Sorry again for my tardiness; I had some unexpected dental surgery last week, and I'm still a bit messed up from pain meds and seriously strong antibiotics. Anyway, enough of that.
All of the interpretations were well done, and it was interesting to see what other people saw in the original photo. I can only judge this by going off of what was in my mind's eye when I took the picture, though there are a few entries that made me reassess this approach.
Hopefully, I've arrived at a good decision, despite the meds!
ivoire:
I still really like the way your first post brought out some of the details of the peeling paint and the increased contrast. The horizontal crop is also very good. What catches my eye though are the halos on the roof edges and the chimney.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/7-pentax-compact-cameras/2197...t-23-comp1.jpg
todd:
I like your first entry a lot. At first I didn't like the way you added a third story to the building, but it has grown on me because it increases a sense of "looming" to my eye, and the range of light that you brought out in the clouds is really nice. I also like how you took out the signs on the buildings.
Definitely in the running.
http://www.tmphillips.com/g3/var/resizes/share9-2014/compact%2323a.JPG?m=1399269689
chemtech:
I like your second submission a lot. The horizontal crop is nice, and the play of light on the buildings is interesting as it brings more attention to them vs. the parking lot. The perspective correction is a bit too much as the chimney now leans to the left, but I know how hard it is to get this right.
Definitely in the running.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/7-pentax-compact-cameras/2197...tlit-stark.jpg
dcBear78:
I like your third submission the best. The graininess doesn't bother me and actually adds to the photo. The vignette is nicely done. The only thing that bothers me is the loss of detail on the center building (old post office) -- not due to the grain, but to light values. But I still like it.
https://flic.kr/p/nt7pp9
matlobi:
I like this submission a lot. It captures the felling of the place well. The halos around the building roofs and chimney though are too extreme. I really like, though, the color and shading you brought out in the old post office and the elevated walkway -- it's real nice.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/7-pentax-compact-cameras/2197...23-matlobi.jpg
In the running.
Richard Briggs:
This entry is very nice. One can look at a lot of details and not like it, but the overall of the image is very cool. It looks to me you layered in a building with the clouds, which is interesting. The HDR type effects (and associated halos at high frequency edges) is a little overdone, but the overall feel from the image is great.
Definitely in the running.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/7-pentax-compact-cameras/2198...-briggs_pe.jpg
scottwyatt01:
This is a very nice B&W interpretation. You brought out a nice balanced feel with the tonalities.
Definitely in the running.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/7-pentax-compact-cameras/2199...est-1-1-1-.jpg
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Honorable Mention -- matlobi
Your interpretation captures the light and color on the old post office and elevated walkway really well. My eyes just can't get past the halos of the building roofs and chimney, or the gradient arc in the clouds from the left building foreground to the top of the chimney. I must say though, that despite these PP artifacts, I really like the mood you brought to the photo. The old post office and elevated walkway look great.
Third Place -- todd
I like the third story addition to the old post office. It is something I never would have thought of. I like the way it makes the building more foreboding. With that said, there are some obvious elements in the cloning that make it apparent, but I like the overall effect nonetheless.
Second Place -- scottwyatt01
The tones in the elevated walkway (especially the left side) and the old post office are really nice. I like this interpretation a lot and will probably regret not choosing this as the winner.
First Place -- Richard Briggs
It seems that you got my Terry Gilliam reference (even though I initially misspelled his last name) . There are a lot of distracting elements in your interpretation, but so what! Even after being "visually distracted" it is very interesting to look at. Good work.
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