More Photos by Molly

[mollyduker]

I hadn't posted anything in a while, so I thought I would see what you guys thought of this picture. Its from the Garden of the Gods outside of Colo. Springs.
http://img28.echo.cx/img28/3223/gardenofgodssmaller7lh.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

Any comments, crits, advice etc would be appreciated! Thanks!

[angel-roh]

wow it looks like a painting... hehe where did you take this picture at? the clouds look like it's about to rain hehe. hmm the angle looks too close. but at least it looks ok hehe.

[mollyduker]

one more...
http://img151.echo.cx/img151/6629/daffidilsmaller9oz.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

[squirpy]

I really like this one.

The only things I think would really make it better are if the petal coming out towards the front was sharper, and if the flower was looking into the picture rather than out of it (but that's kind of personal preference)

[mollyduker]

Angel-roh- it was taken in Colorado... a really pretty park place with all these cool rock formations
Em- do you mean like if the flower was facing out? so like you could sdee the inside or what?
Thanks for the responses!
One new pic:
Hands
http://img221.echo.cx/img221/5920/paigehands3dl.jpg

[Lauren Short]

hands is a very nice picture. has a great mood to it and it technically well done, nice focal point :teeth:

the flow picture i would like to see a bit more intense color of yellow but i know pictures don't always have to be that way so it really more of a suggestion than a crit. composition-wise i really like it, very nice how the snow rests atop the flower, almost as spring is battling it out with winter :P actually looking at it a little closer it's a bit too blue i think, although the blue tint gives a nice cool sense especially with the snow, i think it kills a bit of the color contrast.

your first post is very nice, i'd just like to see a bit more contrast as it is hard to distinguish certain areas from one another.



please post some more, really good stuff so far :teeth:

[mollyduker]

Thanks Injection-- thats really helpful... I agree about the garden of the gods (rock picsture thingy) and thx for the crit on the flower.... very helpful
One more:
cellist
http://img8.echo.cx/img8/2883/melcello4fk.jpg

(i apologize-- looking now i see there was a dog hair on the pic when i scanned)

[squirpy]

I like both of your latest a lot. I like the cellist one because the fingers are blurred in motion, and the face is clear and still.

I like the hands one as well. It'd be a lot more boring without the ring, something to think about, I guess.

[mollyduker]

Thx em... I have to agree with what you said (both the ring comment and the blurred hands comment)... :)

[morf]

the cellist pic is very good! well they all are, but the cellist has something special :)

-morf

[Sems]

wow these are great!

[bfly]

my fave is also the cellist photo. I do like the hands shot as well. I think because both have a feel of strong concentration to them. Maybe the black and white. Maybe the hands as a theme. ..all of the above actually. Either way, keep em coming!.. Oh.. one thing.. I'd clean up the specs on the image of the hands. Your work is nice and the dust detracts a bit. hey, also, did you post a pic of your pup a while back? A golden retriever? Am I hallucinating? where is that? must have been a different thread?

[mollyduker]

thanks! vanessa- yea i posted a picture of my dog a while back on a different thread... and the specs are from dust on our scanner, something i feel like i am perpetually fighting and never goes away...
any body got any ideas for that?
thanks for the replies!

[mollyduker]

Ok now that it worked...

Here are some recent ones. Don't feel they are my best. Any suggestions? C and C is welcome (like always). Thank you kindly.

A bolt
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/5107/bolt1pr.jpg
A tree through the window of an abandonned fort
http://img319.imageshack.us/img319/2576/treethrowindo0va.jpg
Boston from Boston Harbor
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/2572/boston5pg.jpg
Penguins! (sorta goes with the hand theme eh?)
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/8890/penguinssmall2qa.jpg

Thanks for looking!
-Mollyduker

[mollyduker]

anybody?

[Banshax]

"A tree through the window of an abandonned fort"

I Like it, simple as that. Composition is rather square, the tree breaks it nicely, and the contrast isn't bad either. The frame thing with natural frames in scenes might be cliche but it works. Looks cool.

Did i mention the colors?

[madplanet]

Molly, nice photos. In the Garden Of The Gods, is that by the Cave of the Winds? I was born on CO, but moved when I was a year old and we went there when I was a teenager. It looks very familiar.

I've always liked taking snapshots through windows and I guess it is cliched, but your picture is nicely done.

My favorite is Boston Harbor. Really nice. The focus on the water is intense, right in the viewers face.

I didn't really like the one with the bolt, but probably because of the subject matter. But, then again, it's the small details that matter sometimes.

Thanks for sharing.

