BarrySprout's 52 for 2011 Week 33. Record

Excellent shot. This could have been just another animal shot, but what you have done has made a unique and moving image.

I like the eye contact and the quirky angle. You've done well to expose correctly for subject, middle ground and sky.

Was this taken with a wide-angle lens?

Great shot - well done:thumbs:
 
Sorry this one don't do it for me, good idea on theme but I don't know you defo done better before sorry I cNt put my finger on it may be the head is massive ?
 
Apologies Colin , somehow I managed to miss your post:'(

& what a cracker it is:) Love the angle & the way he's looking at you , great detail in the sky & his coat...really good shot & on theme cos animal rescue is important & as (mainly) charities they are sometimes forgotten about .:clap:
 
Colin

I nearly like this shot... I just find the angles and distortion a bit to much... part of the reason why I sold a 15-30mm lens and went for a 20mm prime! I think the composition is perfect I just find the out of focus legs and front paddock ground distracting! Head and ears are perfect... really I guess what would have made it for me was more DOF!
 
thanks everyone, I'm back home now:'( The shot was taken with a Sigma 10-20 with the lens only inches from the donkeys face. I really like the distortion this gives to the subject and I set out to get this effect on the day. Unfortunately the donkey was under a shaded tree and this caused the sky to completely blow so another shot was taken for the sky exposure.
Then the two put together really quite badly on my netbook (surprised the dodgy editing wasn't picked up on more) this caused the hailoing around the ears.

Now I just need to get last weeks shot done and uploaded, haven't even looked at this weeks theme yet.
 
Better late than never, but not much better.

Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry.......
I'm back now and will do my best to become an active member again.

Week 26 Sensual

Sensual by barrysprout, on Flickr​
 
Had a look through the wardrobe and chose my second most elaborate outfit (My ballgown really needs to go to the cleaners)
Socks, brogues and flashes not included because as we know a Scotsman doesn't wear anything below the kilt.


Elaborate by barrysprout, on Flickr​
 
Celebrate came a week to late for my birthday, but I still had the remnants for the shot.
Can't believe I'm now 28!


In fact knowbody at all believes I'm 28!


Celebrate by barrysprout, on Flickr​
 
Hiya Colin,

First of all well done on your catch-up and welcome back. Happy Birthday for last week (I know what you mean .... my 'elaborate' could have been my 'celebrate' ... but now it is back to the drawing board, how typical is that? BTW what date was your birthday? .... oh and I would have put you at younger than 28 ;))

Onto your photos:

Sensual: Love the candle ... that is gorgeous! I think you have the perfect idea and composition wise it all works for me ... only minor niggle is the lines in the wood table which I find slightly distracting ... but otherwise I really like this photo.

Elaborate: Woooohoooo! If you can join us at the meet I hope you bring this with to wear :D If this is your 2nd most elaborate outfit ... what is your first??? I always wondered how true it was about the 'nothing below the kilt' until a few years ago when I was up in Scotland, I entered a shop in Oban where the shop assistants were clad in their clan and I asked them the question .... needless to say they showed me proof .... enough said :exit: I think you have presented your kit well :thumbs:

Celebrate: As said ... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Sure looks like you had a great time and were spoiled rotten. Nice idea composition wise ... what grabs my attention the most is the 'Colin the Caterpillar' .... tell us more :D Funny thing is how socks are always given as a pressie, for whatever occasion .... and I hold my hands up to giving same ... in fact the socks look familiar ... I gave some similar to my brother for his birthday this year :lol: I like the way you included all the 'empties' ... guess you couldn't wait to polish those off :lol: Only one slight niggle here is the background on the right, think it would look a bit better if it was totally dark .... perhaps a clone would help here.

Otherwise I think you have done a great job and it is evident you have had a good few weeks.

So the question now is .... are we going to see you at the meet in September??? I hope so!

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hi Colin,

Good to see you back at the 52.

Sensual says sensual, but I think I'd like to see the shot from lower down, rather than over head.

Elaborate, well I'm glad you didn't elaborate too much about what you have below the kilt!
Is it the family tartan then? The jacket looks like it's got a bit of noise, is it the jacket or a little over sharpening? The detail in the sporran is good and I like the antler knife.
 
Left PC to do my Celebrate and noticed I'd not clicked post! And now you and Dawn have posted more!

Celebrate, firstly happy birthday.
It's a bit of a strange shot, cans of Guinness under the post of a kilt!
Love the Colin the caterpillar cake, lucky they didn't buy you sprouts!
A fun shot which fits the theme.
 
Thanks Dawn and Neil.
Just to cover a few points made. The sensual shot was a combination of three shots to try and get exposure for each element. Initially I took the shot from much lower down but the perspective just wasn't to my liking. Admittedly all three of these shots have been rushed through and I could maybe have spent more time on them.

