Photo Critique Session

So yesterday our class had a photography workshop with a lecture in the morning and a practice session in the afternoon. Then today we had a pin-up of our work -- images from both the workshop and anything we've taken so far on the trip. And lemme tell ya, there was some FANTASTIC work. The images presented ran the gamut -- they were comic, serious, sad, enlightening, confusing, nauseating, raw, mischievous, and stirring. Hopefully others plan to post their work, because there were some truly inspiring photos. Here are the photos I presented, plus a few that didn't quite make the cut for today's review:


Tour St Jacques - I liked the crisp definition of the tower, and the saturated colors of the sky and trees. Too bad there's that wayward branch on the left hand side. I'll be photoshopping that out soon...


Gardens at Château de Versailles - I had to try a lot of different combinations of exposure times and aperture settings to get the right lighting effect without washing out the green or creating too much contrast.


Académie du spectacle équestre de Versailles - Such sad eyes...


Le Portager du Roi Versailles - Such intense eyes... yet that intensity is completely undermined by the blade of grass hanging from the beak.


Studio space - playing with shutter speeds. The subjects were not warned that I was taking a photo of them.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - A close-up of a stained glass window. I was playing with exposure times here, letting the light wash out the image.


Archive Nationales: Musée de l'Histoire de France - In the courtyard. I loved the straight lines and rigidity here, especially the vertical columns and the way the woman is sitting on the bench. I only wish the sun had been a little brighter so the shadows of the columns on the wall were a little stronger.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - This statue of a woman in mourning was utterly captivating.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - This version seems a bit stronger than the other, as the statue is not immediately readable. There is a little more mystery to it, a bit more of a story.


Centre Pompidou - Looking at a structural truss member through a window, in front of another window. I like the layered effect created by seeing a reflection on top of the actual object, as well as seeing a reflection of that reflection in the other window.


Centre Pompidou - The tables in the cafe on the top floor were all decorated with a single rose. I really like the stark color contrast here.


Gardens at Château de Versailles - The reflection of a guard fence around a fountain pool. I like that the reflection is strong enough and clear enough that it's almost impossible to see the water, or to see the image as a reflection at all.


Le Portager du Roi Versailles - Flowers filtered through a piece of rippled glass. Very impressionistic.


Académie du spectacle équestre de Versailles - The light from the fixtures is very nice, but the natural light falling through the windows is a bit harsh...


Passage du Grand Cerf - The metaphoto: me taking a picture of myself taking a picture of myself.


Château de Versailles - The crispness of the building edges, the saturation of the sky, and the glint of sun off the glass all come together to make this look like a magazine ad for Anderson Windows...


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - I really enjoy playing with limited focal depths and the location of the single in-focus element. What I like about this one is the way the chain leads the eye into the photo, but then becomes blurred and ambiguous, and leaves the eye to wander of its own accord.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - I honestly have no idea how I took this photo. There was an extended exposure time involved, as well as a definite lack of a tripod, but I still can't figure out how the stained glass stayed crisp. As Anya (one of our instructors) said, "It's a miracle!"

And here are the photos that didn't make the cut in the presentation today:



Cimetière du Père Lachaise - Chopin's grave.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - The same statue as in the earlier photos.


Studio space - Ivan tries to dodge my shot... he is partially successful...


Gardens at Château de Versailles - Ahh, the view. It would have been good to be the King. Except for that whole beheading thing during the Revolution...


Le Portager du Roi Versailles - This dude's wardrobe was fantastic. Like a real life Waldo from "Where's Waldo," except toned down a bit.


Académie du spectacle équestre de Versailles - The clouds were nice, but there's too much of the shadowed building stealing focus.


Académie du spectacle équestre de Versailles - A better angle of the stalls pictured earlier, but this one is a little too washed out.


Centre Pompidou - Photoshopped, clearly.


Archive Nationales: Musée de l'Histoire de France - Better column shadows, but the woman is too small, and I don't like the guy reclining against the column base.


Cimetière du Père Lachaise - Every time I look at this photo I can't help but hear "Stand By Me" playing in the backround.