Assignment 4 - Tutor Critique

Here's my tutor's report on assignment 4, warts and all. My main aim in photographing what I considered the essential charm of Lyme Regis was to show its unique and distinctive areas away from the main tourist attractions. Lyme is a fascinating place regardless of the tourist attractions and events which are mostly based around its links to fossils and the Jurassic Coast.

I was concerned with the lack of people in my pictures but I wanted to portray the quietness and soliture found out of season.  Those discerning visitors who come out of season, i.e. not in July, August and early September, are here to see the town as it really is, with the townspeople going about their daily business.

Tutor Comments
Overall Comments

As always; a comprehensively researched and presented assignment that meets the brief.

Feedback on assignment

I like the idea of the map, I used a similar thing in a book I did for my MA.

Image 1

It’s a good establishing shot, well printed, that gives an atmospheric feel for the place and its architecture. The bird is the icing on the cake that gives an incentive to look in to the picture carefully.

Image 2

A strong image; very well spotted, optimally composed and again the bird is a gift. Is there a theme developing? Hahaha. ‘ }

The blue tinge to the snow is because it’s lit by open blue sky and shaded from the sun. The sky is blue because of the very high colour temperature of the light coming from it. You see the same effect in the shadows on a sunny summer’s day with no cloud.

I think it would have been interesting to see if you could pull a bit more detail and differentiation out of the shadows using the Shadow/Highlight control. But that’s only a possible refinement; it reads well enough as it is.

Image 3

Another strong image that you planned for really well and then you created an elegant moment from it. The figure is perfectly placed and ‘posed’. I’m enjoying the parallelism with the cannon and that whole little vignette, a picture within a picture. 

I think this is one of the most accomplished images, and best bits of retouching, that you’ve produced on the course; very progressive. He just needs a hint of very soft drop shadow under his feet to locate him in the scene. When you are comping two elements together you need to ensure the sense of the light is the same in both, which you’ve done by taking the figure from the same location in similar lighting, then you have to consider the effect on the environment, in terms of shadows, that the object you are comping in will have.

In this case because it’s in shadow and it’s on snow that will be very little, but even a smidgen will have a strong effect on anchoring him into the scene.

Image 4

Nice splash of red there; the old time picture postcard photographer’s trick. Used enthusiastically in the past by Annie Leibovitz too.

The crop feels a bit tight on the right. I keep wanting to shove over a bit. Having taken that into account it’s a good scenario, interesting light and colour palette but it needs a bit more narrative possibility. A black dog sitting up on the beach looking at me, or a lost ball, some bit of punctum.

Perhaps this one has more to it...

There seems to be a touch more narrative possibility here; the tall lamp turning its back on the short one to commune with the sand bar.

Image 5

A sensitively chosen composition to create an interesting semi-abstract interpretation; making it almost sculptural with anthropomorphic under tones.  A very good quality print too.  I can see someone enjoying having a very large print of that on their wall.  It also helps the rhythm of the series with the change of scale it creates.

Image 6
Again the splash of red; good light and potentially interesting but it’s a stage in need of its players.

The boat’s reflection is combining a bit awkwardly with the spikes and the boat cropping on the left hand edge is a bit distracting, a pace to the left and a slight clockwise rotation would have cured both.

Perhaps something more like this with some action happening in the bottom right hand corner.

Image 7

Again you’ve identified a good setting and composed it well and your idea to add something to it, in lieu of actually waiting for something to happen, was the right impulse. You just didn’t have the right material to add.

Something like a black cat crossing the path would have worked or someone emerging from the cottage on the left.  Sometimes you have to be an angler and wait for something to bite. ‘ }.  The file on the disc doesn’t appear to be critically sharp but the print looks ok, if a little moody in the shadows.

Here I’ve lightened the shadows with the Shadow/Highlight tool and increased the mid tone contrast a little...

Image 8

Yes I think you chose the best image here, there’s a poignancy to the frosty empty bench.

The back of the bench is rather getting lost in the background though.  I think you could have used a wider angle lens and come in closer so that you were more over the top of it, separating it out from the background, perhaps with a vertical composition so that the bench was the foreground interest that led from the path to the church.

It’s a nice touch that we can metaphorically rest on the bench at the end of our walk.

Conclusion

As usual you’ve put a lot of thought and effort into realising the assignment and I note that you’re implementing suggestions I have made.

You’ve produced some strong images, particularly 2, 3, my alternative for 4, and 5. Your selection of subject, composition and post processing have all progressed so well done, keep it up!

Onwards to my final assignment - People & Place on Assignment.  Click the link below to get to my final work.

Assignment 5 People and Place, on Assignment