July Image - Construction Continues

How I did it - Jim Mahoney and I spent an overcast morning shooting HDR last week. After shooting a famous Pier at Reddington Beach, on the Gulf, we proceeded South to Johns Pass to shoot some store fronts and hope to obtain some good Grunge images. "construction continues" is a draw bridge that needed to be more traffic friendly. The work started four years ago. My 40D was set on manual metered off the overcast sky and used the menu to set the AEB to shoot at 2 under, right on and 2 over. ISO 400 and AF Drive set to AI Servo high. The setting allowed me to shoot a 3 shot HDR without the use of a tripod however I shoot most HDR's on a tripod.Then the ISO can, in most cases, be set on 100. This is a departure from my wildlife and I have now entered one of Bill's strength's. Hope you enjoy my effort.

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COMMENTS:
 

Jerry Appel	There are some interesting colors in the image, but taken all in all, the various manipulations seem to draw at least my attention to the computerization rather than to a natural and balanced scene. Lots of computer artifacts in the image, the colors do not seem natural, and I’m not really sure where you want me to look. (These are issues only rarely in your work.)
Bill Buchanan	Ah the curse of Orange Barrels...makes summer driving fun. The first thing I noticed is the appearance of a crooked horizon line. That's an easy fix. Being a former Architectural designer and construction guy i pick up on lines that are not straight. The vertical lines of the bridge support was my clue. I would like to see a bit more saturation and darkness to make this one pop. The image appears washed out. The HDR effect works for this type of shot and the diagonal lines of the bridge and construction cranes adds interest.
Joe Hearst	I think that what you made using Grunge is more interesting than a straight image of the same subject would have been. That being said, I think it is a better demo of Grunge than a pleasing image.
Guy Davies	HDR was originally developed to cope with very high contrast scenes, so it’s intriguing that you were shooting HDR on an overcast day which would have been inherently low contrast. This image has a distinct, unreal look which makes it different from a normal view of the bridge, which I guess is what you wanted. However, for me at least, it doesn’t appear unreal enough to be attractive. Have you tried using one of the Photoshop Artistic filters, such as Dry Brush, or Watercolor? This image could make a very good base for one of those treatments.
Karen Kotner	The subject matter is quite interesting. I think your effort at HDR is quite good but for me, the clouds which are very dramatic seem to overpower the subject. I think it would be improved if the bridge and construction could be somewhat more prominent in the scene so they stand out from the clouds.
Rafal Kowalkowski	I am sorry but there is too much HDR. Nowadays the best solution is mask the HDR to be not recognizable. Just do it on layers merging the original file or changing the opacity.

Member Bio

Erik Rosengren - Biography While in college, in the late 50's, I was given a Kodak camera. It was used for record shots of family, friends and vacations. This format would continue until the mid 80's. Purchasing a Canon T90 raised my photographic bar. After taking a Photo Safari to Kenya, Africa I joined the first of two photo clubs in the Buffalo, NY area. The Club experience proved to be a turning for me. This new learning experience can only help one become a better photographer. In 1997, due to a family illness, my wife Pam and I decided to retire. After months of travel in our RV we settled in Largo, Florida. This area has nurtured my love of nature photography. I am the current President of the Suncoast Camera Club of Clearwater as well as a member of the Central Chapter of PSA. In 2005 I will apply for my second star in Color Digital Images and third and fourth stars in Nature.