Water Under the bridge

[cristen]

Tried to catch this boat in between the piers hoping for a good shot. I am not sure about the perspective, though, but I like the curves and the angles especially the white line on top made by the seemingly converging rails of the parallel bridge. Had I moved to the left a bit, would the construction be better? What about that reflection of light on the water? Please comment also on the following settings.

Gear: Canon EOS 500D
Focal Length: 47 mm
Exposure Time: 1/60
Aperture: 5
F Number: f/5.6
Exposure Program: Program
ISO: 100
Shutter Speed: 6
Exposure MOde: Auto

[Browno]

Hi, I'm a complete beginner so I'm not that good at judging peoples pictures yet but I'm told it helps me aswell as you so I'll say what I think. I hope you don't mind.
I like the picture, particularly the bridge ie the lines etc, they're quite unusual. The boat though I think spoils it to a certain extent, I'm not sure whether it's the fact that both ends are cut off behind the pillars (maybe if it had been in the foreground ?) or the fact that it just takes away from what I think is quite a cool unusual bridge, I'm not sure.
I like the reflection on the water because it adds texture if that makes sense ? Maybe standing to the left might give a better picture composition wise but this I'm not sure about because I also think it would look good being dead centre as it's a kind of nice repeating pattern. Like I said I'm a newby so I've yet to learn about angles etc myself.
As for the settings I don't really know. At the moment I would have just had to play around till I got it right and then the boat would have been lon gone !

Kind Regards

[hey joni]

Hi Cristin

I think this has potential to be a great location. There are strong lines on the verticals, horizontals and diagonals.

There are also different textures (concrete and water) that can be exploited for additional interest.

I personally would prefer the boat to not be there at all. the structure is magnificent in shape and scale and the boat pales in comparison in terms of how interesting it is (IMO, let's be clear on that

I would have been lower, to the left and the lines at the top would have been central. I would also watch for the blown sky. 2 shots and mild HDR may have been necessary to battle this dark under bridge/bright sky issue.

I also don't know what lens you are using, but 47mm isn't very wide when you consider how big the structure is. What lens were you using? I'm a wide angle guy, so it's prob just my POV.

Me being me, I would also have used a long exposure to blur water and clouds (if there were any). I would also probably have gone black and white to really dramatise the scene and has some dodge an burn on the pillars.

If I had used a wide angle lens, I may even consider a square crop (keeping the vertical size and matching the width to that.)

I would probably have used about F/16 for DOF and to give a long exposure, probably using an ND filter too. this means you will need a tripod and potentially a remote shutter release too.

all in all, I can see what you wanted and you were relatively successful, I just think that there is so much potential here that you should maybe consider returning with a distinct type of image in mind.

This is just my opinion and what I think I would do in this situation. It doesn't make me right, you are your own person and you are new so your eye for these things will develop over time.

I hope my comments have been useful?

Kev

[Krusty79]

I like the contrast of the colorful boat vs. the straight lines and uniform color of the bridge. The one thing that bugs me about this shot is that they way the boat is painted or rides in the water makes the horizon look uneven. I know that was out of your control, but that's one of the first things that struck me.

I know we usually preach the rule of thirds here, but I think in this case, I would prefer to see a more centered composition where I can see the bridge support on the left side as well as the right. I believe that would emphasize the symmetry of the bridge and add some depth to both sides of the image.

The reflection of the sky in the water is a little distracting, but you can edit that in PP. I don't think you could have used a ND filter to smooth that out, as the boat would have been gone by then. I don't mind the sky being blown out, as the whiteness adds to the converging lines of the bridge.

[cristen]

Great comments, guys. Yes, the location has great potential and there's a lot of "should haves" here.

Being a newbie, I still have not explored the gear to the fullest and I still lack the knowledge. When taking shots, I only rely on my instincts and the interest evoked in me by the sights. I do have a wide angle lens but I never thought of using that in this shot. The place was actually full of people and it was just a lucky moment for me. I would have moved back further to take the shot but then the rails along the promenade would have been visible.

I have not yet tried using filters, nor PP. My capabilities are still limited to cropping and Picasa and Windows Pic Gallery. As I was merely a tourist when I took the shot, I will endeavor to be back and try to take several shots again of this place at different angles and using tripod. A BW rendition would also be nice sans the boat. But as for now, I like the boat being there (except that both it's ends were cut) because of the contrast between its color and the starkness of the concrete and water.

Thanks so much. I read your comments over and over again. I may be too old to remember everything but I am willing to learn. Cheers!!!

[NgaiHill]

I like the potential of this shot and agree with others above that the boat is a bit of a distraction.
If you are able to revisit the scene have you thought of going back at night? I'd love to see what effect (if any) the lights from the bridge have - some calm water and you could get some great reflections. Keep up the good work!

[cristen]

Thank you for all your comments. They are all very helpful to someone like me. Texture, composition, symmetry, DoF, HDR... doh! I have lots to learn. Am really grateful, guys.