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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/10/2006 5:12:38 PM
Thanks for your comment Mireille. I agree that the busy aspect is working in my favor here. I think part of the reason that the busyness is not "too much" is because of the order within the large number of objects. Thanks again for your observation!
Regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:50:31 PM
I've admired the several images of this series. Interesting to see a color image of this setting. Amazing how the B&W versions bring out the unusual patterns on the ground even more and contribute a harshness to the look. The B&W treatments are top grade. Yet, the sky in this color version reveals a quality of light that is subtle and very very beautiful, not seen in the B&W versions. This series makes an excellent show of the relative strengths of both mediums. I admire them all. Very good work!
Best regards,
Mark
Mark
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| Photo By: brian underdown
(K:-960)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:44:26 PM
Ah, Wael it is a fantastic image! The back lighting provides a sort of silhouette against black. Excellent sharpness and color. Masterful exposure! Congratulations!
Mark
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| Photo By: WAEL HAMDAN
(K:7476)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:26:57 PM
Fabulous detail and texturees. I especially like the sense of space and dimension created by the layered clouds. Nice work!
Regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Tjaart van Staden
(K:979)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:25:32 PM
Facinating sbtract image. I like the tones and textures on the surface of the stone in addition to the embedded patterns. Nicely represented. Would make interesting wallpaper for your computer screen.
Mark
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| Photo By: Tjaart van Staden
(K:979)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:23:27 PM
A fatastic array of color, lines, and shapes. The unusual subjects make for a very interesting photo that the eye lingers over. Excellent work! I think the frame and caption also goes well here.
Regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Tjaart van Staden
(K:979)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:17:18 PM
A lovely copper gradient in the sky and a fantastic sense of spaciousness! The simplicity of this composition is wonderful and use of the structure to create a sun halo is inspired. Excellent work!
Regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Weston Dru
(K:3243)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:14:13 PM
Wow, a fantastic shot here Kathy! I espscially admite the two layers of trees with sunlight on the front layer and the back layer tucked away in the corner with the sky. A fantastic composition. The water reflection is nice and the river leads the viewer into the composition (so many of your great compositions use this element). There is a nice sense of dimension as well. Well done!
Mark
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| Photo By: Kathy Hillard
(K:25721)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 11:08:55 PM
A wonderfully balanced shot of great beauty! The softness of this landscape is wonderful.
By the way, I have been looking at your portfolio abnd must say that your work is consistently excellent! Great stuff.
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Weston Dru
(K:3243)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/6/2006 9:39:24 PM
Hi Cessy. A very nice shot which uses the geometric patern of the stairs well. I think the presence of the child brings a human sense of warmth and place into the shot, and so improves this view.
BUT I really LOVE the first alternative shot you posted. The one with the slightly blurred child in motion. My personal feeling is that this shot is FAR superior to the main shot posted here. I feel that the alternative shot is more interesting because it shows the entry door to the stairway and by showing a view both up and down the stairway this shot gives us a feeling of the depth of the stairwell and the steepness of the stairs. The blurred image of the child shows motion, as with a child running upstairs, as they often do, and that also brings a human warmth to the shot and the curiosity about the child's destination. And of course the alternative shot also shows the geomtry of the stairs nicely as in the main main image.
And finally on a more "abstract" and philosophical level, the open door at the foot of the stairs along with the child acending the stairs implies the journey of life. As if we come from the light below, then quickly journey up the stairs and into the unknown. The child's eagerness to move up the stairs further illustrates and aspect of the journey. This way of seeing the image might seem quite abstract but it came to me immediately upon looking at the image. So while I like the main image, I LOVE the alternative and feel it is a superlative and meaningful shot, even a great work! Please consider posting this alternative shot separately.
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: cessy karina
(K:14205)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/2/2006 2:04:35 AM
Thank you dear Mohamed. I would very much love to come to Egypt some day. I have dreamed of this part of the world with it'sd profound history, art, and mystery since I was a child. You are fortunate to live in such a place. Perthaps we shall meet on that day my friend!
