Critiquing And The Impact It Can Have - The Emotional Connection To Your Subject

That is so dead-on Rebecca. There is a passion behind things that you are emotionally connected to. I paint mostly birds, water fowl and any bird found in the swamp. The connection is that my father was a tough old trapper. I grew up seeing the beauty of blue, white and pink wonders flying above the moss filled cypress trees. This is one of the fondest memories that I have and therefore, what I paint.

Thanks Phyllis! I think most of us who create know subconsciously that we have an emotional pull, but often we don't think of it as a TOOL. And then comes the process of thinking through how to use that tool. As you can see in the photos above, there is a vast difference in what the viewer can see about me in the work itself. The building (at the moment) says, "yep, that's an old building all right - so?" and the still life says "these things are important, they are used, they are vital to the artist." The still life shows a pause in the life of an artist, it's telling a story. The building simply shows the structure without a story.

I'm learning! And it helps now when I go back and review past art work and photography.
Rebecca

Rebecca,

By volume, most images here are at best,snapshots. "Oh, that's interesting,"snap" leave. If you find yourself taking a photo,stop and think "why" am I taking this image. In the case of your country store, you saw something, "snap" and move on. There was a shot there,in fact probably many and I would and could have spent an hour there or so. Here's a similiar image as yours and when I was there, I saw people stopping their car, take their camera or smart phone and take a snapshot and drive on.



I was there about 20-30 minutes and now have about 7 shots on my site, "Fall Colors" and a few that I haven't gotten back to.

The same with your store. IF you had stopped and then tried to find the "personality" of that store and it could have been just a tight shot of something in the window, you would have felt better about the first and only shot you took. I don't know if I've ever just taken a single shot of something. I'd rather not shoot it, if it's that boring, only has one shot in it.

Here's another example of an image, that I've been photographing for a number of years and really never got the shot that was in my mind, but this is it or at least very close:



And here's the close to original capture,before I invested sometime and got the image to where I thought it should be. You can see some stuff in the B&W that I later removed, for the first image I posted,because that's how I saw the image in my mind.



Just as you did with your still life. I assume you didn't walk into your studio and there was everything, just waiting and the "tweaking" to get it all perfect was an investment,like my spending the time at the church or fort.

I'm at the point of knowing what's worth the investment and what's not. I'm sure I've passed up images,probably great images, but if they don't pull me,then they belong to someone else. And I have no problem with that. Part of the Art.

You of course,also have a very good eye and it shows,especially with this still life you "made". But with the store image, you knew there was something there,waiting to be found, but for some reason, time,company,etc. you didn't listen to that tiny voice inside saying "I really think there a great shot here,let's go find it!".

Hope this helps.

My only critique of your still life, is that I would prefer to see everything sharp and I'm looking at the brushes,brush tips,mostly. And this is just a depth of field thing so if this set-up is still there, go reshoot it and see if you agree, more Vemeer-ish!

Rich

Bravo! A good photographer strives to go beyond documentation.

Edward, the peony shot is gorgeous, and it's one of my favorite flowers.

Rich, thank you for weighing in. I know the brushes are soft, I seem to be doing something that I cannot figure out how to change. I was using the 18-55mm lens, on a tripod. I always get a shallow depth of field, whether I want it or not. Look how sharp Edward's is. When I focus, manually, the center is sharp, but not the outlying areas. I've been looking for the answer, could you help?

(I've learned a long time ago, that I don't care if the question sounds stupid to others, I care about getting better! ha)

Rebecca

(and by the way, FAA printed it as it is now 18 x 24; doesn't mean I want it to stay that way)

rich, what are you using for that brush effect?

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Rebecca, I know EXACTLY what you mean. Whereas I really like your still life and I like still life in general, I'm terrible at setting them up so I really don't have any except "found" still lifes at the beach.

With your store, however, I would have been drooling over the two windows to the left of the door and would have gotten just those in an image. I wanted to be an architect when I was young, so I'm still drawn to all kinds of structures, and I do much better with those images because they "speak" to me, especially the "bits and pieces" (windows, doors, corners, etc.).

It's important to understand what you're trying to say before you press the shutter button. Your images need narrative.

As for sharpness throughout a scene, you should be using f-stops in the f8-11 range, and focusing carefully. Pay attention to what you see in the viewfinder and don't use the LCD for critical focusing.

Rebecca,

It's both simple and complicated so let's get the complicated out of the way first.

