Dino Driver

[samhail]

I posted some of these in the share your shots section but I now would like to get a critique. I am thinking of entering this photo into a local contest. The theme of the contest is "Long Exposure". Obviously this fits the bill. I've gotten some nice comments so I know people like it but my question is how does it hold up technically? Do the light streaks distract from the photo or add to it? Any places i should focus on in PP?


I do have two other questions, but since I can't post another pic I'll link it. For this picture which is technically better? and If you had to choose to submit one into a contest then which one would it be?
Any advice/ comments are appreciated.

[samhail]

No one? Anyone?

[polar.bear]

hii.. i am a newbie so i dont know if my opinions are any good, but this is what i think. if i was to choose between the two, i would definitely go for the light streaks. but things that i would change would be to perhaps clean the mirror :P, make the bottom of the mirror parallel to the baseline, also, if possible, have the origin of the light streak behind the mirror around the head of the dino? i am not sure how that'd look like but it might be worth a try! the shot is awesome though. oh and i love the dino! hope you it helps. and good luck with your contest. and let me know what you think of my comments!

[samhail]

Originally Posted by polar.bear

hii.. i am a newbie so i dont know if my opinions are any good, but this is what i think. if i was to choose between the two, i would definitely go for the light streaks. but things that i would change would be to perhaps clean the mirror :P, make the bottom of the mirror parallel to the baseline, also, if possible, have the origin of the light streak behind the mirror around the head of the dino? i am not sure how that'd look like but it might be worth a try! the shot is awesome though. oh and i love the dino! hope you it helps. and good luck with your contest. and let me know what you think of my comments!

You don't have to be an expert to have a good opinion (or even a bad one) Thanks for the reply. I'll clean the mirror up and try to straighten it out. As for the other thing with the light I think changing that is a little beyond my skill level at this point. Thanks for the suggestions. It helps to know what other people think about the pictures.

[polar.bear]

thanks for the encouragement!! maybe you can sit in the back seat and have someone else hold up the dino?

[Sterling]

The light streaks look great. The image in the mirror is where it breaks down a little. IMO, besides the water spots, three things need to go - the partially open window, the seat belt behind(!) the "driver", and the ribbon looking thing hanging over the back seat. These things all distract the eye and clutter up the scene. Also, I think the mirror image needs to be lightened (really just the Dino needs to be lightened to give it some contrast with the background).

[samhail]

Originally Posted by Sterling

The light streaks look great. The image in the mirror is where it breaks down a little. IMO, besides the water spots, three things need to go - the partially open window, the seat belt behind(!) the "driver", and the ribbon looking thing hanging over the back seat. These things all distract the eye and clutter up the scene. Also, I think the mirror image needs to be lightened (really just the Dino needs to be lightened to give it some contrast with the background).

Thanks for the reply Sterling. I appreciate any and all feedback. I agree with you all all points. The window had to be opened partially in order to hold the mount and camera. Maybe next time I'll try it on the back window. I may try to clone the seat belt out. Not sure if it can be done. As for the ribbon that's me leaning over to try and get out of the shot. No matter how far I leaned or adjusted the mirror I always seemed to be in it a little. I'll see if I can darken the shadow there so I won't be as clear. Thanks for the comments.

[Christian Michael]

I agree with all points made above, I would also like to add you may want to simulate speed through the back window which you can see in the reflection of the mirror.
It may be easier to retake the shot and paste the image back into the streaks of light as a new layer, merge down, and alter the colours and contrasts at the same time. If this doesn’t work, do each layer individually, maybe even try it with a few lower streaks being red to simulate tail lights.