westcoastchameleons
New Member
Does anyone think i have a chance this time?
Do i have a chance?
- Thread starter westcoastchameleons
- Start date
westcoastchameleons
New Member
not really!a23cham said:
Zerah Morris
New Member
Are you looking for a critique of the "photo" you submitted? If so I am sure some of us who photography is our other passion will gladly provide. Just make sure you are open to constructive criticism before we start
westcoastchameleons
New Member
i am okay with any critisismZerah Morris said:
Zerah Morris
New Member
Westcoast,
Ok here goes. While you have captured a "moment" with this pic, there is so much technically wrong that it becomes a bit distracting to the viewer. Moments like this are tough to compose and pre-visualize, and as such you will see snap shots of quick events published because of there relevance.
The most glaring issue is the crop. It is too tight, and leaves me wanting to see the rest of the animals and enclosure. In general when composing through the viewfinder, or cropping in post process, one should follow the rule of thirds. There are exceptions, this not being one.
Next, the picture has been grossly over sharpened. I am not sure what equipment or post process you use, this may have been done in the camera, or it may have been a result of jpg artifacts from the upload, or you may have applied an overly aggressive USM. Regardless it is over sharpened. We all want sharp photos but try and get them sharp in the exposure, all USM does is increase edge contrast to provide the illusion of sharp, it can be used to improve an already sharp photo, but should never be used to save a slightly our of focus shot unless necessary. In the event you must save a photo such as this try sharpening the luminance channel only and then applying a very weak USM with a small <1 radius.
The background is not helping the photo. If you are faced with an unsightly background, stop your camera down to its lowest aperture and try to put as much distance between subject and background as possible. This results in the creamy isolation known as bokeh.
These three things alone would have helped this photo, but the pose is not attractive to begin with so in the end you would have ended with a poor, but technically sound photo. More pleasing but in my opinion not a winner.
Ok here goes. While you have captured a "moment" with this pic, there is so much technically wrong that it becomes a bit distracting to the viewer. Moments like this are tough to compose and pre-visualize, and as such you will see snap shots of quick events published because of there relevance.
The most glaring issue is the crop. It is too tight, and leaves me wanting to see the rest of the animals and enclosure. In general when composing through the viewfinder, or cropping in post process, one should follow the rule of thirds. There are exceptions, this not being one.
Next, the picture has been grossly over sharpened. I am not sure what equipment or post process you use, this may have been done in the camera, or it may have been a result of jpg artifacts from the upload, or you may have applied an overly aggressive USM. Regardless it is over sharpened. We all want sharp photos but try and get them sharp in the exposure, all USM does is increase edge contrast to provide the illusion of sharp, it can be used to improve an already sharp photo, but should never be used to save a slightly our of focus shot unless necessary. In the event you must save a photo such as this try sharpening the luminance channel only and then applying a very weak USM with a small <1 radius.
The background is not helping the photo. If you are faced with an unsightly background, stop your camera down to its lowest aperture and try to put as much distance between subject and background as possible. This results in the creamy isolation known as bokeh.
These three things alone would have helped this photo, but the pose is not attractive to begin with so in the end you would have ended with a poor, but technically sound photo. More pleasing but in my opinion not a winner.
The three main criteria I recommend to judges are:
- Health - Chameleons should be healthy and the photo should not show signs of poor husbandry. Wild chameleons can be a limited exception.
- Photo Quality - Among other things, the photo should be sharp and in focus. This includes all of what Zerah describes above (background, foreground, centering, etc).
- Species Comparison - How well does the chameleon represent its species? How attractive is this chameleon compared to others of the same species (or locale if applicable).
westcoastchameleons
New Member
Yhank you, i will keep all of this in mind in the next photo contest.
