The Star of India sails & rigging, docked downtown San Diego.
Thanks to a polarizer and a stunning cloud layer, all I had to do was crop, auto-level, convert to Tritone, USM & added border. No burning done, nor dodging. Mother nature presented herself as a stunning backdrop and needed no improvement.
Statistics
Place: 3 out of 69 Avg (all users): 7.8734 Avg (commenters): 8.7957 Avg (participants): 7.3966 Avg (non-participants): 7.9536 Views since voting: 18829 Views during voting: 965 Votes: 403 Comments: 151 Favorites: 159 (view)
This is gorgeous. Last night I watched the Black Beard movie and loved the large ships from that era and truly wish I could have the opportunity to photograph one. And here today I come into your portfolio and there is one up for view. Coincidental?
This shot is not only technically outstanding, but it just screams of a story. Wonderful job tapping into the viewers' emotions as well as their senses. Superb image.
Pretty clean for a 3.7MP camera huh?
If it weren't for Photoshop, I doubt that this would have made it past a 4x6" print. Glad you like the print Jason!
Ahoy there Brad! Congrats on your ribbon for this wonderful image! I can almost see Erol Flynn or is it Tyrone Power, anyway GREAT Shot and well derserved Ribbon Winner!
Just a side note:
Compression is the enemy. The jaggies were not able to be eliminated from what is seen here. The DPCPrints version however is perfect.
I decided to become a member with enough time to vote on this challenge, thank god. I only gave two tens, it was soooo hard, but this photo got one of 'em! I love it :)
This is quite simply an incredible B/W photograph! Though a little busy with all the lines and riggings, it's a perfectly fitting tribute to all those that were busy in time past WITH all those lines and riggings. Kudos on the third place finish!
TC
Congrats, Brad. I've tried to get this shot many times but never had that sky behind those sails like that. You did a GREAT job! I just KNEW it was the Star of India!
Really glad you got a ribbon here, in an amazingly tough field. I had my favourite three picked out for ribbons and had this as the Blue. I was close, and the other two I picked came lower than I thought by quite a bit.
However, the Blue and Red were just as well deserved.
Wow... what else can I say about this shot? It's so inspiring and so regal. I love it! There's nothing in the world to improve it even a tad. It's spectacular! Congratulations Brad... well-deserved for sure!!!! :o)
HOLY CRAP! I honestly had no idea this would fall in the top three. I hoped it would be in the top ten considering the competition in this challenge.
In as far as my initial comment here, those were the first words I expressed to myself and still find them appropriate.
For those that were curious, here is the color version:
And no, no dodging or burning was done on either shot.
What can I say. Thank You All!
Just being able to participate in this challenge was honors enough.
This may be my favorite of the challenge. I love the tone choice, it really emphasizes the sky. It's just so much fun to look up and see all the lines. Some beautiful shadows too. 10
Amazing clarity in the details of the ropes and pulleys and the perfect sky for a shot like this. The sepia is the perfect tone and I can see this hanging on the office wall of any boat captain. 10
this is great! the detail, the contrast, the lines, they all come together to produce a superb image. great choice for bw. this is one of my top pick for the challenge. good luck!
great composition and clouds. I love the shadowy detail against the sail. Perhaps I would like better context for teh shot, les "cropping", showing more of the boat or horizon. I still like it better than most shots though.
This is an image with that rustic feel of the deep blue seas. The angle brings to mind those pirate movues where the music thunders as the camera is raised. The sky here proved very opportuned to give it that grit and sense of great expanse. I adore sepia and this subject lends itself for the overall effect. Great angle. You have my 8
This shot is perfect. The onlz think I could change is to show a little bit more of the object. The lower part looks a bit "unfinished". It end suddenly, but - on the other hand - I have no idea, what was hapenning below. Maybe there was something spoiling the whole composition. Excellent choice of making it a B&W picture.
8. Excellent photo. I don't know why I like it so much. Maybe it's the crispness or the lines contrasting against the soft flowing clouds. It makes me miss sailing even though I've never sailed. So you know it's good.
Nice study. Forceful image pulling my sight upwards. Like the chioce of a cloudy day as the sky and ship blends well. Like the cast of shadows fronm the rigging aginst the sails.
This is my favorite photo in this challenge! The b/w effect is excellently portrayed in the midst of of a towering sail. Awesome beauty, perfect subject matter, and simply divine in content! Very well done!
Great wide angle really captures well the height of the mast and shows the good amount of detail, especailly of the ropes and their shadows. The tones are also terrific. 9
Great idea and original subject! The choice of a sepia tone accetuates the seemingly perfect B&W tonal range. There's something about the crop that bothers me but I just can't put my finger on it.... nonetheless a great shot!
This image is just stricking. I can't find ANYTHING to say that I would have done differently. This is just a remarkable image. Please make this one available as a print. I would love to hang this on my wall.
