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Archive 2015 · Mysterious Pier

  
 
rongwam
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Mysterious Pier


It took me about 2 hours to get to this location, I was determined not to let the foggy condition stop me from shooting this pier. I knew that I wanted to shoot for B&W conversion, so I quickly composed the shot and waited for the right moment. Here it is....(The film grain was added during post). Let me know what you think and some possible suggestions. Appreciated.









Dec 10, 2015 at 01:48 PM
beavens
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Mysterious Pier


Henry,

I'm very much digging the symmetry and the lights leading us to the couple at the end of the pier, and mono is also a nice choice IMO.

I'm not sure how I feel about the added grain. Can you post a version without it?

I'm also curious how a vertical crop would work eliminating the closest poles. Probably too much neg space at the top after that.

Cheers!

Jeff



Dec 10, 2015 at 01:59 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Mysterious Pier


beavens wrote:
Henry,

I'm very much digging the symmetry and the lights leading us to the couple at the end of the pier, and mono is also a nice choice IMO.

I'm not sure how I feel about the added grain. Can you post a version without it?

I'm also curious how a vertical crop would work eliminating the closest poles. Probably too much neg space at the top after that.

Cheers!

Jeff


Thanks Jeff for your feedback.
I posted the version without grain.
I did not want to crop it vertically due to too much negative space, but I thought of copping it horizontally to eliminate the first two poles. I also posted that version here.

Henry




© Henry Nguyen 2015


No grain added





© Henry Nguyen 2015


Cropped version




Dec 10, 2015 at 02:13 PM
ben egbert
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Mysterious Pier


I prefer the uncropped no grain version.


Dec 10, 2015 at 02:25 PM
beavens
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Mysterious Pier


ben egbert wrote:
I prefer the uncropped no grain version.


+1 - I like that the couple is smaller in the original and I don't care for the added grain. Maybe boost the contrast a bit?



Dec 10, 2015 at 02:28 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Mysterious Pier


Thanks Ben for your feedback.
I do like the version with no grain too, but I added the grain since it seems to subdue the strong highlights from the light bulbs.



Dec 10, 2015 at 02:35 PM
beavens
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Mysterious Pier


rongwam wrote:
Thanks Ben for your feedback.
I do like the version with no grain too, but I added the grain since it seems to subdue the strong highlights from the light bulbs.


Interesting! To my eyes the grain enhances the highlights as it seems to give the glow more weight.



Dec 10, 2015 at 02:44 PM
oldrattler
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Mysterious Pier


beavens wrote:
+1 - I like that the couple is smaller in the original and I don't care for the added grain. Maybe boost the contrast a bit?


+2 I am not big on grain, added, or otherwise.



Dec 10, 2015 at 02:46 PM
lighthound
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Mysterious Pier


+3 Another vote for the original full crop without the grain.

Have no serious nits to offer. I like it!
If the highlights bug you, you could always tone them down a little to your taste with a brush.

I do have to ask if anyone else feels like it needs a very slight CCW rotation? I can not see anything obvious when I look closely but for some reason my eyes keep seeing the entire image slightly rotated to the right CW. This is weird because I cant see anything in particular that is off.
It might just be my eyes I guess.

I wonder how this would have looked if shot stopped down to f/22? Minus the people of course but that would loose the entire message I suspect.


Dave



Dec 10, 2015 at 03:30 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Mysterious Pier


Thanks Dave for your feedback and suggestion!
Your eyes did not fool you! The image was just slightly distorted, all the light poles were tilted just a bit toward the center, but more so on the left side. That is why it might appears to be slightly rotated to the right to you!

Interestingly, I initially put the camera at f/22, but I knew that the starbursts would be quite strong and might take away the mood of the scene. I ended up choosing f/16 to still get the starburst, but less obvious and I can see more the halos around the lightbulb. I also thought it would go well with the foggy condition.
For the couple, I waited for awhile in cold condition to get them in the center of the frame.

I wonder what if I print this image on a canvas, so I simulate it by adding a canvas texture. What do you guys think? Will the canvas be as distractive as the added grain? Thanks.








Dec 10, 2015 at 04:02 PM
beavens
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Mysterious Pier


Yep, noticed a bit of distortion but it doesn't really detract IMO.

Personally I would apply no texture to this, and if I were to print it would also not contain texture. I think part of what is strong about this image is the ethereal vibe of the fog and I feel that the texture mutes that some.

Jeff



Dec 10, 2015 at 04:22 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Mysterious Pier


Fixed the distortion!
Jeff: I agree that the ethereal part might be taken away by the texture. Good call!



Dec 10, 2015 at 04:26 PM
lighthound
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Mysterious Pier


Well that explains it! There for a minute I thought I was experiencing some kind of after effects from being hit in the head a few to many times with the ugly stick when I was little.

As for the canvas texture shown, I think it is a little more exaggerated here than it would be in print. When I first looked at it I was in agreement with Jeff, but now that I've looked at it a little longer I think it would look pretty cool. Thinking Christmas card stock kinda vibe to it.

All depends on what YOU like.

Dave



Dec 10, 2015 at 04:33 PM
ben egbert
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Mysterious Pier


My thoughts on canvas. I use mat paper and have not used canvas, but to me it is just a rougher mat. At viewing distance, the texture will not be visible unless your eyes are far sharper than mine (they probably are).

The way I know an image is mat is because it is not shiny and has no reflections (unless it is under glass). So I would not expect to see the canvas texture in a print and if I did, I would probably not use canvas.

Canvas has other clus like usually wrapped rathen than matted and framed.



Dec 10, 2015 at 04:41 PM
lighthound
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Mysterious Pier


I had one canvas made several years ago (Wallgreens I think) and at about 3 feet away I can see the texture. Any further and it disappears. There is a very slight gloss to it also which I hate.
Not sure if I would ever do it again but one never knows I guess.

Dave



Dec 10, 2015 at 04:50 PM
beavens
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Mysterious Pier


lighthound wrote:
I had one canvas made several years ago (Wallgreens I think) and at about 3 feet away I can see the texture. Any further and it disappears. There is a very slight gloss to it also which I hate.
Not sure if I would ever do it again but one never knows I guess.

Dave


Hate to get off topic but if you want cheap wrapped canvas done decently look to Costco. I've got a number of canvas prints from them that I like a bunch!



Dec 10, 2015 at 06:22 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Mysterious Pier


@Ben: I do a lot of printing on matte papers which I don't think can show the texture like what a canvas can do. However, a monochrome image will be great on either of these media.
@Dave: It depends on how large is your print. If it is a large like 24x36 print, at a 3-feet distance, you would definitely see the texture. It might be the opposite if the prints is much smaller. Let's note that having the texture shown is not always the bad thing. I used it a lot on my monochrome images. However, for this image with the foggy condition and moody scene, I agree that we might not want to show much texture on the final print.
You should try the canvas option again. You might fall in love with it!
+1 at Jeff: Low-cost canvas at Costco. It is not too bad for the price that you pay for.




Dec 10, 2015 at 06:24 PM





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