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!

CALATRAVA - LIEGE GUILLEMINS

For this week another old image, one (actually two) from the archives (in fact, it was indeed "archived" on Zenfolio but I have restored that gallery).

This is in Liège, the biggest city of Wallonia, the southern and french speaking part of our country, near the German border.

The city has a fair share of interesting historic sights (Musée La Boverie is recommended, as is the Montagne de Bueren, a super long staircase/street that leads to the Citadel).

But also modern architecture. Celebrated architect Sebastao Calatrava (who has designed lots of buildings in Valencia) was commissioned to design a new and stunning second train station for the city, Liège Guillemins, in his signatory style of exposed white concrete spans that mimic the structural strength of organic shapes.

The station looks stunning from many angles, but the best views are inside and close up, where you can see the rhythm of the structural beams, girders and pillars.

It feels like being trapped in the ribcage of a huge whale.
They could have called it "Liège Jonah" or "Liège Pinocchio".

Here are two views of the staircases and escalators that lead from the ground level central hall to the train platforms above.

One "normal" view with a standard lens and one ultra-wide (fisheye, pointed a bit upwards and thus showing even the top of the wall behind me).

Both are presented in colour and in B&W, for you to evaluate the differences.

Inspired by Fireplace.
Sometimes we have snow here too but it looks nothing like Austria.

Both shots are great.
I think I prefer your B&W shots. the colours are nice but somehow they distract a bit from the form and shape of that rib cage structure.
The first is a fun shot with the, presumably, young boy running/jumping across the frame. You caught him in an excellent position in the centre and in front of the white patch on the floor that highlights his black silhouetted shape.

The second shot, with it's ultra wide angle view, shows off the curves of the railway station really well. Being "inside a whale" seems to describe it perfectly :-)

Thanks for the reference to Austria ;-)
If you don't get snow very often, it must be really exciting when it does show up :-)

The gum trees have a great patterned trunk, with their flaky, two-tone dark brown/light brown colouring.
And the little bit of snow at the bottom gives a good contrast to the image.

The second shot does indeed have an unusual type of tree for a snow shot ;-)
They looks like green fireworks exploding, nice !

Hiking to Lake Laudachsee

Finally got out for a walk with the camera :-)
The lake is still frozen, but it doesn't appear to be thick enough to walk on safely. No ice skaters to be seen today!

A rescue ladder and a lifebuoy,... just in case.

The image was created using two shots, one focused on the dried flowers and the other on the summit cross. Then converted to B&W.

On the way back.

Two intertwined forest lovers eagerly await spring.

The fruit trees are still in the grip of winter, but spring will be here soon.

Water

Water feature at a local museum. I was attracted by the unusual water flow at this site. WA lens was used to accentuate it's visual attributes.

The height of the water above the edge looks really high. Maybe it is, as you said, your position and the wide angle lens that is distorting it to make it look a lot higher?
I would have thought that the max height for such a feature could be a few cm, maybe up to about 10cm if the flow rate is really very high?
What would you estimate the height was here?
What ever it was the photo looks impressive :-)

As far as I remember the height of flowing water was virtually equal to the ground level. What we see here is probably visual distortion created by WA lens. Being right at the corner must have added some magic...

Thank you for comments.

As much as I like colour versions B&W treatment has more drama, to me anyway.
Sometimes, architectural site needs monochrome to interpret various beams and angles which bring so much interest. One appreciates the creativity which went into building like this.

Human figure (running?) just adds a bonus to #1 capture.

Wonderful shot. I really like those trees with brown and green elements mixing with snow. Talking about contrast...Excellent.

Love that shot. Trees fallen and trees growing - great contrast. Almost there is a message here...

Bull

No matter how often I look at these photos and try to find something positive, unfortunately, I can't. A third of the top half of the photos doesn't do them any favors.

1 and #3 are very good.

But, #2 is full of purple aberrations.

You are right. They are quite bad. I should have picked this up. I think it is something I did during post processing rather than the lens. Other shots with this lens haven't done this- well, maybe a very small amount and the chromatic aberration control in Lightroom has always eliminated any issue. But not this time. I don't have the original RAW so I can't reprocess. A few attempts I made today haven't fixed the problem on this image either.

Where Something Used To Be

Yesterday my son called me on the way to work and told me about a rural shortcut he'd taken and a spectacular wisteria display he'd seen. So off I went. As a regular explorer of vanished places, I recognized a house site, and the signs that the house that this place grew up around was a grand one in its day - large hilltop, carefully and widely flattened, broadly planted oaks 150-200 years old, same age eastern cedars, bulbs in a garden array. I have not yet found any history but I did take photos of the wisteria for him.

Other captures are very interesting, but this
One is more intriguing. It reminds me of a scarecrow, just a little bit. Great, almost melancholic image of a nature.