Hey Marc. I like this. I think your composition is fantastic, with the subject framed nicely amongst the drum kit. The lighting on his face is great and the shutter speed (whilst you probably didn't choose it, seeing as how you were maxed out in terms of aperture and ISO) is nice. Sharp enough to have a pretty clear shot of the face, with a little motion blur in the hand/stick. So, what hurt your score? Unfortunately it was probably the noise. Personally I regard ISO 3200 from the K20D as pretty much unusable. Funnily enough I have just been playing with my son's K-r at high ISOs and it makes me realise how far things have come since the K20D. Maybe it's time we both upgraded to the K-5? Just a suggestion... :)
i think the b&w does well for this image, but i agree the grain isn't helping here. plus, to be frank, it's not very interesting, there doesn't feel like there's a story behind it. i dont feel the energy of what made him sweat. he has a serene expression (aided by the beam of like almost giving him a beatific look), i see effort in his sweat but not in his expression, see what i mean? i didn't vote this challenge but would have likely scored it a 6.
bear in mind all this from a guy with a 4.x average, so take it from where it's coming.
I just noticed that you hit well with some voters (1 - 10, 1 - 9, 9 - 7's). Also, you got a higher average with participants than non-participants... which is unusual.
Keep on shooting :)
I read a comment you made on another thread so that's what brought me to your Free Study entry.
First of all, it's a Free Study, so I think viewers have a high expectation of "wow" factor (not the typical DPC wow scenic shot???). It's a bit grainy (you know DPCer's like the clean pics), kinda looks like a snapshot (instead of the "show us your best image of the month for a FS"). Composition wise, the cymbal on the left is blocking part of the drummer's head; so if you were able to compose the drummer between the two cymbals, it might have been better. Doesn't "wow" in having a "story" behind it.
With that being said, I think the B&W and grain works well if you are going for a moody image. I actually like the spot of light on his face. As mentioned earlier, if you had been able to frame his head between the two cymbals, it would have been much better. Also, his expression just doesn't give off an "emotional wow"... perhaps if you had captured him in a moment of excited expression or maybe with his eyes closed (to show he was really into his music...???), that would have pulled the viewer into the image/story better...
But I think this was a tough shot to do well in a Free Study...
(Just a humble opinion from a 5.3xxx shooter.)
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