Depth of Field,DOF, is the area that falls into focus,I'm simplyfing here,mostly for me! If this was a flat subject, a wall,for instance, everything would be in focus,since there's only one surface and it's not multi-dimensional. YOUR set-up is multi-dimensional and there's the rub. If we all get up now and walk around to the side of this still life and not bump into anything in the process, we'll see that this certainly isn't a "flat image" but even worse, has a right angle thrown into it, The back wall runs up and the table top comes out to the camera! OY VEY! So where do you put the "focal point"? What do I focus on?

Well, here's a tiny bit of science,no don't go away, just a tiny bit,really, trust me. The way that DOF "works" is this and it's simple, no matter what camera/lens, etc. you have, 1/3 from where you put the focus, or focal point in the image and in this case, Rebecca placed the focal point on the orange crayon-ish thingie in the back of the wooden box. So from the orange crayon forward, the focus will come out 1/3 from there and 2/3rds back from there. So if we were talking inches, one inch toward the camera is in focus and 2 inches back are in focus.( I'm lying a little here, the back part usually is longer than 2/3rds, more like 3/3rds!) or appears that way. So Rich, how do I make this more like 6 inches toward the camera/lens? Good question Rich!

More math-y anwers. As you increase the F-stop, the DOF will also increase!!! So let's say this was photographed at say F5.6 and instead we was shot at F11 or F16 or F22, then EVERYTHING on the table would have been sharp or at least sharper.( I'm seeing a slight degree of movement in the image, from either the tripod,the floor moving, or the operator! For stuff like this, I would use Mirror Lock-up and or the timer and a cable release and maybe not enlarge it either).

This formula works on table top and out in the mountains, just a math-y thing.

And of course the opposite is true too. If you WANT shallow DOF, then focus on the important element in the image and everyhting else will soften, if shooting at a larger(hole/aperture) like F2.8 or F4.

Murray brings up a good point! As usual!

When you KNOW DOF, you can get a bit lazy and focus further from the back, and in this case,with the right Fstop, you could actually focus out front, on the blue crayon, KNOWING that everything behind the blue crayon will be in DOF or focus..........

Rich

Processing, thank you! The set up is still there, so I think I will give it another shot (no pun intended).

Edit - Rich, those are oil pastel sticks, so now you know a bit about painting!

A bit is stretching it!!!

Ask any questions you have,remember there are no dumb questions.............just dumb answers.................

Rich

Mike,

Sorry, missed your question. I'm using Topaz Impression,which many of my images are put through now,I really like it!

Email me if you have more questions..........

Rich

thanks i'll have to look into it.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Mike,

I've really only used about 10% of it,but if you have any questions,let me know,

Rich

As a painter the emotional connect for me is there PRIOR to even starting a painting. I paint what moves me, be it an image in my mind or a photo I've taken in my travels or just bike riding in the park.My most recent painting is of a pet (budgie) I had to put to sleep. I'm still working on it, as I've never painted feathers or fur. It is the best grief therapy for me and my family. My abstract paintings are a different story. I let my subconscious take over and I never know what I get. It may be crap, but I least I have a blast creating it. I have yet to discover my genre, as I am a work in progress. I have an affinity for the ocean and am looking forward to painting this as my next future projects.

Sharpness on the Peony shot - I believe it was F22. Canon 70-300 lens on a Canon 6D mounted on tripod and using studio flash 1/25 of second with big softbox. White poster board to bounce some light into the shadows. Plus Dynamic Contrast using Perfect Effects 8 from OnOne Software.

For me the biggest challenge was to convey the emotion of being at sea and near huge ships and oil rigs. All of the photos I had seen were very stocky looking and I knew that sailors on steel ships and offshore workers have the same connection to the sea as all the merchants and fisherman of long ago who are romanticized in art. I started by taking lots of sky photos and becoming a sky photographer. But I had another purpose for doing that. I had a pre-visualization of the types of shots I wanted. I wanted to shoot a big ship and have the sky look like it does in some of the landscape photography I admire. I wanted a rig in morning light with sunbeams. It's pulling together a lot of things including light, subject, background, composition and perspective. But when you do it, all that is second nature and you really feel it come together. You shoot at the peak of the emotion. That's the rush I Iove about photography. I was literally hanging off a passing ship to get the first shot here. On the next I waited on a grey drizzly morning and hoped the sun would break through. Both images sell well for art prints as well as licensing.

