Friday Photo Critique #21
Friday Photo Critique is our weekly community project, where we publish a photograph submitted by one of our wonderful readers, then ask you all to offer constructive feedback on the image.
It’s a great way to learn more about photography, express your viewpoint, and have your own image critiqued. Your response will also be displayed with a link to your website or portfolio, so be sure to enter it correctly when submitting a comment!
Quick Ground Rules
- Play nice! We’ve deliberately chosen photographs that aren’t perfect, so please be constructive with any criticism.
- Feel free to offer any type of advice – composition, lighting, post-processing etc.
- You can also link to photographs that you feel offer a great example of this type of image shot exceptionally well.
Without further ado, here is this week’s candidate for Friday Photo Critique!
The Photograph
Photographer: Adrian Spencer
Please let us know what you think in the comments – how would you have approached the scene or taken the photo differently? A massive thank you to everyone who commented last week.
The most constructive and helpful comments will be featured on the site, and you’ll also be given priority to feature your own work in a future Friday Photo Critique!.
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I like the subject matter. Shooting the music scene is a monster in itself. I like how you captured the expression on the lead guitarist. It appears the gig was done in a recording studio? Your choice of lens is right on! A telephoto or standard would not work as well. Using a wide angle give a stronger sense of connection from the viewer to the subject. More personal in my opinion and distortion adds to the mood of the situation.
Lighting, well it appears that there was some bounced flash off the ceiling? It works, but I think direct or off camera direct flash would be more harsh and could actually enhance the message you were sending with the focus (no pun intended) on the guitarist. Bounce works technically. It averages the scene and lights everyone more gently so you can see them.
I like the glowing rope neckless the fact that it is glowing and not overtaken by the fill flash is a bonus. Who knows how it would have come out with direct flash.
Composition is good, but I would crop out the people on the left if you can without losing too much of the bass guitarist. If not then post process and burn the corner enough so the crowd and light in the corner don’t distract the viewer. Same thing on the right and top of the photo. I am distracted by the molding on the back wall and bright window to the other room. Try darkening the back wall a little in post. I would crop the yellow window part without cutting too much out of the amps and gear. They add mood too.
People like to use too much black and white options during color photo shoots. In this photos, however, B&W may work to an advantage to the overall scene and mood.
Overall great subject mater. The guitarist’s expression is awesome, the gig looks fun and the photo is technically sound.
I like the the action that is going on and the fisheye works with it but I wish there would of been a flash for the left side of the image that could of lit up the crowd.
Maybe you can say to the guitarist to take less drugs :p
And for the picture i think it’s not really well framed, maybe better with the guitarist look the camera and maybe crop the picture on the right or centered on the bassist (the guy on the left).
Tks ^^
R.
Concert photography is difficult, because you often don’t have the control over the situation that you would otherwise and everything happens so quickly in such dark environments.
To me this image doesn’t work. There’s simply too much going on. My eye wanders all over the image and keeps getting distracted from (what I consider to be) the main subject, the guitarist screaming in the center of the photo, by the very bright jumbled guitar cord. Then you’ve got all the other players and the wires and the strong patterns on the floor. It dilutes the power and the emotion of the subject.
I think this would have been improved by getting in really close to the subject and maybe shooting from below. Simplify the photo down to just your subject and try and remove as many elements as you can from the periphery. And keep shooting!
for me i think that a longer exposure to create more movement would bring the scene alive and make it more interesting. i would have also used a flash at the end of the exposure to have a defining image of the subject to lay on top of the blurred movement.
Good work on the image. I have mixed feelings on this image, but I like it more than dislike. There are some things that are good and I will offer MHO with a mix of pos/neg comments. First, I like the fisheye, I like the fact that you knew the crow was important to include, But I agree that there should be more illumination on them for balance. Second, Your perpective is too high. I think you should have lower you camera to raise the horizon. Everyone looks small and with the distortion that is created with the fisheye, this makes the people look less important. Esp. with concert and entertainment photos, the band should look larger than life. Last, you should have adjusted you angle to the subject. With the camera parallel to the wall, it make the capture less dynamic. Love the glowing rope. Love the expression. I understand that there are some constraints in an event like this, but continue onward and grow.
If you were to crop this, use the preview for reference. I think that its an perfect crop.
The subject matter is great, and how you captured the moment makes for a really interesting photo (in a good way!). In regards to composition, I like how the other band members on the left and the affect of the fish-eye circle in and focus your main subject or focal point in the photo — the lead guitarist. And the glowing beads definitely add to that for sure! I also like how the audience is pretty much blacked out, but a few heads pop up. It allows the reader to see that they’re not just playing “kicks-and-giggles” in their mom’s living room, but that they have a fan-base.
All in all, great photo! Would love to see more shots from this scene.
uhm i’d like to see the pic in B/W or cross processed
I think this is a horrible picture…
isn’t this critique on the photo of the buildings and the river?
if so then the picture seems very dark. Making it hard to tell what is going on.