Photos of me! Critiques?

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Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby self-deleted_user » Oct 18, 2011 2:36 pm

Okay so I finally got a chance to do a bit of an actual photography-centric trip last week (thanks marduke!) and did some me-in-corset photos that I've wanted to take in cave for a while. Hard to be in the photos when you're the photographer! Anyway, tried playing around with various lighting angles and such, these are the five best. Curious for feedback! I already see some things I'd change if/when I do this again but I wonder what others see...and I know we have other photographers out there on this forum =)

Image
P1040114 by Sunguramy, on Flickr

Image
P1040105 by Sunguramy, on Flickr

Image
P1040096 by Sunguramy, on Flickr

Image
P1040091 by Sunguramy, on Flickr

PS if you like I'm more than happy to drop my camera and be a model in other's photos....after all probably an easier way to get photos of me in cave than directing others on my camera and flash :caver:
Last edited by self-deleted_user on Nov 2, 2011 7:57 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby Anonymous_Coward » Oct 18, 2011 3:13 pm

Generally it is not a good idea to publish photos of cavers touching active formations. If you want it in your own personal collection then fine, but please consider removing that one from the internet.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby self-deleted_user » Oct 18, 2011 4:21 pm

Edited out and put disclaimer in OP instead
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby wyandottecaver » Oct 18, 2011 4:28 pm

corsets and caves.....and interesting combination
I'm not scared of the dark, it's the things IN the dark that make me nervous. :)
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby NZcaver » Oct 18, 2011 4:36 pm

Actually, I agree with Andy. But I'm also known for being picky about stuff like that. :wink:

The no boots/no helmet thing crossed my mind too, although I realize you're trying to portray yourself in a non-traditional caving manner.

Technically, the lighting could use a bit more experimentation. Shadows are harsh, some underexposure/overexposure, and the flash flare was probably intentional but the composition makes it seem accidental. Another flashgun or two would help, especially with adjusting intensity and/or soft box, grid, etc.

Oh dear, I do sound rather negative don't I? Sorry! Kudos for experimenting and taking risks (photographically, I mean). Is this your newly acquired camera?
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby self-deleted_user » Oct 18, 2011 4:54 pm

...ok from now on i'm just ignoring everything about how I'm dressed. Sheesh, why did I bother? So I guess a bunch of Nathan's photos are awful too, girl in a dress omg! sparkler thingies used how horrible! I even remember one with beach chairs I think by the boat pool in Limrock? *rollseyes* if people can't tell the difference between artistry and real caving outfits they're dumb and deserve to go in there in corsets barefoot not helmets and try and cave :P

And yeah you hit the nail on the head about the lighting...I was struggling with that a lot. I only have one flash gun though. Suggestions to use it better? I refuse to carry a ton of kit and so I want to learn how to use what I have rather than buy and drag in a bunch of photo gear.

This is the panasonic lumix lx3 i picked up at Unclaimed Baggage for about $100 (booya, told ya folks I could find deals!) as my P60 between checking it at home and checking it before the first cave trip decided to go errrrrrrrrp derp i'm not gonna work anymore blugh dead *gurgle* so I needed to find something haha. It's a great camera way better than the P60 was. Next step to upgrade is a M4/3 system but I ain't going any larger than that :P and it's still out of my price range even cheap used ones. Maybe in a few years as older models get cheaper. I'll be making a thread as usual about my adventures soonish with other shots from it.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby NZcaver » Oct 18, 2011 5:15 pm

OK, then. The outfit. In 3 of the 5 photos, the corset can't easily be seen. So you might need to try something different if you want that to be a central focus. Really you'll want to pick up a second flashgun and slave trigger some time. It's worth the cost and effort of carrying and setting it up. You might also want to think about your facial expression and where you're looking in the photo. I assume looking down and to the side was intentional on your part, but I found it rather distracting in a couple of shots. Especially the third one.