[Wolfykins]

Hey Molly.

Okay, your first image, the landscape. It's a great image, but there's nothing really going on in the sky above. Maybe crop it a little closer?

The frosted flower is very sharp! I would love to see it taken from the front of the flower or at some other angles.

Your hand pics are nice, but I personally find that the blurred takes away from the images, especially in the first one.

The bolt picture could be sharpened some, I think. But I love the angle you took that at! Have you tried converting it to black and white?

The tree through the window is stunning. *thumbs up*

Awesome work, keep shooting and sharing!

[mollyduker]

Thanks for the comments :)
Madplanet- Garden of the Gods is right outside of Colo. Springs, I believe that is Pike's Peak in the background. Cave of teh Winds sounds familiar but I have spent alot of time in CO but dont' know it well enough (i'm from Missouri) to say for sure.

[squirpy]

Your hand pics are nice, but I personally find that the blurred takes away from the images, especially in the first one.

The bolt picture could be sharpened some, I think. But I love the angle you took that at! Have you tried converting it to black and white?


I have to say, I disagree with you on that. I think the blurring adds to it because it makes it feel much closer - it's so concentrated on one element of the picture.
And in the cellist one, it shows movement while everything else is still.

I think the boston from boston harbor one is my favorite of the boston pics. I like how the skyline is repeated with the people and dock at the bottom.

I don't like the penguin one that much because there isn't really a sense of... I don't know... focus? It's hard to read. I think it doesn't help that the rock is so busy and bright and the penguins are blurred.

[modern]

hey, i really like the tree in the window and the cellist. Keep them coming.

gar

[Bill Beaton]

That Boston Harbour picture is very painterly. My favourite <3

[mollyduker]

Thanks for the replies. I'm thinking I'm gonna get a new lens, a more versitile lens for my 20 year old camera. Yea, its 3 years older than me :teeth: Anybody have any ideas for a manual focus, more verstile lens, for a pentax?

Em- yea, the penguins didn't turn out so well :\ I think that aquirums should be better lit. (And I think I should learn how to spell that word :nohope: )

Hopefully I'll have more later :)

... aquarium...

[Wolfykins]

I have a 200mm telephoto lens for my Pentax. Works as good as any 80-200mm can. And Pentax supposedly makes their lenses so that they will work on any Pentax camera, I believe.

[mollyduker]

I believe you are right about the any camera thing... The only problem is my camera doesn't have auto-focus. Not sure if it did at one time or not. I looked at a lens at the camera store the other day but it won't work because of the auto-focus thing. I have a telephoto lens already (70-200) but I want something more versatile so I don't always have to be changing lenses btwn my telephoto and my regular. Thanks :) O, and preferably no more than about $200-250

[squirpy]

aquirums

:smacks forehead:
how did you ever pass english?

[mollyduker]

:smacks forehead:
how did you ever pass english?

Well, I read some books, I wrote some papers, I did some presentations...

O, and I used some spell-check ;)

[mollyduker]

Here are some pics I tried to post last week and I was told they didn't work. And some new pics. I hope you like. Please comment. Especially critique. Thanks.

Striped Squirrel
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webchipmunk.jpg

Beauty at the Beach
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webembot.jpg

Hermit the Crab
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webemhandshermy.jpg

Fountain in San Francisco
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webfountain.jpg

A guy at SF MOMA
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webguysfmoma.jpg

Some Kayakers at the Beach in Washington State
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webkayakers.jpg

Looking down on people
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webSFMOMA.jpg

A woman through a window
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webSFMOMAwoman.jpg

A skylight
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webskylight.jpg

Stairs
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/webstairsss.jpg

The Sun and Ships
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/websunandships.jpg

Sorry there were so many! Please comment and PLEASE critique. Thanks again!
-Mollyduker

[mollyduker]

anybody? any thoughts at all are welcome :)

[Wizard]

i like most of your pictures. specially the one that looks through window into a tree. and a yellow flower covered in ice.

[Il Cielo]

Hey there molly. Really nice pics.

I like your style although some of the images look like theyre shot on old film, what iso setting are you using or film.

The cielist or whatever that instrument pic is my favorite increadible composition. The motion blur adds a nice sense of action to it.

I find the rest of them very nice however the suns and ships pic has some problems, since you are shooting into the sun the ships become silhouette and thuis blending in with the horison and back ground with only the masts pointing out. This makes for a wierd compostion, you should try to edit it with out blowing the shadows. Other then that nice pics.

[modern]

Hey molly glad to see more pictures. I agree about the ships really dark. but i have to say. i loooooove the stairs picture. I would deffinately buy a frame and hang that on my wall.