Very best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/1/2006 1:36:00 AM
Very dramatic abstract effect, contrasting natures oblique and random with man's directed and edginess. Well seen and carried off!
Best,
Mark
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| Photo By: brian underdown
(K:-960)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/1/2006 1:33:23 AM
Gorgeous light and color in this very well constructed composition, Brian. The light source at image upper left is very well balanced by the darker tones at upper right. The left side light source is muted and casts a certain sorftness throughout the composition. This sense of softness is helped by the trees, which seem to be starting to bud and that removes some of the starkness of the branches. And the verdent green grass creates a setting of lushness. I also like the chance arrangement of the deer, two right, one left. A well balanced grouping that seems to work well with the upper left lighting. Too bad the deer on the left is not facing the camera, but we just can't control everything!
A masterful job here Brian, to my faves!
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: brian underdown
(K:-960)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/1/2006 1:14:14 AM
WOW! What a mood! The soft damp of this scene really comes through. I love the contrast of the vaporous water and the sharp lines of the structure. The birds are a wonderful element on the water as they give scale and some context to the scene. A beautiful nature scene. To my faves! Great stuff Kathy!
Mark
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| Photo By: Kathy Hillard
(K:25721)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/1/2006 12:45:04 AM
Another lovely cloud shot, made all the more dramatic and perspective by the short focal length. Good one!
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mireille Heirendt
(K:7258)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
4/1/2006 12:43:15 AM
Fabulous brooding sky and clouds Mireille!! I love clouds very much and this shot of them is wonderful. But also the grass and distant hills provide a nice foundation for the image. I also like the frame you have added to the bottom. A clever idea. I've never thought of adding frame color to the bottom only, I will keep in mind to try this. It works well here.
I think I would like to have seen a little more exposure in this shot to bring more light on the grass and middle ground, though more exposure would probably blow out the detail of the light clouds at image top, which would be a shame. In all, the dark mood of this landscape/cloudscape is rich and beautiful. Also a very nice choice of focal length for this. Great work!
Mark
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| Photo By: Mireille Heirendt
(K:7258)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/30/2006 7:09:03 PM
Thanks for your helpful comment, Yahya. I agree that this shot looks like it has been worked over in Photoshop with some sort of watercolor or other effect. Amazing that I did very little work on this in Photoshop. The flowers just looked this way!
On the cropping, I think your insight about the bright spots in the back ground is correct. I had considered cropping this shot so that all that is visible is the blossoms. In the end I decided that I would like to leave in some of the background for context. But thinking about it more now, I should have darkened the background in PS, which would have retained a background context while minimizing distraction.
Thanks for your interesting insight my good friend!
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/29/2006 2:01:56 AM
Thanks much for your encouragement, Leo! I'm glad you liked it!
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/29/2006 12:02:48 AM
Wonderful Mohamed! A facinating view of this car! I have seen this image a few times but have not had the time to comment on it before now. My appoligies.
It is an unusual angle to see a car from, of course, which creates some interest in itself. But also, this perspective shows the long hood and short rear of the car very very well, and also affords an excellent view of the interior. This view also shows the car as a rectangular object, even though the reflections indicate that there are many graceful curves. Very interesting. I have looked at this image for a long while, appreciating different aspects of it. Great work!
Warm regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mohamed Banna
(K:34237)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/28/2006 11:56:57 PM
A most excellent shot, my friend. The lamps are very attractive in this shot and the people show that the lamps are very large. I also like the use of the horizon line, which, along with the people, brings a certain dimension and scale to the image.
Great use of B&W, which highlights the similarity of textures between the foreground (water?) and the middle area of the shot. Also, the B&W causes the sky to white-out, which both highlights the lamps and also adds a great sense of space to this image. Very nice work Mohamed!
