A couple of possible club entries

[Didache]

Hi all .. as my photo club is nearing the end of its season, it's time I started generating some material for next season's league competitions. My usual thing is to produce some photos, print them up and then sit on them for a month or two to see if I still like them. These are a couple of "possibles". The first is "The Orangery" at Hampton Court Palace near London. It was the Royal palace from the late 1500s to the early 1700s - the orangery was a sort of greenhouse where orange trees would grow in pots. (As an aside, I had to wait for ages to get nobody in the room, and also for the guides to leave as you aren't supposed to take pics indoors there!!!) The second photo is one of my bluebell wood series.

Cheers
Mike

[julsoph]

I really love the patterns in that first shot, Didache...great floor, and the repetition of the windows with the lighting is so nice.

Emily

[Herriot]

The first shot gets my vote as well Mike, I really like the repeating window patterns on the floor created by the bright light streaming into the shot. I would maybe crop slightly at the bottom, the only issue I have with the image is the stracy light to the bottom left of the shot.

Thanks for sharing
Herriot

[LeeIs]

Love the perspective and the colours on the first shot. It's a very strong image. I love the beams of light hitting the floor as well. very nice capture.

[Didache]

Thanks everyone for your kind words. The shaft of light at the bottom left bothers me a little too. I tried cropping it out but without that one window there it isn't as strong, I think. Also, I tried cloning it out, but the area is too large and too graduated in tone to do it convincingly. I may dodge it a little to reduce its impact, but I think that will be the best I can do.

Cheers
Mike

[Lava Lamp]

I think they are both quite good and probably richer in detail than we can see as a small web reproduction. #1 is probably my favorite, but I've seen it or a room very similar depicted before. The other shots I've seen had a model, which leads me to my thinking about both of these, which is they would seem to be better served with a foreground object of some sort. As a people and animal photographer, I tend to think it should be a person, but not neccesarily.

Good luck. I think these are both worthy entries.

[zrfraser]

I like the first one the best, and I think you can crop that shaft of light without it hurting your overall theme. The theme is patterns, and if you crop that shaft of light out then there will be a repaeting pattern that looks very interesting in my opinion.

[Seb]

Hi all .. as my photo club is nearing the end of its season, it's time I started generating some material for next season's league competitions. My usual thing is to produce some photos, print them up and then sit on them for a month or two to see if I still like them. These are a couple of "possibles". The first is "The Orangery" at Hampton Court Palace near London. It was the Royal palace from the late 1500s to the early 1700s - the orangery was a sort of greenhouse where orange trees would grow in pots. (As an aside, I had to wait for ages to get nobody in the room, and also for the guides to leave as you aren't supposed to take pics indoors there!!!) The second photo is one of my bluebell wood series.

Cheers
Mike

Mike, while these are both fine photographs I would personally go for the first one. I enjoy the repeating patterns and your point of view but there is something more about this picture, something unique which possibly comes from the warm natural lighting and how it interacts with the objects in the room.

The second one is "only great". I can't pin point any flaw. The execution seems dead on to me but it doesn't have the first one magic if it makes any sense.

Seb

[Didache]

Hi all - thank again for your comments. I''ve changed number one slightly according to some of the things you've all pointed out. 1) I have cropped the left in order to remove that shaft - it bothered me too. 2) I've cropped very very slightly the right side too. 3) Another friend has pointed out that it need to be rotated just slightly to the right. 4) I have cloned out the tiny figure you can just see in the doorway at the end.

New version is included.

Cheers
Mike

[natatbeach]

there is potential in the first---Wondering if you had considered cropping the statues out completely(from the door in the background all the way to the righjt...---in my opinion makes for a stronger image.

The second doesn't really appeal to me---pretty but judged off the first one not as strong and image

[PlantedTao]

The second photo, although technically good, has no subject matter that holds the viewers attention. Good, but kinda boring and LL's suggestion (the human elelment) is what I was thinking.

The first is great and your crop is minimal but helped the overall photo. Really good job on this photo and this would be at the top of my list for entries.

Cheers.