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07/02/2003 09:12:55 AM |
*critique club*
(Just before I begin, my wife wants to say that, on seeing this photograph, she immediately felt the urge to eat it.)
Overall
The challenge was to capture a scene that reminds us of the countryside. Freshly-made bread set against a foliage background certainly works within this theme. I wonder about the flowers being necessary as they run contrary to the theme. The red, checked tablecloth and knife belong here, though.
Composition
Besides the flowers, I feel that the indistinctness of the drink object detracts from the composition, as does the knife angle. Overall, the whole scene would look better without the drink and the flowers, leaving a far-less cluttered effect and a more powerfully focus on the actual subject. Bread doesn̢۪t really mean countryside; it only suggests old-fashioned, itself reminiscent of the countryside. The choice of a plastic bread board, a symbol of modern life, therefore, might be questioned. A wooden board would fit better; the wood colour and texture complementing that of the bread.
Compositionally, the colour contrast of the red triangular foreground and the green backdrop is effective, but could be more so if the actual lines were more clearly demarked by removing the foliage (and the unnecessary elements) from the table. The bread board could then be positioned to support the overall colour scheme. Also, the bread would stand out more, fixing the theme solidly. I feel that the green is a little dark. The brightness of the tablecloth asks for a similarly bright green.
Consequently, the green being brighter would also help reduce the effects of the bright spots created by the leaves.
Technical
The exposure on the bread crust is just right, at a shutter speed that reinforced the white sections of the tablecloth. However, the speed was too fast for the drink, the darker foliage and the left side of the vase. I understand that if you had exposed for the white of the bread, even more of the shot would have been underexposed. In times like this, you have 2 choices pre-shooting, 1 post-shooting: use a neutral density filter, choose a narrower aperture, or play around with the curves in Dimage Viewer. Actually, I think that a narrower aperture would have helped the green colour balance by introducing an extra in-focus and brighter background layer.
Comments
Generally, I find this image a touch bland, its subject weakened by the clutter around it and the static nature of the objects. Maybe actually including your boy showing his eagerness to eat the bread would lighten the scene, but that̢۪s a different shot altogether. I̢۪m having trouble finding the purpose here. If this shot were for a magazine, the clutter would have to be removed as less means more in such shots. If you were simply trying to capture a moment from a countryside life, the objects wouldn̢۪t be so deliberately placed on the table. For example, the drink would be difficult to use at present, and it̢۪s unlikely that flowers would be directly over the drink leading to the possibility of petals falling in.
I’m afraid that my comments are mainly negative. A lot of that has to do with personal taste. I’m sure others will enjoy your image, but, for me, I don’t have any ‘still life’s on my wall.
Best wishes,
Jim
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Comments Made During the Challenge  |
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07/01/2003 09:06:20 PM |
| YUM! The checkerboard tablecloth and flowers definitely add to the country feel of the pic. |
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06/30/2003 06:51:32 AM |
| Excellent image, focus...made me hungry! |
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06/29/2003 10:19:28 PM |
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06/29/2003 02:45:06 PM |
| lovely still life... i wish the cutting board was more rustic looking and the picture wasn't cropped so close to the top flowers... 6. |
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06/28/2003 05:08:49 PM |
| Ooh lovely - I wish the bread was on a wooden board or a china plate. The acrylic spoils the mood, and the knife is at a funny angle. 7 |
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06/28/2003 03:26:17 AM |
| I can almost taste it. nice shot |
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06/27/2003 01:25:12 PM |
| Good focus and nice colors/lighting for this still life. |
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06/27/2003 09:17:56 AM |
| Nice idea, but i find this picture rather unappealing due to the clash of colors with the dull soda, the checkered tablecloth and the dark green leaves. Simpler is better. |
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06/27/2003 07:50:17 AM |
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06/26/2003 04:36:13 PM |
| Nice to see a still life entered in this challenge. I thought there would be more of them. I didn't have time to enter, but if I had, this is similar to what I would have done. Nice job. Perhaps a touch more lighting, specifically on the glass, to bring it out from the dark background, but overall quite nice. The fresh baked bread really does invoke a "country" feel. |
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06/26/2003 01:26:19 PM |
| yummy bread! it'd be nice if the sun touched somewhere. |
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06/26/2003 10:29:49 AM |
| Nice country setting, but you need some more light in the background. Also I'd have used a less artificial cutting surface, wood maybe, to make it look more "country". =4 |
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06/26/2003 02:52:37 AM |
| Wow, that looks delicous. Great shot as well. |
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06/25/2003 02:23:41 PM |
| Very nice right down to the checkered table cloth. |
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06/25/2003 12:56:00 PM |
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06/25/2003 12:22:56 PM |
| nice still life. you should enlarge this & hang it in your kitchen. beautiful job |
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06/25/2003 10:27:31 AM |
| and even a checkered table cloth, reminds me of the country. good job. |
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06/25/2003 09:58:11 AM |
| Hey sis I'm hungry can I come over? LOL the glass gave ya away, that and someone telling me "Mommy baked bread on the phone last night." Looks good enough to eat. |
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06/25/2003 09:22:53 AM |
| Original idea and it works well! I can almost smell the bread on the table - 9. |
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06/25/2003 02:52:23 AM |
| Yummy one of the best things in life! Good color contrast and subject layout. Good job !! ( and now I;m hungry) |
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| Photographer found comment helpful. |
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