Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is anyone interested in participating in a self-critique thread? I'm sure we all have taken pictures we felt were almost very nice if it weren't for one two things (like chopping the top of someone's head, for example). It might be interesting if we all posted a photo and commented on what we felt we did right or wrong, and how we would do something differently if we had the chance to shoot the picture again.

This might be a good way to learn some photo tips and see what others think makes a picture good.

Anyone interested?

Cheers,
WK

I like the idea.... always interested in getting/giving feedback and pointers...

Here is a shot I took at the Orlando Serpentarium.... love the posture of the snake, but getting a bit of purple light from the outside of the cage.....

I tried a few ways in photoshop to clean it up, but not happy w/any of the results.....

Thoughts?

MDK

Link

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www.thegardensofeden.org

MDK,

That's an awesome king cobra shot. Only thing I can say is maybe changing the angle of the camera in reference to the glass plane, but then it wouldn't be the same picture. The snake lookind directly at you really makes this picture nice.

Did you try the clone stamp in PS? That might work.

Cheers,
WK

I crouched next to this roadside pond for about 20 minutes, waiting for this barking treefrog to call again. When it finally did, I got this near perfect shot including the vibrations of the water. I really like the "bow wave" out in front of his vocal sac.

If it hadn't been for the stupid blade of grass sticking down to his vocal sac, I would have this framed on my wall.

I still like the shot, I just wish I had anticipated the grassblade. In my defense, I was sitting in the absolute dark and just shot when I heard the call. There was no way I could have anticipated the grassblade, and this was in the days before digital photography when you couldn't immediately review.

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Chris Harrison
Does anyone else here think that these scrolling signature lines are stupid?

Great photo, and yes, unfortunate piece of grass.....

I am sure some people would not like this, but photoshop can remove things like that.... in about two minutes, i was able to make the following correction.... more time, would have made it even more seemless....

Some purists would oppose, but I say if you arent altering the main subject, just removing distractions, why not?

MDK

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www.thegardensofeden.org

There is nothing like a true master at work with PhotoShop! Incredible retouch work!
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Bryan, Atlanta GA

1-0-0 Ball Python - Apep
0-1-0 Mountain Horned Dragon - Ki
1-1-0 Rats... no wait... ROTTEN Little Cats - Ra, Bastet
0-1-0 Little Angelic Kitten - Isis
1-0-0 Horse... whoops... BIG Golden Retriever - Jake
0-1-0 Wife
2-0-0 Kids

Wow! That's a great photo. Yes, it's definitely worth plucking that blade of grass in PS then print and frame it.

Regards,

WK

This photo, taken yesterday, is the one that prompted me to start this thread. I'm in the middle of moving and took a break from unpacking to walk around the new back yard to see what was out. I saw this little gtf so went back and got the camera. The flash was still packed away somewhere so I had to use natural sunlight only which produce some harsh shadowing beneath the frog. If I had had the flash, I would have used it to add a little fill from the front.

Well, I'm gone again for a couple days. Looking forward to seeing more of thes "almost" photo posts when I get back. Great stuff!

Cheers,
WK

I still think that ones pretty good. What lense did you use on him?
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-Doug Daly

"Aren't you two a little old to be drinking illegally?"

0.1.0 Leucistic Texas Rat Snake (Elaphe Obsoleta lindheimerii)

www.petitiononline.com/hhogs05/petition.html

Doug,

Thanks. The lens used was the Sigma 180 macro on a D70, aperture f/16 with a shutter speed of 1/200second. I read somewhere that you have to use a speed equal to or greater than 1/focal length of the lens to minimize the effects of camera shake when shooting hand held.

Cheers,
WK

I think it's an excelent shot. You certainly wouldn't be the first to disagree with me in this area, but I think that total lack of shadows makes things look unnatural. It only seems normal to people because they're more used to looking at pictures taken with a flash than at the real world. I think it's a shame that more color photographers don't work with shadow and contrast the way B&W photographers do.

Thanks. I've heard others say that no shadows looks unnatural. I think people who shoot lots of nature macro really like seeing fine details of the subject. Areas that are underexposed or overexposed lose detail, so they like the even exposure that can be achieved with flash.

I think I'll try a little experiment and post a smaller version of this photo (size limits) on the Nikon macro board where the photo challenge / theme for this month is "Life in the Back Yard". It will be interesting to see if any of the macro specialists there mention a need for fill flash.

Cheers,
WK