Lit Candle. Flame reflected in dark green olive oil bottle. Natural light provided through kitchen window. Taken with secondary camara a Fujifilm FinePix 4700Z (was unable to select in camera drop down box on submission form). No adjustments made, only a 'crop' in Adobe Photoshop.
File Name
lighting the candle.JPG
Camera Model Name
FinePix4700 ZOOM
Shooting Date/Time
25/05/2004 12:50:24
Tv( Shutter Speed )
1/40
Av( Aperture Value )
2.8
Exposure Compensation
0
ISO Speed
200
Image Size
1800x2400
Flash
Off
File Size
681KB
Serial Number
0-0000
Owner's Name
Statistics
Place: 218 out of 221 Avg (all users): 3.4235 Avg (commenters): 2.3684 Avg (participants): 3.2970 Avg (non-participants): 3.5065 Views since voting: 1189 Votes: 255 Comments: 25 Favorites: 0
Welcome to DPC! I can see you've already taken on board a lot of constructive criticism, so I won't go overboard with this critique.
Obviously, focus (or lack of it) was the big issue here... you mentioned you would use a tripod the next time, are you sure camera shake was the culprit, or perhaps a very shallow dof caused by using a wide aperture in macro mode? The focus may have been in the centre of the picture, on the reflection of the candle. There were some very interesting contrasts in light, shape and texture, but by using mundane bathroom items I think people look less at it as an abstract picture, and more just as a collection of objects. Also, watch out for burnt-out highlights.
Good luck with your future challenges,
Hey there -- I know voting is closed, and enough people ragged on the focus, so I won't mention that. ;) Anyway, here's a tip; photography is about light, so think about how light travels, how it changes when it strikes object, and -- here's the suggestion for this shot -- how it travels through things. The oil bottle might have been stunning if it were lit from behind.
Thanks to everyone who both voted and commented on my entry. It's my first one. Many of the comments were really helpful and constructive. I agree that the photo wasn't very well focussed. Lesson learned - use a tripod! The competition is incredible - lots of really good photos were submitted. With my 218th out of 221 I know that I can only go 'up' from here on? One of the main reasons I joined was that I hoped these challenges would encourage me to use my digital camera more often forcing me to stop using the 'Auto' settings and help me familiarise with its manual capabilities. It's early days yet - but watch this space!
The color scheme is nice, but the towel-as-a-backdrop is just not very attractive. The candle is OOF, and the towel itself is not covering up all the back area you are trying to mask. The black ceramic object is very distracting, as it does not fit i with the other colors.
it's all just a little too dull and grainy for me.. I'd like to see more contrast, some deeper colors, more definition of the details, and try to get that candle in focus.. watch out for the reflections in the glass, those really detract from the central point of the picture. try using white posterboards to block out background objects, and also maybe try using a different fabric instead of a towel - all those terrycloth loops are just way too distracting! :)
This is a nice start to a good composition. Consider a differenet background next time (terry cloth isn't the best choice for a background unless you are going for a bathroom feel ---which perhaps you are?). I'm not sure if you intended to focus on the reflection instead of the candle but I think focusing on both might have been more effective. As it is, the candle is quite blurred but you have lots of texture in the terry cloth. A small tripod might be a good purchase. You can buy a little table top model for lighter weight digital cameras for about $10.
The atmosphere of this photo is superb. My eyes were led from the brightness and colour of the foreground to the more sombre flame image in the background
Add photograph to your favorites
Add photographer to your favorites
Photographer found comment helpful.
