B&W Urban Decay

[RockNGoalStar]

Hi All,

I wanted to have a go at a B&W conversion as it's not something I've experimented with much. I took this shot a few months ago during a walk up the Regent's Canal in London from King's Cross to Camden. This whole area is being regenerated at the moment so I'm going to try to get down there and get some more shots before they all become brand new swanky apartments.

I did the B&W conversion in ACR and just cropped and sharpened in CS5.

All C&C is gratefully received, especially in relation to the B&W conversion. Let me know what you think. Please view full.



Nikon D90 | Sigma 10-20mm @ 17mm | f/11 | 1/500sec | ISO 200

[jiro]

You did quite well on the conversion, Tommy. I have nothing to comment with regards to the conversion. As for the shot, it looks clinically clean. What I meant is that everything looks so OK. Maybe, on a personal level I'd rather see some dramatic play of light to make the shot more involving. Just my personal preference so nothing to change on your part. Good job!

[Wirefox]

Thats a good conversion Tommy although I agree with Jiro with respect to the lighting but I think the angle you have shot at prevents the image from looking flat. It might not be the kind of place you want to hang around at dusk though. I will not make my usual invasion of the triffids comment because you have made best use of what was unavoidably there.

[Dizzy]

Looks like a great image Tommy.

I like how the brickwork was done with a slight arch over all the windows, and the old pipes on the outside add a nice accent. Back then the brick masons were true artisans of their trade, as is evidenced by the long life of that building.

Too bad they are going to go and tear it down..what most folks call "progress", often isn't..

Mike

[ChrisH]

Nice "earthy" shot Tommy with lots of texture and works well in mono conversion.

I don't think I have walked along this stretch of canal since I was a child. Sounds as if I had better hurry up if I want to do it again.

[RockNGoalStar]

You did quite well on the conversion, Tommy. I have nothing to comment with regards to the conversion. As for the shot, it looks clinically clean. What I meant is that everything looks so OK. Maybe, on a personal level I'd rather see some dramatic play of light to make the shot more involving. Just my personal preference so nothing to change on your part. Good job!

Thanks Willie. I think I have to agree with you on the lighting. This was shot in the middle of the afternoon on a very sunny day. Maybe I should try to go back there on a moody overcast day or a bit later in the evening...

Thats a good conversion Tommy although I agree with Jiro with respect to the lighting but I think the angle you have shot at prevents the image from looking flat. It might not be the kind of place you want to hang around at dusk though. I will not make my usual invasion of the triffids comment because you have made best use of what was unavoidably there.

Thanks Steve. Yeah not sure I wanna be hanging around there alone at night with £1,000 worth of camera gear! maybe I should get some tough mates to chaperone me!

Looks like a great image Tommy.

I like how the brickwork was done with a slight arch over all the windows, and the old pipes on the outside add a nice accent. Back then the brick masons were true artisans of their trade, as is evidenced by the long life of that building.

Too bad they are going to go and tear it down..what most folks call "progress", often isn't..

Mike

Yeah! They don't build them like they used to, do they Mike?! Not so sure they're going to tear it down, but they are certainly going to convert it. It looks like they're doing a good job, judging by the surrounding buildings, but brand new warehouse conversions just don't make as good photographic subjects as they do in a derelict and dilapidated state! Thanks for your kind words

Nice "earthy" shot Tommy with lots of texture and works well in mono conversion.

I don't think I have walked along this stretch of canal since I was a child. Sounds as if I had better hurry up if I want to do it again.

There's some good photographic opportunities in this part of London, and of course Camden when you get there. Perhaps you can be my chaperone!

[KeithH]

I'm not really getting a sense of decay here Tommy and I think Willie's suggestion of dramatising the existing light will pay dividends. Well worth regular visits for a series of shots I think.

[RockNGoalStar]

Yeah you're right Keith. if anything, I have portrayed this dilapidated old warehouse in its best 'light' so to speak.

I quite like the composition of the image and will take your advice on taking a few more visits to get some m ore images in different light. It's only about 5 mins on the bike from where I live and there's plenty of other similar scenes to be captured down there.

Thanks for your comments

[MiniChris]

I have to agree with the train of thought, the image is too "Clean" to portray urban decay adequately. Kind of a weird thought, eh? I also look at the image and along with this almost precise cleanliness, I see a lack of a dominate value shift that could give more emphathis to one area or another. In other words, if the foreground trees were a shade lighter or less in focus, they could allow the eye to focus more concentrated on the building and less with trying to determine if the tree leaves were as sharp as the bricks.

It's a nice shot, but everything is competing with everything else for dominance.

[arith]

It's leaning back; that might be a positive. It looks like it is leaning to the left, but I'm not convinced of (OF) my eyes. Actually it is a very nice image not needing to be staightened out/

Black and white is good to hide the trees, I think.

Clean image Now actually I'm worried about doing dirty images, how do you do it. (avatare needed)

[Davidd]

I like the pic. For me, the leaves take away from the urban decay feel - they countrify it. I bet if you go back when the leaves have fallen and you have bare branches yoiu'll have an even better photo....

[RockNGoalStar]

Thanks for all your input guys. I think I will to back and see if I can get some better snaps o this and other surrounding buildings. I'd like to practice my B&W conversion work and would like to do a bit of a series on these old dissused buildings before they are regenerated back to their former glory!

Cheers