Challenge:Oops! II (Basic Editing III) Camera:Nikon D70 Location: Newmarket -- Field across from the Cosco Date: Dec 27, 2005 Aperture: F 4.5 ISO: 200 Shutter: 1/500 sec Galleries:Humorous, Emotive Date Uploaded: Dec 27, 2005
My idea came from the title of an old Willie Nelson tune. We had to trapse across a snowy farmers field complete with tall ladder to hang angel wings in the tree. I got permission from the land owner who thought we were mad.
Thanks to my model and my wife for assisting with this project. I wish it was not basic editing as I had plans for the sky as well as the tree.
Hope this does well
Coley
Post
Awesome !!!!
What a great week The comments were a joy to read, thanks everybody so much for all the views, votes and comments. What a great place to belong :)
Statistics
Place: 1 out of 100 Avg (all users): 7.0346 Avg (commenters): 8.5968 Avg (participants): 6.8800 Avg (non-participants): 7.0548 Views since voting: 19763 Views during voting: 1052 Votes: 433 Comments: 132 Favorites: 119 (view)
Every time I see this I smile, so I thought you should know that. :) This was one of the first images I added to my favorites list, and it still deserves that honor!
Just ran across this again. Thought it deserved some front page exposure again so some of the newbies might see it. This is just wonderful. Glad I saw it after a few months.
Oh my! There are so many things happening in this photo. This makes me think Hell's Angel with the black and the boots! I too, love the broken branch and the composition. Although I am too late to vote, I give it a 10!
::: Critique Club ::: Well Cole, a great image and a great result. There's nothing insightful that I can offer that hasn't been said by the commenters. Most of them probably know more than I do anyways :)
First Impression - the most important one: I have to confess that I was looking over Kari1's shoulder when I first saw this. She was ecstatic and I didn't fully understand it. Perhaps I may be excused because I was behind her chair and saw the wings, but not as them belonging to the model. From back there the model looked like just an observer and too centred. But what do I know, everyone else loved it and that's what matters.
Composition: Balance, poise and framing, it has them all ...
- The tree forming the left border really does work so well. Some comments were made about it but I can think of no treatment better than this for it.
- The overhanging branch provides a natural and perfect border on top.
- There is a brilliant Leading Line from the bottom left to top right as well. It starts at the bottom of the tree, goes right through her head, follows her line of sight to the wings.
- The wings, according to the flow rule, then stop the eye from leaving the image.
Subject: What can you say except perfect. Funny, engaging, challenging, quirky, unexpected ... the list goes on and on. It's what has attracted so many great comments. I haven't done a count but I have the feeling that there's more comments on this Blue than on many others. It stirs a reaction in people and you can't ask for better than that.
I don't know if you guys broke the branch but hey, it just makes the image 100% complete. It's subtle and as such takes time to find. Yet another reason to keep exploring this picture. One of it's great features is that a story is told. People can engage in your story but they can also invent their own. That's one of the secrets of good novel writing, to let the reader(viewer) fill in the gaps for themselves. Sometimes less is more.
Technical (Colour, focus, and light): Who would have thought of a black angel, yet she's the perfect foil for the superb whiteout behind her. She is the same colour as the tree and branches. Several commented positively on the monochromatic feel and it does work here without having to resort to gratuitous B&W.
Your halftones are extremely good. The detail in the snow is so easy to loose yet here it has texture, form and depth while still holding the detail in the tree bark. I don't know if people fully appreciate how difficult a balance that is.
Yes, you do need to get your sensor cleaned :)
To grow its vote?: I hope you'll forgive me for putting this in perspective as I hope that's the purpose of the critique process. This wasn't a great DPC score. I think this was one of the lowest scoring and least inspiring challenges that I've seen but Angel was a star among the thorns (love mixing metaphors). Despite the laudatory comments, the vote of 7.0346 has room for even higher things, so why didn't it score 8+?
My only thoughts on that would be around the centering of the angel. I can't think of any other thing that you could modify without destroying its integrity. I'm very much against vote-chasing for the sake of it. Many good story-telling images have been destroyed by doing that.
Summary: Despite the fact that I wasn't inspired by it on the first look, like several commenters, it is an image that draws you back to it and every time you go back, there is something more to see. Looking at your body of work there's definitely an air-theme there in you honourable work isn't there (not a pilot are you?).
It's been fun, thanks for the giggles and the opportunity
not sure if you know, but you have either some serious dust issues on your sensor or you need to clean your lenses (front and back) better, cause I see a ton of spots.
Something about this photograph reminds me very much of being like a Norman Rockwell. I think it's her body position and the simplicity of the background.
I do love it.
Woo hoo!!!! I am so happy this one got blue! I can't imagine it being better by changing the sky and the tree. .. to me, it seems absolutely perfect just as it is! Congratulations!
Congrats on the blue! I was impressed when I voted on this one, and even more so since I know how little changed from the original it is. Wonderful concept and great execution! The weather really played in your favor, the bleak sky, the contrast between her black clothing and the white snow, wonderful. The only thing I'd change would be the heavy boots, in favor of something more feminine...
