- Category:
- Documentary & news
- Location:
- Heritage Park - Calgary Alberta. Canada
- Camera:
- Olympus E-510
- Description:
- While at a Pow Wow in Calgary this past summer I was fortunate enough to capture some awesome singers and dancers. In this image I was trying to capture the intensity of this young man's singing and drumming while at the drummer's circle.
- Tag(s):
- Singer native drummer First Nations People Pow Wow
-
Zozo
What do you like?
"Energy" is what this image first shouted at me. the movement of the earring increases that feeling too.. i love the immediacy of this image, the feeling of it happening in front of me - i feel connected.
the re-worked version is much better, in that it removes nearly all of the distracting oof highlights of the other person and those of the main subject too.8 February 2016What would you improve?
most of what i would have suggested as improvement has been stated already. it is easy, in the heat of the moment, to forget to check backgrounds. a more open or bland background might have been a better one for this vibrant image.
-
otinkyad
What do you like?
The intensity of the man's expression & posture; the colours of the beadwork; the sharpness of the main man
4 December 2013What would you improve?
The stick "coming out" of the subject's nose really distracts, ditto the black (traditional?) baseball cap. Even though the background is blurred, because the tones are similar I find the face of main subject blends away into the face of the man behind (& the stick). As this would be such a great shot otherwise it might be worth the effort to subdue/replace/lighten? the background post processing.
-
Keith
revised edition as per @johndunkle request.
I had tried a bit of burning in on the highlight of his ear but it became too gray so I cloned that area instead. The rest was burned in (highlights 12% with a 7 pixel soft brush).Helpful 1 3 December 2013
-
-
KeithI'm liking the revision. The square crop is something I rarely do (don't know why) and after looking at it again against the original I also noticed the lighter colored drum stick in the OOF face and this is something I probably would have mentioned had someone else taken this shot yet I only just noticed it in my own work. Hmm.....
3 December 2013
Working in electronic pre-press for many years I had tons of opportunity to clone and do Photoshop work on photos (for the junk mail/flyer publications). -
johndunkleYep - you just hit on one of the things I really like about this site - what we "see" (or don't see) in our own work? I find that when you (or one of the other qualified folks) adds constructive advice, it allows me to "see my image for the first time, again" though your/their eyes - it's a valuable part of the learning process.. And trust me - I'm still a "student" of this art....
3 December 2013
Now - about your previous Photoshop experience... Are you telling me you made "junk mail" look good??? So - you are to blame for all those cheesy flyers, eh??!!! ;) HA!!!
Best to you Keith - and thanks for all you do and your incredible support on this site. Frankly - you are one of the reasons I stick around... My thanks for that...
- John -
-
-
mamtanaidu
What do you like?
Nice pop of colors, right timing, nice expression captured! Different from your usual style... :) A cool shot!
Helpful 1 3 December 2013What would you improve?
Perhaps little more of the blurred man and entire head of the man in focus in the frame would make it even nicer... :) I'm not sure if that was possible with the lens you had...
A story telling shot! Great capture... :)-
KeithThanks Mamta. :) I guess it's all a mater of perception from the viewer (about the blurred man in the background) as to if there is too much or not enough. In this case it is not a cropped photo (the original) so there is not much I could have done about the man in the background. I had hoped at the time of shooting that the shallow DOF would be enough to have him not make such a visual impact in the shot. All the while I was keeping in mind that I needed a fast shutter speed to capture the drum stick in near stopped motion (it was traveling quite fast) yet have a shallow enough DOF for the background. All these things going through my head at once and then trying to get sharp focus with a long lens and manual focus... eye-yi-yi! It certainly was a challenge.
3 December 2013
-
-
johndunkle
What do you like?
For a photographer who professes he's not a "Portrait Photographer" - you sure packed a "whallop" in this image...
Nicely done! What I like is the intensity, the colors and the "up-close and personal" shot. As well - I find the motion of the earring to reinforce and strengthen the visual of motion - which is how I know this man is moving - rather then just "standing". that's my "visual queue" to the story of this image...
The right side provides a terrific framing point (more on this below) and the object that he is carrying provides a natural line to the subjects eyes...
Keith - really outstanding.....!Helpful 2 3 December 2013What would you improve?
This is tough - and only a suggestion or two to try?
First - I'm guessing this is close - or at - full image frame on a Micro 4/3s sensor? If so - what would happen if you cropped the right a bit? See the mans ribbon from his shoulder piece coming into the bottom right of the image? Yep - try it about there, leaving the ribbon itself in the image - and with that - you'll still see the splash of yellow on the top right (about 1/2 a feather..).. OK - now that that's done, have you considered this?
On the left... What would happen if you cropped where the object he is carrying meets the bottom border..? Right about there.. What I'm trying to do is lose the Seattle Seahawks bright green logo on the cap - and make the face of the man in the background less recognizable as a "person of interest" (and the logo/cap). So - try that - and see if it works for you, OK?
Lastly - and this is REALLY a NIT..!!! See the highlights in the ear (inside the rear-most crease and the "thing" that is at the front of his ear (I have ZERO idea what that bump is called on a persons ear - can you tell?? ;) ). Can you bring just those two little areas down just a little bit?
What a phenomenal image, capture and story, Keith...!!! This is really awesome work!
Congrats!
- John-
KeithThanks John for those useful suggestions. I have done them (only took a couple minutes) and here is the result. I hadn't cropped the original on the left because I wasn't sure how well it would have worked with that person's face cropped out of the image. Some may pick at that but like you mentioned it may help make it less of a secondary and inconsequential subject in the poverall shot.
3 December 2013
Yes my Olympus E510 is a 4/3rd's (not micro 4/3rd's) sensor. Not sure of just how much difference between the two are. I am pleased with the camera and the only thing I ma not too thrilled about is it's lack of contrast and amount of digital noise it has at any ISO higher than 800. Thank goodness for Noiseware Pro!
Yeah, portraits... not my forté. When it comes to candid shots though, I like the freedom it gives me although there are things that are beyond my control at times I learn to trey to recognize them and work around that. I would love to do some studio work and maybe one day I'll bum some lights and reflectors from one of the people I know here in Yarmouth. Interior work is not something I am drawn to but exterior shots is where I think I would enjoy the challenge and the results. Lighting and reflectors to be used to enhance the natural light of the sun.
Thanks again for the suggestions.
-
johndunkleHi Keith..! The most important thing is - do you like the revision? You already know I do, as when I opened it - I'm not drawn to OOF full face (and bright green logo), but, then again - "that's just me", as it were? As well - I wish I had your talent to clone - as the highlights are simply stunning - nicely done!!
3 December 2013About your comment below - I know exactly what you mean about doing more studio work... I used to do it way back in a different era (in high school - and NO I did not have to ride a horse to school, I'm not that old! ;) ) - but, now-a-days, only set up makeshifts for static product shots using ambient lighting and ONLY when a client needs "something" and I can't pawn it off to another photographer ;)... Anyway - like you - I'd love to find the time to play around with it again - and I'm supposed to take some product shots later today or tomorrow (for a Sporting Dog Annual Planner) - maybe I'll post one up for review?
Best to you my friend, and bottom line on this shot?
It is awesome.....!
- John