The kilt is my hunting tartan and my most elaborate outfit would be my ballgown mentioned earlier. When teamed with my bag and tiara it really is something to behold.
The material of the jacket is the main cause of what looks like a lot of noise, but my sharpening has made it worse. Should have taken the time to do selective sharpening on a layer.

The guinness is a habit I rekindled while holidaying in Ireland.
Colin the caterpillar is the tastiest chocolate cake ever, I highly recommend having two or three birthdays a year and popping in to M&S to stock up on them. This is actually the first one bought for me on my birthday but we have been enjoying them the past few years since getting one for our grandson (another of the people who cant believe I'm 28)
Another error I made while hurriedly editing was that I had lowered the exposure in the background to reduce it to black but I obviously reversed this at some point due to one of many errors and didn't redo it:bang:

Good to be back up to date, I was considering packing in the 52 but I'll keep going now hopefully.

I'll try to look in on everyones threads over the next few days but I can't promise in depth feedback due to the enormity of the task.

As to the September meet, I very much doubt I could attend which is why I've kept out of the thread but if there is any way I could make it I would love to come along. Any excuse to wear an elaborate outfit! Now I reall must get the ballgown in to the dry cleaners....
 
Barrysprout said:
Thanks Dawn and Neil.
Just to cover a few points made. The sensual shot was a combination of three shots to try and get exposure for each element. Initially I took the shot from much lower down but the perspective just wasn't to my liking. Admittedly all three of these shots have been rushed through and I could maybe have spent more time on them.

The kilt is my hunting tartan and my most elaborate outfit would be my ballgown mentioned earlier. When teamed with my bag and tiara it really is something to behold.
The material of the jacket is the main cause of what looks like a lot of noise, but my sharpening has made it worse. Should have taken the time to do selective sharpening on a layer.

The guinness is a habit I rekindled while holidaying in Ireland.
Colin the caterpillar is the tastiest chocolate cake ever, I highly recommend having two or three birthdays a year and popping in to M&S to stock up on them. This is actually the first one bought for me on my birthday but we have been enjoying them the past few years since getting one for our grandson (another of the people who cant believe I'm 28)
Another error I made while hurriedly editing was that I had lowered the exposure in the background to reduce it to black but I obviously reversed this at some point due to one of many errors and didn't redo it:bang:

Good to be back up to date, I was considering packing in the 52 but I'll keep going now hopefully.

I'll try to look in on everyones threads over the next few days but I can't promise in depth feedback due to the enormity of the task.

As to the September meet, I very much doubt I could attend which is why I've kept out of the thread but if there is any way I could make it I would love to come along. Any excuse to wear an elaborate outfit! Now I reall must get the ballgown in to the dry cleaners....
Click to expand...

Hiya Colin,

Noooooo!!!!! Don't even think about 'giving up' :schtum: you have come so far and you are doing a fantastic job too!!! We are here to encourage and support you ..... besides you are valued member of our team .... so I will hear no more of it :bat:

From your last posts and your self critique ... it is evident that you are learning from this challenge and that is something to take on board .... just think how you will feel by the end of the project .... I bet you will look back and pat yourself on the back and say 'Colin ... job well done!' ... I know we will :D

I'm going to have to investigate these 'caterpillar' cakes ... sounds just like my kind of treat :love:

Don't feel pressurised into visiting everyone's posts .... it can be very overpowering and a daunting task ...so take your time. Same goes for the meet ... if we see you there GOOD ... if not .... there will be another time.

Just take this at a pace that feels comfortable to you and let's keep seeing these great photos you post.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
:plusone:

Giving up is not an option now you've got past half way.
Just do the last half at a pace that suits you.

As for commenting on others 52, a simple :thumbs: or :thumbsdown: will do if you drop in on my thread, but either way, you've been a regular in the past so don't worry if you have to take the foot off the gas for a while. Just make sure you pass some comments or we'll talk about you on the 24th!
 
Hi Colin, and welcome back..

Love the concept of Sensual. Positioning of each element works for me too. My only niggle is the edges of the wooden tile are distracting, mainly because they are not vertical, and catch the light. They unbalance the shot. A few seconds in PS will sort them out (a quick clone should do the trick!). Also there is a purple blur in the bottom middle of the shot. Is that bad PS work or lens flare? Either way, I don’t think you mean it to be there do you?

