Singapore National Day 2010 - Fireworks!

[darrenf]

A picture of Singapore's cityscape during our national day celebration:

[darrenf]

Hope you guys like it.

[daq7]

Nice work. I don't like the fact that I can't view it larger, but it is a decent shot.

[darrenf]

Hi Daq7, you may check out the larger version of this pic from: http://www.darren-francis.com/landscape/e2475cdd4

[daq7]

Yep, really nice.

[darrenf]

Thanks! Daq

[Photo-John]

Nice work. I don't like the fact that I can't view it larger, but it is a decent shot.

Why is it decent? What could he have done to make it better?

[DGK*CRONE]

great shot. looks like everyone is celebrating! Is that a concert going on at the bottom right?

[LeeIs]

Great shot. I love the multiple lights, reflections and all the great colour in this. Somehow I think it might have been better had the perspective on the building on the left wasn't so distorted. Have you tried lense distortion correction in photoshop? you might lose some of the image but i think it might make it nice.

anyways, I like it as is.

[Photo-John]

Finally - thanks for posting a real critique!

[Photo-John]

This is a very cool scene, Darren. You've got a truly great location for fireworks photos. I'm a little jealous! I think maybe all the cool lights in the scene ended up distracting you, though. I think there's too much going on and I agree with Leels that the building on the left is a distraction. However, I think you should have just left it out or that you should crop this.

For me, the real action in this photo are the two fireworks bursts and I would either frame or crop accordingly. For a crop, I'd go way tighter on the left and come up a bit on the bottom. I think that will focus the viewer's attention on the real subject and make the whole image stronger. I also think you can go a little darker to hold some of the highlight detail.

Like I said, this is a great location, I think you just tried to include too much of what was in front of you. One of a photographer's most important skills is learning what to leave out. Always ask yourself what in a scene really matters and try to eliminate anything that doesn't really add to the photo.

I hope that's useful to you. I'd love for you to try a new crop and new processing and share the new version with us

[daq7]

I disagree completely. Firework photos are a dime a dozen. What is important about this shot is the context. The buildings that give a sense of perspective and the amazing coolness of Singapore itself. I too thought of suggesting a tighter crop and chose not to, because it would damage the shot. Which is why I didn't say any more than that. When I have a critique to give I give it.

[Photo-John]

I disagree completely. Firework photos are a dime a dozen. What is important about this shot is the context. The buildings that give a sense of perspective and the amazing coolness of Singapore itself. I too thought of suggesting a tighter crop and chose not to, because it would damage the shot. Which is why I didn't say any more than that. When I have a critique to give I give it.

But this is a photo critique forum. I'm on a mission this week to encourage everyone who posts on this forum to make the extra effort to offer the photographer something useful. It's ok to disagree, too. The point of good critique isn't to be right. It's to put out a bunch of ideas that the photographer may or may not use to improve their photo. And the reality is, we won't usually be able to improve a photo that's already been taken. But we can take what we learn from a critique session and apply it to future work. But if no one bothers, then no one is going to grow.

[darrenf]

Thanks for the comments!

@DGK*CRONE
Yup, there a concert at the bottom right.

@LeeIs
Yeah, I could remove the distortion with photoshop but I decided to leave it. For some reason I like the distortion of wide angled lenses. Its gives an interesting perspective. I only remove the distortion if I'm shooting a really huge group of people and have no choice but to go really wide with my lens. Thanks for the suggestion though.

[darrenf]

@Photo-John & @daq7
Thanks for the suggestion. John, I understand where you're coming from. I chose to go really wide because I wanted to show how Singapore looks as well as the activities and fireworks that could be seen from where I was. However, art is very subjective and people have different preferences. As such, I brought a second camera with slight more telephoto lens and took the pictures at the same time. The result was a shot that is more focused on the fireworks at the top and the buildings had hardly any distortion. I believe the shot should be preferred by photographers who are more technical.

Really appreciate the comments guys, thanks!

[daq7]

I, on the other hand, am depressed about the whole thing and tempted to just move on...