Well done. This is one of those pictures that keeps drawinf me back to look at it. The contrast, the wings, the tutu... very creative, and very well done. Congratulations
You know what? Call me stupid..LOL..but I didn't know those were angel wings. I thought it was a shawl or a sweater, so I wasn't quite getting the concept. Sorry. Now that I know, and its always nice to read the stories aferwards, I would have bumped this up. Nice work! AND I think a lot of people think photograhers are "mad". LOL....I know they think I am, and they are probably right!
Excellent... exactly what a photo SHOULD be: well composed and exposed, with only the elements necessary to tell the visual story. A well deserved ribbon, and you didn't even have to juggle anything. ;-)
(of course, you still got the token 1 and 2 votes from the insane representatives)
Easily one of the most creative images I've ever seen, on dpc or anywhere. I didn't get to vote/comment during the challenge and I am so sorry that I did not get to give you another 10, so now I'm giving you a *personal* 15!
Fantastic. I wasn't in this challenge but this one did stand out when I checked the entries. I am so pleased you got the blue. I cannot stop looking at this image so I am adding it to my favourites.
Congratulations. To believe that you can top yourself so handily. Well, this concept and its execution has done just that. Fantastic. This image is certain to ring and echo for quite some while. A most deserved BLUE for this stroke of genius.
Congrats on the ribbon! I gave this one a 9.
Well, you said you had plans for the sky and the trees if this hadn't been a Basic challenge. Maybe you can do it now and show it from your portfolio? Thanks! and once again, great shot.
Great shot, Cole! Loved it from the moment I saw it. (except for the title which is a bit wordy for me) but that means nothing about the shot, its brilliant! :)
Very nice photo, the textures and exposure are about perfect. Composition is very good too, I like how the angle of her head matches the wings. I'll be surprised if this one doesn't ribbon - 9
This is surreal; I love the pose and the black white contrast.
I was originally thinking that the tree should be cropped out but hell; you did a great job with what you had. The model is cute and goth but the tree is not aesthetically pleasing.
You know. . .except for the dead bird in the tree. . .this picture would be one of my favorites ever. It looks so wintery and striking. I love it. But for the challenge, I guess the dead bird has to be there -- it fits well and I have to admit, it does make a perfect "oops" picture. Great job. 10
I like this photo. The first look doesn't take take you in, the eyes just look around, taking everything in. Then you look at the model, then follow her gaze, and it leads you to the wings. Then you notice that the orientation of the wings is exactly the direction the model is looking. Then the eyes focus on the wings - and now the magic happen (at least for me): the branch leads the eyes to the tree and from the tree back to the model. Now focus on the model and all you see is dark model / dark wings - then lost in the relationship between the two. The model / tree relationship brings in great lines and interesting interaction - a beautiful "v" from the branch-tree-joint to model to wings, many many excellent triangles.
Now focus on just the dark/light - look at the model's face and take in the scene. Let your peripheral vision take over - magic magic magic.
At first glance - not a striking photo. But give it time, give it time.
The placement of all elements is perfect. I didn't like the black to begin with - but I like how it keeps the eye focused on the relationship between the model and wings and how it complements the dark tree. And the model - under the arch of the branch, perfect symmetry.
I think with some PP this is a wall hanger, you have the base of a work of art.
One PP after-challenge suggestion: clone out the minor branches leaving only the main branch. There may be others - at least I see others, but nothing major.
I see magic and monstrous, beautiful, perfection and potential in this photo.
I'm giving this a "10" for what I see as the raw materials for perfection. I don't know if that's fair but I'm doing it anyway.
I like this shot -- it has a certain je ne sais quoi that really captures my attention. That said, it would elevate to "I _really_ like this shot", I think, if either the left side (i.e. the tree and about 1/3 of the space between the tree and the person) were cropped off, or, perhaps if she moved back about a step -- to about where that gap in the snow seems to be. I'm giving it an 8, but it could easily be at least a 9, and possibly a 10, for me.
I think that this is the most interesting entry for the challenge - has me wondering about the loss of the wings, angel in black vs. white, pondering the wings, and maybe how to get them back? Great idea, execution, and composition. Love it.
Gorgeous! And very innovative idea! Would have preferred it if she was sitting and leaning against the tree. That'd perhaps give a more dejected sentiment that echoes the environment. A wonderful job nonetheless!
I really like this image, it's probably my favorite in the entire challenge. One tiny suggestion of cropping the top just a teeny tiny bit to remove that speck on the border on the right side - it's a bit distracting to me when I'm looking at the wings, my eye keeps wandering up to it. Even so, I love the composition, the entire layout - it's a great image - nice work :)
very interesting because the branch looks to have broken, perhaps under the weight of the "winged one." Accomplishes the subject quite nicely and done well
great idea, bet she loved you for it, crop is a little wide for me, maybe shooting so the branch is facing more away from/toward you so the wings, angel, and trunk are closer together visually? great creative though
There's something strange going on here ;)
If not for the tree I would have put this down to one of the loony Icelanders ... so instead I'll just have to settle for giving it a 9. Great composition, enough of a sense of mystery to make me keep coming back to look at it.
Oh this is wonderful. I love that song to which it refers as well. Really striking and stark. Lovely. On second review and seeing the other entries, this is the best by far, hands down. I'm upping to a perfect 10~
Angel Flew Too Close To The Ground
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