Love the Elaborate shot. I love how each element works, how the pleats lead your eye in, and how everything sits nicely on the third lines. I do think the shadows are too harsh, and could do with being softened, and the top corners are a little empty. Other than that, this is my fave of the three. BRAVO

Celebration is a full on shot, with lots going on, all on theme, so well done. The main prob for me is it is dark in the top third, with to much dark empty space. The chair is somewhat distracting, but I see how you have used light falloff to isolate the main subject matter, so good effort there. Also, I think maybe using the beer can further forward as foreground interest, and as a lead-in (diagonal) and you could have done the same with a sock on the other side.
Again, the shadows are very strong. I feel this is the weakest of the three, sorry.

I hope you stick with the 52, it is great to look back on the journey we have all made photography wise over the last 6 months.

Oh, and happy birthday :-)

Rgds

Adie
 
Hi Colin, and welcome back! And of course happy birthday! A great little catchup there and I really like all of your pictures posted. Sensual and elaborate are my 2 favourites. I really like the way you have presented your tartan. :thumbs:
 
Webby962 said:
Hi Colin, and welcome back..

Love the concept of Sensual. Positioning of each element works for me too. My only niggle is the edges of the wooden tile are distracting, mainly because they are not vertical, and catch the light. They unbalance the shot. A few seconds in PS will sort them out (a quick clone should do the trick!). Also there is a purple blur in the bottom middle of the shot. Is that bad PS work or lens flare? Either way, I don’t think you mean it to be there do you?

Love the Elaborate shot. I love how each element works, how the pleats lead your eye in, and how everything sits nicely on the third lines. I do think the shadows are too harsh, and could do with being softened, and the top corners are a little empty. Other than that, this is my fave of the three. BRAVO

Celebration is a full on shot, with lots going on, all on theme, so well done. The main prob for me is it is dark in the top third, with to much dark empty space. The chair is somewhat distracting, but I see how you have used light falloff to isolate the main subject matter, so good effort there. Also, I think maybe using the beer can further forward as foreground interest, and as a lead-in (diagonal) and you could have done the same with a sock on the other side.
Again, the shadows are very strong. I feel this is the weakest of the three, sorry.

I hope you stick with the 52, it is great to look back on the journey we have all made photography wise over the last 6 months.

Oh, and happy birthday :-)

Rgds

Adie
Click to expand...

Thanks Adie, the sensual shot does indeed have some lens flare. The lines on the wooden table were what put me off the lower angle shot because they looked really weird then. Tried to get a more top down shot so they ran a bit straighter but you're right they are a distruaction I should have fixed.

michael23 said:
Hi Colin, and welcome back! And of course happy birthday! A great little catchup there and I really like all of your pictures posted. Sensual and elaborate are my 2 favourites. I really like the way you have presented your tartan. :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Thanks Michael. Elaborate is my favourite of the three.
 
To get me back into this 52 properly I've made the effort this week to get a shot in well on time. I was incensed when the theme was drawn this week, however it gave me an idea.

Very difficult to come up with a picture of a smell. I had ideas of a nose shot, but without pets in the house it was never going to be flattering for anyone involved. Also took a few shots of burger vans and the like at a Highland gathering yesterday, but they just weren't quite right.

So another set up in the house for this week. It's a long time since I tried any smoke shots so I thought the incense smoke would fit the theme.
Shot was taken on the coffee table (you all know the one, dark wood and distracting lines) Brown throw placed on the table with a sheet of glass over it to provide some reflection and raised at the back for the backdrop. Two strobes, one either side with cutouts from a guinness box blu-tacked to each one to stop the light hitting the backdrop. 50mm lens, camera on tripod, remote release.

Result: not sure :shrug: after the first couple of shots the glass became very dusty. Presumably from the incense ash as I was wafting the smoke. Couldn't get an angle to include the full smoke reflection in the glass. And I'm not too sure if the image is too dark.
I really need to get a calibration device. At the moment the background and base look almost black on two of my monitors but on a third the brown throw shows up (also more of the dust)

Anyway here's my pick of the shots I took, opinions welcome.


Smell by barrysprout, on Flickr​
 
Hiya Colin, firstly with the brightness it is spot on for me. Now onto the pic, I really like it, the colour in the smoke is excellent and incense is spot on for the theme. Looks like your set up for lighting has worked really well. I also like the addition of the flower. :thumbs:
 
Colin,
Great shot! well set up, very well lit, and some stunning colours. Composition is good for what equates to a complex shot.

My only problem is that the flower and the incense pits seem OOF! I hope its my tablet i'm viewing it on that gives it a soft look, and when i get home and view on my laptop I owe you an apology.

Until then, good effort, you should be pleased with this.
 