Sometimes we think too much about what we think is best for our buyers, instead of what are buyers think is best for them.

well, I am going to do something of an about face here, and I hope I don't offend anyone, but I do not take this lightly.

Firstly, I will say that I am very grateful for friends on here who give thoughts when asked. And I am ALWAYS grateful to learn more, such as understanding more about DOF and F stops.

However....

I had ordered the Blue Still Life on canvas in 18 x 24, along with another piece, just for myself. It arrived today. After it was removed from all of the packaging, and placed on a wall where I could scrutinize it in the light, I realized that I really liked it the way it was. Two artists who were here briefly, saw it and were very excited about it. I mentioned that I was thinking about reshooting it with a different depth of field and replacing it, and they both turned to me and said "NO! Don't do that" in unison. And then went on to have some pretty specific things to say. And they are also people I respect. And I realized I felt so relieved!

I have been struggling the past few days with where was I going as an artist. My 31 year old daughter mentioned to met that I seemed to have lost my delight in what I was doing since I had become so caught up with concern about the marketing part of things. She is right. And when I made that image of the still life, that was the first time I had felt that delight in quite some time. The way I saw the image was as a painterly statement. I knew the brush ends were not sharp, but I liked it that way. And it's ok.

I have also been, subconsciously, measuring myself against other artists/photographers here. My fault. I have been confusing respect for other's point of view as if it meant I had to push down my own style, my own voice. I know that some on FAA do not think artists should be photographers and vice versa. I know that some do not like HDR. Some think abstract is not an art form. Some really don't like realism. But we all had to find our voice!

I think the comments about my image of the old store were all pretty accurate. And I asked for the input and learned from it. However, I realize that I disagree with the comments about the still life. However, when I shoot something the next time, I will have more of an awareness of F stops and DOF as I work. And it's funny about the store, I was there for almost an hour, with a tripod, and took many shots in different ways, and it still doesn't look right. But when I read Mary Bedy's comments about the windows, I did a mental slap to my forehead and thought "Yes - that's it!" I need to rethink how I was approaching the subject and as Ken Young said a month ago - the intimacy of it.

And Kevin, you just gave me the courage to say all this. There is something about this still life image that seems to engage certain people. And I want my joy back, and if it means I don't sell as much as someone else, so be it.

Anyway, I admire so many of you. I have been on FAA for a year and a half and learned so much, and I know I will continue to learn. And I'm not afraid to ask questions. But I need to have the confidence in myself as to the final decision. That's what most of you do, isn't it?

I'm glad to be part of the group!

Rebecca

Good for you Rebecca, just remember your asking artists here who all like a certain style. You will find the right buyers.

I absolutely completely totally agree. On The Nose, Rebecca. That emotional connection between the image and myself is vital. But going beyond that ... somehow conveying it to a viewer ... awesomenesssss!!! When I'm successful and have someone else make that connection WITH me ... that's the real reason I do this.

There was a thread here recently that I read ... something about ... are you in it for the money ... and I really didn't have anything to say. I love making sales and the $$ ... wowzer ... yeah baby!!! See, making that sale more than likely represents a connection!! But even when I get a comment on an image from someone who connected ... with a pic of an old wood stove or with a pic of an outhouse or an old schoolroom ... even a birdie shot a particular way ... that connection is almost tangible. The connection from the image to me ... the taking of it ... the day, the way the wind was blowing ... the song in my head at the time ... the messing with it to enhance mood ... then having IT reach out to someone else.

Man.

That's it.

It does NOT get any better.

Totally agree, Rebecca! I think that's what makes the difference between art as a job and art as a passion. If I'm not enthused about the subject, there's no faking it. That's why I've taken an indefinite hiatus from commission work. It's just not fulfilling to me in the way that creating my own art from scratch is.

Rebecca,

Most Excellent!

Glad to hear that you're happy with the original and that's how it should always be. If you take or create a shot, that YOU like, then you're done,otherwise you're out there chasing your tail.

Only measure your work against your own work, and watch it as it grows and matures. There are a ton of artists here that are "better" than me, but I don't spend a second trying to chase that thought. I produce the work that I like and if I'm satisfied with the result, then I'm done.

I've been here since 2011 and I've never asked for a critique or advice on how to improve any of my images, because if I like them, that's all that counts, and hopefully others,(buyers) will feel the same way!

Rich

Ive learned to find an artist you aspire to be like and ask them for a critique. If not, your just going to get a mixture of information (i dont like that or I do like that) that just more confusing.

"Art without heart is just wallpaper."