Photo Challenge 1 – Garden

Photo Challenge 1 – “Garden”

This week’s challenge was initially deemed an easy one by some of us.  However I quickly pointed out that it could, like any theme, be interpreted in a very obvious way or in a totally obscure manner.  The artist defines the interpretation, not the public expectation.

Steve’s submission:

My thoughts: I don’t go out into the garden unless it is to sit in the sun and read a book, or play with the cats. And even then, it’s not for long.  But I do like to collect information. Therefore a bookshelf with gardening books is my own garden.  I shot this with the Canon 350D at ISO 400, 1/40, f2.2 and 50mm. The result is barely any depth of field, which shows on some of the books, and not a terribly sharp image due to motion.  However, I am a lazy photographer and just like to capture something as soon as I see it or have the idea.  So no amount of time was going to be spent on lighting this bookshelf any better, and I didn’t feel like adding any image noise that Ken might be want to bag me about.  I chose to desaturate all except the greens, simply because gardens are supposed to be green.  I kept some yellow because dying lawn is yellow.

Ken’s submission:

My thoughts: Ken didn’t let me down with his first submission.  He chose to apply strong compositional rules with his use of lines drawing the eye through the image, and his placement of the fence post. There is a natural border created by the shrubs in the foreground, and the shot was taken with extreme wide angle to create a panoramic effect.  What is most striking to me is the definition of the clouds and, to a lesser degree, the plow rows.  He does this with a combination of HDR, in this case created from 7 separate images across the exposure spectrum, and good contrast management in post-processing. The result, a hastily finished image that would still look amazing on a wall.  The connection with our theme is that it is a market garden near the Point Cook RAAF base.

Ken says, “Most of the fields are filled with Cauliflower and I suspect this one has just been readied for a new crop.  This photo is a blend of seven bracketed photos and shot with the Tokina 12-24mm on a Nikon D2X. I merged the images in Photomatix Pro and tone mapped accordingly.  It could use a bit more work with burning and dodging, but due to time constraints i will leave as it is.”

Mat’s submission:

My thoughts: OK, there is either a lot, or very little to say about Mat’s shot, from the point of view of an uninformed observer.  I personally don’t like the shot for many reasons, but that’s not to say the guy next to me doesn’t love it. As you will find out over time, Mat has a very different way of looking at things to me.

This shot was taken at Campbell’s Cove near Point Cook, on the smelly seaweed garden that gathers over the Point Cook coastline during the winter then rots as the summer heat kicks in.  I guess the bland colours and flat lighting, combined with an uncomfortably claustrophobic crop and a forlorn seagull poking me in the eye, work well to tell the story of unpleasantness this “garden” presents to the visitor.  Note to anyone wanting to travel down there to capture a better beach image – Campbell’s Cove is the home to what is probably Australia’s most revolting nude beach.  The inhabitants are about as unattractive as the location.

Mat says, “The rotting seaweed garden of Campbell’s Cove.  Come for the decay, stay for the stench.”

Joepi’s submission:

My thoughts: This is a simple but beautiful and natural image, that immediately calms and relaxes you when you view it.  Long-term staring may bring attention to technical issues, or scruffiness of some of the flowers, but that would be taking away from the intended enjoyment of the image. You wouldn’t critique a cut flower arrangement instead of being soothed by it’s simple placement in a vase, would you?  I’ll stick my neck out and critique it anyway.   Whilst the depth of field is OK, the white flowers directly behind the main subject serve to take away from the definition of the flowers. A cleaner backdrop, even if made up of leaves and branches would help the main orchid bunch to dominate the image.  The darker leaves around the outside make for a nice vignette.  The lighter, unopened buds to the bottom left distract me a little.  But I’ll finish by saying that the moment this file opened on my desktop my immediate reaction was “ah, very nice”. Just as a bouquet of flowers may do.

Joepi says, “Orchids have always reminded me of my Mum’s garden. The color contrasts of purple and yellow-green off-set by the whites just make for a very fresh and clean feel. This photo was taken in Tagaytay last Sept. 28. Canon EOS 400D, 1/2500 sec f/1.8 at ISO-200. Edited in Picasa.

Next

I hope this first post serves to raise a few hackles, soothe a few savage beasts, and get the juices flowing for another round.  The next challenge theme is tougher. It is “submission“, and is due by Sunday 16th November.

Hawaiian Shirt Day at the office

 Things are never dull in the life of your typical IT employee, and I’ve got the proof right here!

If you’ve ever thought about starting your career in IT then our Hawaiian Shirt Day yesterday  must just about seal it for you.  Never mind the fact that it was actually the Creative Design team that came up with the idea.  Hey, you don’t think these things can be left to the actual IT department do you?  I am a little surprised we weren’t looking for our whitest t-shirts and pants for “Mac v PC Day” though…

If you want more career incentives, go check out the rest of my shots from the day.