Girl with horse

[uncuffed]

I visited a friends stable today and i had my camera with me so i took a few shots while just hanging around. Very spontanious and i think they turned out quite well.

I also got a new camera so these are the first pictures i upload from it. Its a Canon 50D and im super pleased!

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Alex,

Congrats on the new arrival

#4 is my favourite by far, although the compositions on all are very good.

I know B&W is supposed to be contrasty, but for me, the PP on the first 3 has resulted in pictures which are just too lacking in black detail, you might want to look at how your monitor is set up, or view these on a friend's computer to see what I am seeing. If that effect was deliberate, my apologies are due.

Even the colour one might benefit from a little more detail in the shadows.

I do hope that helps - and hasn't spoiled your first posting with the new camera, because I really do like #4, it is beautiful.

Cheers,

[Peter Ryan]

Hi Alex,

I agree with Dave on them being a bit dark but I do like #3. It works well with the silhouette of the horses head and just a hint of light on your friend's face.

Well done with the new camera. We look forward to seeing more.

[uncuffed]

Thank you and i see were your coming from but i kind of like them that dark. They might be darker for you on your screens but for me they are good, my screen may be to bright i have to check that. I think they are really moody pictures, i dont know how to describe them in any other way so moody will have to do!

Im going of to work now but when i get home i can brighten them up and see if you get the same level of detail as i get. On #1 and #2 i se alot of detail both on the horse and the girl and in #1 the background is almost totaly black but in #2 you see the background with no problems.

[Donald]

If you've got a keenness to explore creating images with heavy blacks, then I suggest having a look at the work of Bill Brandt. A useful place to start is here.

You are creating a beautiful mood and atmosphere with these images and I have to confess I get a strong sense that the woman is someone very close and special to you and that she, if not you also, dearly loves that horse. There is a close bond between them. If that is what you were trying to show, then congratulations - it works.

But I do think there is too much heavy black. I think you need to scale it back a little bit, or have more greys to balance out the complete blacks in the images.

[uncuffed]

Thank you i will check him out!

I don't have time now i have to go back to work the rest of the night but i will try to get a little more detail back in the black areas.

She is actually selling the horse because she is moving to England. I heard from a mutual friend today that her mother started crying when she saw the pictures yesterday, i think its hard to get a better review than that

[uncuffed]

Now i have made them quite a bit brighter, let me hear what you think.

Good? Bad?

I changed the crop on this one a little bit.

[Donald]

Alex

Going with the sequence numbering from the post immediately above, #1 & #2 undoubtedly benefit from the lift you've given right across the image.

Regarding #3 - I don't know if you use layers and layer masks in your work. If not, I think it is something to explore and consider learning about. The horse and the background definitely benefit from what you have done. However, the young lady and particularly her jacket, could have done with a bit less. The way to achieve this differential treatment is through the use of layers and layer masks. So, you could have carried out the actions on the horse and background, but not done it to the same extent on the woman and her clothing.

But, I do think these latest versions are better than your originals. But, please do not take this as criticism of your desire to explore the use of heavy blacks. That is a very commendable and legitimate practice to pursue. But you do need to study and learn the technique.

[Dave Humphries]

Now i have made them quite a bit brighter, let me hear what you think.

Good? Bad?

Good

[rick55]

Sorry to come in late. I was really hit by the original version of #1. It's a very powerful image, and I think the "extreme" blacks add to it. The feeling I get from this version is that the woman is unhappy or overwhelmed in some way, and the horse is reacting to it. The mood is much lighter in the brightened version: the horse just looks curious.

These are some wonderful images in any event.

Cheers,
Rick

[Rob Douglas]

I like the original version of #1. I think it's the most powerful of them all. I do however think the image would be better around f/11 to have a better focus on both the horse and the girl. It appears that the focus is on the horse (near the eye) more than the girl. Great image though. Good work. You'll love the 50D.

[uncuffed]

I do however think the image would be better around f/11 to have a better focus on both the horse and the girl.

Yeah i know but the light didn't allow for anything other than f/1.8, even when i was at f/1.8 i had to go up to ISO 640 and even then it didn't allow for a shutter speed of more than 1/50 of a second. Like i said before, it was a spur of the moment thing and there were not much light left in the day.

I also like the original of #1 i have to say, on the other two i can go in each direction i think both versions look good.

Donald: I do not use layers or layer masks, i hardly use Photoshop at all in fact. Most of the time i just use Camera Raw. Maybe its time to start learning more about Photoshop instead.