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mohamed Banna
(K:34237)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/28/2006 4:37:02 AM
Congrats on this marvelous Staff Choice, Hugo. This shot in particular is especially deserving, though I very much like the others you have posted in this series. The light is wonderful, the haze having shown the actual crack of dawn. Masterful exposure choice, superb capture. I am glad that your early hours outdoors were so well rewarded!
This being death valley, one supposes that this is not a body of water we are looking at. So well reflected is the hue of the sky that it does appear as water. Especially the clear blue line at the foot of the mountains. Again, perfect exposure!
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Hugo de Wolf
(K:185110)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/27/2006 10:33:08 PM
Yet another of your marvelous "rail shots". I am enjoying this one as much as the others. In this particular instance I like the backdrop of trees behind the bridge, as well as the interesting old rails. The focal length used brings the backdrop forward and flattens it I think, creating an impression of a vertical mountain landscape in the shot, leading the eye upward and causing a flight of imagination for me. Nice one!
Mark
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| Photo By: Kathy Hillard
(K:25721)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/27/2006 10:27:57 PM
Thank you for your comment Cessy. your remarks about the three dimensional quality is helpful.
Best,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/25/2006 2:05:14 PM
Hey, thanks Erik. You have great skills of observation and your comment is a great insight into the mechanics of photography. People with your level of understanding make shooting/displaying images all the more satisfying. What else is this medium about if not communicating? Thanks Erik, it's a very instructive comment.
Best,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/23/2006 4:03:30 PM
Thank you for your comment, Francesco, it is satisfying to know that others also see what I see in this shot.
As to my comments on your wonderful art, it is a great pleasure to remark on what I see in it. I'm very happy for any way in which my comments might be helpful. I regret not to making more time to comment more than I do! Life is so busy!
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/23/2006 3:59:37 PM
Thank you very much for your kind comments, Morgan. I'm quite pleased with the way this one came out. I shot this a few years ago with my old Canon Powershot G3 before I had really returned to "serious" photography and I just stumbled across it in my archives as I was searching for something else. Unfortunately it was the only shot I took of it's kind. Had I shot it today I would have done a few dozen angles and exposures (at least). And as I recall it was not part of a large exhibit so there were not a lot of subjects to shoot.
Anyway, I'm very pleased that you like it, thanks!
Take care,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/23/2006 5:04:05 AM
Very beautiful color! I'm glad o see more of your excellent night work, it is one of your great specialties!
As to the noise, perhaps it is the imaging electronics in the camera that are intolerant of this exposure? The noise granuals are fairly large so perhaps this is a lower resolution camera? At ISO 80 it seems that you should see little or no noise, but it is not really my area of expertise.
Mark
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| Photo By: Yahya El Hosafy
(K:8369)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/23/2006 4:57:06 AM
Thank Erik. It was a great photo waiting to be taken. One of those where all I had to do was point the camera and shoot!
take care,
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/23/2006 4:55:18 AM
Thank you very much for you generous comments Yahya! I could not possibly add to the depth of profound dignity and history in this statue, yet to have conveyed enough of it to show through in this image is a blessing. To stand before this statue in person is an amazing experience. You have a powerful sense of the gravity and history of the work and the culture it is a part of, and of course, of the tremendous skill and craftsmanship of the artist.
Thank you again for you comments my friend. It does my heart good to know that you appreciate this shot!
Mark
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| Photo By: Mark Longo
(K:12760)
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Critique By:
Mark Longo (K:12760)
3/22/2006 9:55:32 PM
Very nice winter mood! I am of two minds regarding the blur. The softness brings a wonderful mood and ambience to the air underneath the trees. This would be even more magnified and efective on a cloudy day I think. Yet it is a fine line between success or not here. The hazy off-focus look to the tree limbs is a bit distracting to me personally. Yet, as a modd piece I think it is quite successful.
Nice work Kathy and I strongly encourage you to keep at the PS effects work. It is something I would like to do more of myself and I think it brings a new dmension to the work.
Best regards,
Mark
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| Photo By: Kathy Hillard
(K:25721)
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