Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #965 / Revived #185 on 2026 10 14 *

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 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!

GUITARS & RAIN

Two images from the band "Crazy Little Things" (aka CLT), a Queen tribute band.

(On one of the images, you will recognize the singer who did a pretty good job channeling Freddy Mercury.
From the same set, I have already shared a photo of their drummer. I've processed some more images now.)

They were performing around midnight as headliner of "Hoeven Live", a small-town open air rock festival with local original talent and some cover bands.

The evening had been cloudy. Rain poured down on the final acts.

One image is with my old EM-1 camera, the other with the OM-1 camera that I had just bought a few days before.

On the Sydney Tourist Trail.

The colors are very nice in both and the rain adds an interesting texture in the background and some reflections. It looks like there's not too much action/energy in these situations, but I think you managed to make the most of it.

I've been on the other end, since I've played a good number of concerts when I was younger and it's always interesting to see how shots of a particular gig turn out. Sometimes they mirror the experience, sometimes they don't at all. It's certainly a challenge to try and capture a musical performance, since the most important aspect (by far) is necessarily missing in a photograph. I've always appreciated it, when someone really tried to take interesting shots though and was not merely documenting stuff.

As a complete coincidence (I already decided on sharing this shot, before I've seen the post by Roel) I also have a musical themed shot:

Music is feeling... not calculation! by simple.joy, on Flickr

The Agate Hunters In Situ

Copper Harbor is on the last point of the Keweenaw Peninsula on the northern tip of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and Hunters Point park is a wilderness area on the shore of Copper Harbor. Agate Beach is situated there, and it's a target for rock collectors and jewelry artisans. Though not exactly a crowded place, there were always a few people lying amidst the water-tumbled agates looking for treasures.

At one time in my photographic journey I would have railed against them and wished them gone, or cloned them out, but at some point I began wanting Tiny People in my landscape photos.

Tram stops. Two at Exchange Square and one at St Peter's Square in white.

Ricoh GR, ISO 100, f8, 1/500, focus distance 2.5m
Photo page: www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle/55570323573/in/dateposted-public/

Ricoh GR, ISO 100, f8, 1/80, focus distance 2.5m
Photo page: www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle/55584419146/in/dateposted-public/

Ricoh GR, ISO 200, f8, 1/125, focus distance 2.5m

I like it. It would make a decent album cover - proportions, lighting and contrast all look great.

I really like this one, gives me an impression of the kind of music and also looks like it is moving fast and also like it is trailing notes/sounds.

I saw these folks talking on a bench and I tried to find the image here. I did a bunch of angles and bracketed exposure, built one of these as an HDR.

Wow - the colors are stunning! I feel like this composition works great. And while it's a great landscape shot as well, it also adds another layer, which is fun and turns the usual intention of many landscape photographers (of getting the shot without any people in it) on its head.