Black & White Alberta Terminal in B&W

ErrantDabbler · 03-11-2012, 12:32 PM

Hello All,
This is my first request for critique. This image was made last night at the Alberta Terminals Building in Edmonton, AB.
I left the house with the intent to use only one lens and to shoot for black & white.
The way the lights from the terminal illuminated one side of the branches on the tree really drew me to this spot. I included the building for context for the source of the light. The exposure time was 10 seconds and I think this shot was at f/8.
I quite like the lightness of the tree against the dark sky on the upper part of the image and how it plays against the darkness of the branches on the lighter cloudy sky near the bottom. The blown out lights in the window bother me a tad, and I regret not bracketing which would have allowed me to keep that detail. The composition was also a little bit of a question. I wanted the building to be closer to the point at which the horizontal and vertical 1/3 lines cross; however, when I tried that, I lost the trunk of the tree on the right (which I decided was more important).
I would love to hear what you think, and where improvements could have been made shooting or in post.
Thanks!
Dave

margriet · 03-12-2012, 05:28 AM

I kind of like the picture.. To me at first it was a bit to dark, but after looking at it some time I concluded all the details necessary are completely there. Less dark would mean less detail and less spacial (3d) feel. I understand what you try to say about blown out lights, but consider they strengthen the contrast between natural (the tree) and artificial (building) in your picture. A bit more of the building would have been nice.. i.m.h.o.
regards, Margriet

ErrantDabbler · 03-12-2012, 11:32 AM

Hi Margriet, thank you for the comments!
I had not considered the natural-artificial relationship between the tree and building before, and I think you are right about those points strengthening that contrast.
The more I look at the image, the more I agree with your comment about seeing more of the building. I don't think cropping the image will accomplish this, because too much of the important part of the tree would be lost. If the opportunity arises, I will try a shot again from this location and attempt to better balance the tree and building.
Thanks again,
Dave

03-11-2012, 12:32 PM	#1
ErrantDabbler New Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 8	Alberta Terminal in B&W Lens: Vivitar 28 mm 1:2.0 Camera: ist DL Photo Location:* Alberta Terminal Building in Edmonton, AB ISO: 200 Shutter Speed: >6s Hello All, This is my first request for critique. This image was made last night at the Alberta Terminals Building in Edmonton, AB. I left the house with the intent to use only one lens and to shoot for black & white. The way the lights from the terminal illuminated one side of the branches on the tree really drew me to this spot. I included the building for context for the source of the light. The exposure time was 10 seconds and I think this shot was at f/8. I quite like the lightness of the tree against the dark sky on the upper part of the image and how it plays against the darkness of the branches on the lighter cloudy sky near the bottom. The blown out lights in the window bother me a tad, and I regret not bracketing which would have allowed me to keep that detail. The composition was also a little bit of a question. I wanted the building to be closer to the point at which the horizontal and vertical 1/3 lines cross; however, when I tried that, I lost the trunk of the tree on the right (which I decided was more important). I would love to hear what you think, and where improvements could have been made shooting or in post. Thanks! Dave

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Best way to clean sync terminal?	LightMeter	Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands	4	10-10-2011 09:46 AM
Machinery Terminal Car Parts	SpecialK	Post Your Photos!	2	09-28-2011 06:38 PM
Misc Terminal Ballistics	Workingdog	Post Your Photos!	2	01-06-2011 12:25 PM
Is the PC terminal on the K20-D threaded?	Sigmoid	Pentax DSLR Discussion	6	01-03-2011 09:04 AM
Flash terminal plugs?	Stratman	Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras	8	08-28-2010 07:35 PM

03-12-2012, 05:28 AM	#2
margriet Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 191	I kind of like the picture.. To me at first it was a bit to dark, but after looking at it some time I concluded all the details necessary are completely there. Less dark would mean less detail and less spacial (3d) feel. I understand what you try to say about blown out lights, but consider they strengthen the contrast between natural (the tree) and artificial (building) in your picture. A bit more of the building would have been nice.. i.m.h.o. regards, Margriet

03-12-2012, 11:32 AM	#3
ErrantDabbler New Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 8 Original Poster	Hi Margriet, thank you for the comments! I had not considered the natural-artificial relationship between the tree and building before, and I think you are right about those points strengthening that contrast. The more I look at the image, the more I agree with your comment about seeing more of the building. I don't think cropping the image will accomplish this, because too much of the important part of the tree would be lost. If the opportunity arises, I will try a shot again from this location and attempt to better balance the tree and building. Thanks again, Dave

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
	Search this Thread: Advanced Search