Jerky

[GB1]

Comments welcome.

[Photo-John]

I've been thinking a lot about the Photo Critique Forum lately, and deeper critiques - more than just the technical stuff. So in that spirit, I want to know why you stopped to take this picture? And even more than that, I am curious about why you chose to give it the Orton Effect treatment. I think you have a great subject - a classic Mojave / Palm Springs / Joshua Tree desert scene. I like the subject, but I'm not so sure about the misty treatment. What is it meant to convey?

Also - did you try this as a black-and-white? I keep thinking it would be a perfect black-and-white subject, without the Orton Effect.

[GB1]

PJ,

Thanks for the Featured Photo.

Why did I take the image? Standard protocol, actually: I think old decaying structures like abandoned buildings and signs make thoughtful subjects. I like ghost towns too, though they're often overdone a bit / too touristy. I look at something like this and try to let myself and the viewer visualize what once was, or what someone hoped it to be but didn't succeed. Sort of like a time-warp, or alternative reality

Why the hazy/misty effect? Well, the shot didn't quite come out as I hoped. I don't blame the area or myself so much as the lighting: I shot this too much in the middle of the day, as I was on a road trip from Joshua Tree CA to Chloride AZ and didn't have time to hang out and wait till sunset. That's one of the sadist things on these trips - a lot of worthy subjects, but often very crappy times of day. I look for tricks to pull some sort of success, HDRs being one, or in this situation adding an effect to try to get it to look more dreamy. On the plus side, it allows me to experiment with effects and not feel like I'm ruining a good shot, for if the source material has a fatal flaw then I'm starting with nothing anyway, here the flaw being very flat lighting.

Anyway - long explanation to your questions. Hope it gets something going.

Here's a B&W version where I took out the tree and hit it w/ a few other effects .... I think it's trying too hard myself.

G