I love this shot, It reminds me of a picture that was in my parents living room while I was growing up, only it was a full ship, that is my only complaint, it got cut off on both ends, top and bottom. But the shot itself, I can't complain, a 10
Not sure what to make of this one. Seems to be kind of olive colored, which I don't really find appealing. might be improved if there were some people in the rigging. -5
i hope you make this a print. I will order it. I love it. The shapes, the lines, the sky, there isn't a thing I would change. I had hoped to think of something to offer in "critique" but I can not fault anything, from your choice of composition, crop or conversion. well done! 10
This shot immmmmmediately caught my eye. It is excellent. EXCELLENT! I'm excited about this photo...it's surprising, you know, it pops out of the screen. The shadows and lighting are perfect, the lines are dramatic and complex, and the sky is astounding. One of those days where the sky is a 1st place photo, you know what i mean? Just the texture of it, the shifts in color and tone...oh, I'm gushing, I know. But I love this photo. Thank you!
Love the desaturated look with this subject. Very strong composition. Levels and contrast are terrific. Difficult to avoid but there are some jpeg artifacts along the lines.
I sure love the drama here. Moody sky, diagonal lines, lovely tones. Though the focus is on the sail, I still find myself wanting to see more of the ship, so you may consider cropping more so I don't have that desire, or including more of the ship, or ignoring me and congratulating yourself for a marvelous photo!
Superb b&w, works very well with this sky. Great detail and sharpness. The composition is a little too cluttered for me to give this top marks though. 8
awesome work on the background. I assume there's some burning in there, but there's very little evidence of it, which must have been aPITA with all the detail in the mast and rigging. I really like the crop on this, and the toning is superb. bumping to an 8.
Amazing detail in the sails and rigging. The cloud formations and their direction really draw you into the mail subject. I lthink I would have liked to see this in color, but thats just me. fantastic work. 9.
Good choice to go with b/w for a tall ship photo as it lends to the age of the ship. Sharp details of the clouds and the ship sails, masts and riggings. Border is a bit too thick, in my opinion, but it seems to fit in fairly well here and match the overall tone of the photo. 9
gr8 image, i love the play on the sails with the light, i believe that it gives a gr8 effect overall to this image :) it looks so surreal and the clouds are wonderful... the only possible change possible and thats after looking really hard at this image is toning down the brightness in the bottom left corner.... though overall this is an amazing image that i believe should be very well placed....
Reminds me of the movie master and commander. I am a huge NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan, too. ;) I really like the feeling this photo puts out. I like the B&W choice and the lines and textures are awesome. Great sky as well. A well deserved 10 here.
This is my favorite photo of the challenge! My only 10. I love the sails and the supports holding it up, as well as the sky. Looks absolutely amazing with the color scheme. 10
i love the angle of this shot, the diagonals in it, the lines and the curves, the mood, the colours, the aura and the feeling of it. you can almost smell the sea and hear those ship bells toll. i love it. i hope it does very well in this masters' challenge.
A terrific angle for this shot. It feels as if this great ship is out to sea. The choice of B&W is an excellent one and helps to accent the feeling you are trying to get across.
The color here is wonderful. The composition is imo, the most striking and best one in the competition. I hope you ribbon. One of mine if I were the judge. 10.
This is a very dramatic picture, and I love it! It would be so beautiful matted and framed on a guy's office wall! I don't see one thing that would make it better, and it really appeals to me, so I'm giving this one a 10.
I envision what this would have looked like in color, and I don't think I would have liked it as much. There is something uncomforting about this but I can't put my finger on it. But I do like it. 6
Wonderful shot. Contrast and exposure are perfect. The clouds are impressive, and the clarity of the lines, and the shadows against the sail manage to create a true sense of the complexity aloft on a vessel. At once, the sepia tone gives an older feel, while the clarity of the shot gives a distinctly modern, mathematical, geometric feel.
This is great! There's such detail and mood- I love how moody and crispt the colors are. I love tat there's a sail and not much else. This is awesome, great job! 10
This is one of VERY few 10s I've ever given out. The elements and perspective are very unique, use of b/w emphasizes the lines beautifully and the contrast between the soft lines of the sky and the sharp rigging of the boat create a perfect image. I hope you put this on DPC prints and it brings you success.
This is great. I really like the angle because it adds to the height of the mast. The clouds look great and dramatic, and the B&W really suits the photo well. 10
probably not much you could have done about it, but the composition seems a little smushed ... a wider angle (looks pretty wide already) would have given the subject a little more room. cool boat :)
Nice use of monotones. I really like the composition - the diagonals and verticals created by the masts and the rigging almost appear to physically connect the subject to the right side of the frame. Wish I could offer some suggestions, but I have none. One of my favorites this round.
Great, fantastic atmosphere, great choice of toning of the image. Such a sailing ship can really give a messy image with all the ropes going across, but I think you have managed to use that to your advantage here. The diagonals created by the sails, the line of the mast, the ropes and then on top of it the lines in the sky all add to a well composed image. Congrats.
having looked through all the pics before i started, I decided to choose this one as my first pic to vote on, the reason for this is very simple - I'm lazy and this pic is easy 10 and certainly one of the best in the challenge - good luck! right, now to do the rest of them :)
This is such a perfect image in so many respects... the angle, the lighting, the tones, the framing, the choice of subject matter... all I can keep saying is WOW. :o)
This is an absolutely *stunning* photograph. I've, personally, never seen a ship's mainsale photographed from this angle, and it, with the clouds and sky, combine for one of the most striking images I've seen. The mix of open space and the confusion of the wires on either side of the sail is also pretty powerful. The lighting is subtle.. kind of haunting.. as if it is hinting of an approaching storm.
Aloft
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