Cow

[barmy101]

I happened to be tweaking one of my cow shots and took a little break to view this forum and noticed Youngshooter's cows. Here's my cow shot.

[ACArmstrong]

That cow is frightening.

I like how he/she's the darkest thing in the pic. It makes him/her that much more scary. I also like that the barbed wire fence adds an interesting perspective to the pic.

Good job.

[Seb]

Hello Barmy,

Quite frankly, this picture doesnt work for me. Having looked at it on 2 different computers with 2 totally different monitors, it appears that nothing is quite on focus. There is nothing bluried here but there is an overall lack of sharpness. Also, blacks arent black. There is a lack of contrast. Finally, I don't think that facing the cow the way you did give the most interesting perspective. Giving a slight angle to the cow would probably lead to a more dramatic result.

Please understand that I don't want to bash your shot but I just don't think that this is effective the way it currently is. These issues have probably a lot to do with the lightning and the overall weather whille you made this shot. Correct me if I am wrong but the equally bright sky suggest that it was either really sunny in late morning/early afternoon or overcast.

best regards

Seb

[barmy101]

Thanks Seb. The focus is soft because I couldn't keep my lens from fogging--100% humidity. The contrast is low because the weather was foggy and drizzling rain shot in late afternoon.

[stew]

I see the technical objections that were raised, but frankly - i like it! I agree with acarmstrong - that d*mn cow is scary! in a carnival, clown-ish mask sort of way. .... don't know if that makes sense to anyone else, but it's how i see it

The photo has good impact overall. I like the washed out feel of the rest of the scene, while the cow stands out very strongly.

-Stew

[Seb]

Hey all,

Barmy, thank you for these precisions. It does explain the result you have gotten very well.

On third thought, I do understand the point of ACArmstrong and Stew, I cannot quite explain it in words but somehow, this could be some sort of psycho killer cow. The gaze of the cow and the fact that it is lonely in front of that slightly washed out background give a strange creppy feel to the picture. Still, I feel ambivalent about it.

best regards to all

Seb