Barrysprout said:
As to the September meet, I very much doubt I could attend which is why I've kept out of the thread but if there is any way I could make it I would love to come along. Any excuse to wear an elaborate outfit! Now I reall must get the ballgown in to the dry cleaners....
Click to expand...


colin..you have to turn up.....plssssssssssssssssssssssss ... it'll be me in my clown/joker outfit cum ninja, dawn in her fishnets.. you in a ball gown... neil..:suspect: ..not sure yet....ok so we nearly made the marx brothers but we'll stop at the three stooges.... i'll be larry...

love your celebration by the way.. except of course there are only 4 candles..so mixed messages...as there is beer AND kids cake...with socks...

unless my failing foresight has read it somewhere else.. i think you should have cropped in closer... left a little too much space around the edges... enough for me to imagine the creepy clown from IT appearing... :eek:
 
Thanks Michael and Adie.
No apology needed Adie I've just zoomed in on the file I uploaded and it has softened a bit when I resized it. Checked the original and the focus is fine. I used live view zoomed to the max and manual focus to lock it in place. Not sure what happened during resizing:shrug:

Here is a close crop from the original edit before sizing.
IMG_4590-Edit.jpg
 
Love the 'smell' shot Colin, the reflection really adds to the shot.

Following my light bulb shot, I picked up a load of joss sticks, you've reminded me to get them out and have a play with smoke trails - love the blue.

As for September, check out the thread, I've just posted a draft agenda for the weekend - see if it tempts ye!
 
love love love the donkey shot, great for the theme, and my oh my, what a great angle great connection with the eyes, good stuff :0)
 
ouch on the iphone!! mine looks a little like minus the nail due to a fall from a top pocket, ooops! great shot, tho it pains me :0)
 
Hi, I'm liking your smell theme.

I like the colour in the smoke.

I'd prefer it without the rose and possibly in portrait orientation so all the smoke reflection was in the frame.

I'm still thinking as my first attempt was a abject failure...:shake:

Cheers.
 
Hiya Colin,

Doing some catching up here and just noticed you have a few photos to look at so here goes.

I think your first photo is brilliant with the incense and smoke, the only thing I would have excluded from the composition is the flower otherwise it would be a fantastic shot.

The close up works okay, but you lose the smoke which I thought was very effective, especially with the reflection.

The last three are just brilliant, I can imagine the smells. The third shot seems to be a bit OOF, but still a good photo. What I like most about these shots is the way you have captured the 'tradition' if you know what I mean.

Well done and it sounds like you have had some great fun at the Highland games.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
colin..love 1 and 3... though something fishy in the theme...

number 2 looks snapshottyas the smoke neither drifts anywhere and the fencing ...something wrong here... still 10-10 for effort :thumbs: all three fit the theme
 
#1 is a really great photograph. It has all the elements for a great storytelling photograph. DOF is spot on for me, it would have been easy to shoot wide open and it appears that you've chosen a DOF that really pulls the viewer through the photograph.

#2, looks like you were more interested in the text on the van than the fish/smoke.

#3, again another good one, well composed, nice detail and contrast. The fish faces look slightly OOF on my laptop??

Cheers.
 
Number 1 for me :1st:

On theme, well composed, well lit, nothing else too add except well done.


:clap::clap::clap:


Adie
 
Hi ya Colin & welcome back & HAPPY belated Birthday :thumbs:

Lots of catch up from me...sorry I've missed a few of your shots .


Sensual... love the idea & the objects you chose, the color of the heart candle is spot on & you've done really well with the exposure on the flames :clap: For me ...could've done without the smaller tea light...not sure why just think it's a little too much ? Great shot anyway:thumbs:


Elaborate...love everything about this shot , so much detail captured & I guess exposure may have been a touch difficult with the bright of the silver & the dark of the jacket...excellent :clap:

Celebrate...bang on theme & a very strange mix ...though thinking about it cider & chocolate cake is begining to look really scrummy :thumbs:


Absolutely love your shot for smell... great idea for the theme & more than a touch green eyed cos I just can't get the hang of smoke pictures . Agree with other comments that the rose is superfluous .The reflections are great as well . Thanks for the detail on how you did it....is it possible to do without storbes (whatever they are) ? Brilliant shot :clap:

Of the 3 other shots posted for smell...number 1 win hands down for me , you've caught a little bit of the smokiness around the smokies...can almost taste them...yum yum :clap:

& last but not least.....don't even consider giving up , you produce some great work , take the last 1/2 at your own pace & enjoy your photography .Be great to see you at the up-coming meet but if not there then hopefully we'll see you at the year end bash :thumbs:
 
Thanks everyone for the comments. The three smoky shots were thrown in as extras as I had the opportunity during a great day out. The second shot of the three as has been pointed out really was just a snapshot. For a brief few seconds the space in front of the van cleared of people and I grabbed the shot to give context to the other two.

I'm standing by my decision of using the flower in my real smell shot though. Without it being there it was a more boring shot. Personal preferences differ obviously, but I'm happy with the result.
 
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