Of course photographic appreciation is in the eye of the beholder. Some people love certain shots, others hate them. I don't know Nathan and I can't speak to the photos you're describing, but I've seen other shots by him. Some I think are fantastic, and some I think are frankly awful. Just my opinion. I guarantee people feel the same way about some of my shots. That's life. :shrug:

PS - when you start a topic asking for critique, try not to take it too personally when people make critical comments or suggestions.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby Phil Winkler » Oct 18, 2011 5:23 pm

Amy, keep it up. Your photos remind me of those taken by JV Swearingen (RIP). He was notorious for persuading his "Babes" to wear attractive outfits in caves without caving gear, etc. Many of those Babes frequent this forum, too.

Please keep posting those photos. JV would have loved them.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby self-deleted_user » Oct 18, 2011 5:47 pm

NZcaver wrote:PS - when you start a topic asking for critique, try not to take it too personally when people make critical comments or suggestions.
I'm not taking things personally - I asked for ideas and I meant it. What I was not liking was basically "you are a bad caver i can't believe you did this" attitude that seemed to be coming because of dress choice. That has nothing to do with the technical aspects of photography, and is not constructive on how to do things better, it's just not liking the subject as a whole. Fine, but that is not a critique, that is personal taste. There is a difference. ;)

Thank you for the constructive comments.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby Squirrel Girl » Oct 18, 2011 7:46 pm

Those are the most magnificent cave photos I've ever seen. Stellarly gorgeous.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby NZcaver » Oct 18, 2011 8:28 pm

After taking another look, I do rather like the composition of that last photo. And for what it's worth I really like your "moonlit beauty" shot from the TAG photojournal topic. :kewl:

Incidentally, have you read the criteria for submitting images to the NSS print salon? Right at the top it mentions images that show models touching formations and not wearing helmets, etc. Just sayin'.
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby graveleye » Oct 19, 2011 9:46 am

Sungura wrote:...ok from now on i'm just ignoring everything about how I'm dressed.


well, at least you're dressed in these pictures :tonguecheek:
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby self-deleted_user » Oct 19, 2011 11:08 am

graveleye wrote:
Sungura wrote:...ok from now on i'm just ignoring everything about how I'm dressed.


well, at least you're dressed in these pictures :tonguecheek:


Maybe if I wasnt people would be ok with the no helmet no boots :tonguecheek:
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby wyandottecaver » Oct 19, 2011 5:08 pm

much of this discussion is just like the NSS policy on displaying formations. (even when removed from an active gravel quarry) Its mostly based on not creating the wrong perception among non-cavers and the poorly educated, as opposed to practicality.

We don't want to promote pictures of people without proper cave gear because somebody somewhere wont realize its not proper and think thats the way real cavers do it. Never mind that people swam nude in lech and cavers frequently remove their helmets and sometimes footwear when caving in certain areas.

We dont want people appearing to touch formations (even if they are dead, or its actually the underlying rock layer) despite the fact that we might crawl over or blast to smithereens formations elsewhere.

Overall I thought the lighting was poor, and corsets in caves probably has a narrow interest group, but unless you want to enter the salon, and thus their rules, I wouldn't worry about the rest too much.
I'm not scared of the dark, it's the things IN the dark that make me nervous. :)
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Re: Photos of me! Critiques?

Postby mgmills » Oct 20, 2011 5:45 am

Phil Winkler wrote:Amy, keep it up. Your photos remind me of those taken by JV Swearingen (RIP). He was notorious for persuading his "Babes" to wear attractive outfits in caves without caving gear, etc. Many of those Babes frequent this forum, too.

Please keep posting those photos. JV would have loved them.


I was on many trips with JV. Gotta have the flashes to get really good shot.

I LIKE the last two. I don't like the fact you are touching the formation in the first one. In the last one looks like you are standing on the flowstone (pretty much a No-No). As for the attire and the lack of a helmet. Lots of photographers have done those type of shots in the past. I even posed for some in the past sans helmet. Anyone looking at the pictures will realize the attire and no helmet are for artistic reasons.

Keep it up Amy. My suggestions would be make an effort to avoid touching formations and standing on pristine flowstone. Add in more light. Sometimes shadows and silhouettes are a nice effect but a could of your images are really dark.

Remember, art is in the eye of the beholder. Lots of opinions here and that is all they are. If you like them that is what counts.
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