving guests? Well worth preserving. In Australia we have some similar prisons from the same era. Some are being re-developed as guest houses.
Tinternaut's comment on the use of "keystoning" here is very apt.

Another significant old building to be treasured.
Let's talk about the flagpole. It cuts through the building in an akward way. In itself, I don't mind the pole and quite like the additional vertical line it adds to those of the tudor building. There's something of a visual joke between the pole and the woodwrok that I quite like. it just seems to be in the wrong position. Betwee the chimney and the limp flag, the lines get confused. If you had been a step or so to the left, the chimney would have formed another clearly distinguished vertical to add to the others in the shot and the flagpole vertical would have been isolated to make a cleaner straight line.

At the country house last weekend. The colors in the heavily shaded forest fooled the camera some, but I liked them so I didn't tinker much.

My participation may be spotty and my offerings limited to my immediate surrounds for a while, due to family medical emergency. I will enjoy all your travels though!