-gar

[mollyduker]

Thanks for the replies guys! I am shooting on film with an ISO of, well actually... the color film is 200 and the bw film is 400. Thanks for the advice about the sun and ships il cielo. As always, thanks for the reply modern.

Here is a question-- this might have been a thread in the past, so if it has been, could you just link me-- does anybody know of any good books on composition and lighting (either or)? Thanks :)

-Mollyduker

[squirpy]

I really like those ones you took at SFMoMA. Especially the stairs and the skylight. The skylight reminds me of a Kubrick film somehow. Weird.

[ShadeOfDawn]

The skylight is by far my favourite. Its one good example of how you can break the rules if you're good enough. I also like the stairs.

and i dont know of any books about composition, but i find composition fairly simple. I was given simple guidelines for photography in school (a media arts class, part of which included photography), and i could give them to you if you wanted?

[mollyduker]

That would be awesome SHade of Dawn! Thanks :)

[modern]

hey molly could gimme them guidelines after shades of dawn gives them to you? That would be awesome. :^^:

[Alday.J]

Hi, Molly ! What a nice stuff ! No crits at all, just: keep posting ! :bashful:

[asoir]

For crits - The first one's pretty dark, the rocks are quite hard to see, especially the shadowed bits, but nothing else :)

[Koblenz]

Great captures. I really like the hands picture, the third one. Great focus and cool concept. It has feelings.






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[mollyduker]

Thanks everybody!
Alday.J and everybody else who commented on the darkness of the first one- I found some advice that if you slightly underexpose pictures such as that the color comes out better and there is less risk of everything being too dark.

I finally got a new lens. A Takumar 28-80mm. I also got a piece of advice to use a red filter with black and whites. I will have pictures coming soon! *crosses fingers*.

Again thanks for the comments!
-Mollyduker

[FrontlinePs.10]

Your stuff is better and better every time you post!

[Le Gab]

All i can say is nice progress :). It's easylly noticeable in this thread

"A tree through the window of an abandonned fort" <3

[Julien Lions]

http://img8.echo.cx/img8/2883/melcello4fk.jpg

This picture is amazing :) Bravo !

[mollyduker]

Hey!
Long time no post :(. Its getting harder and harder to get out and take pics as I am applying for colleges and all that crazy stuff going on. Well here goes:
First four are from Valley Forge
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/valleyforgemistysmall.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/valleyforgecobblestonessmal.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/valleyforgemonumentsmall.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/valleyforgeroadsmall.jpg

The last pic is of my piano:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/mollyduker/piano.jpg
Crits and Comments are always appreciated!
Thanks,
-Mollyduker

[Morbid]

I like the last two pics very much. They are the most interesting in the last post. All the pics could use some more contrast.

[squirpy]

I'm usually all for more contrast, but in this case I think it would ruin the mood in them. I think that they are grey, but without being greyed out.

The second to last picture in that post is my favorite.

[Poohgee]

Uhhh lots of photos to crit & comment .. well Ill pick some out :

Squirrel ,fountain ,the road & piano are the ones where I think they really have something bout them ... no idea what .. but they look really good.

Boston harbour ,woman through window & abandoned fort could I think be really good if you did some contrast & such adjustments & a bit of cropping .

The other ones I think the compositions arent right or the lighting might be too off to correct them in Photoshop or such .

Although celist gets lots of praise I must say .. I dont like it .. why ?
:blahblah:
x Too much of the image is blurred .
x Left of the cello looks still okay with the face almost in focus ... but the other side is no good at all IMO ... if you wanted indication of the hand moving then Id expect everything xept the hand to be in focus.
x the hand is very light drawing my attention away from the woman's face.
x I think too little of the face is shown to make out an expression
x Left of the cello we see the black dress but on the other side it is grey matter :)

Better take a photo from further away because so U can allways still crop bits away .

Id say a lot of these can do with some photoshop work (u are certainly good at that .. BTW saved ur new manipulated woman ... maybe I can come up with something :) )to make them a lot slicker & sexier or more beautiful.

Just IMO :)

[gillianseed84]

That mountain shot is fantastic!

[mollyduker]

Thanks for the comments. :)
Poohgee- I think you have me mixed up with somebody else for the photoshop. Thanks for the cellist comments, they are very helpful. My only thought about one of the comments, is that it is grey to the left of the cello, because she was wearing a coral jacket. Very helpful comments :)
Hopefully I will have more pictures soon.
-Mollyduker
Em- still have no mail!

[Alday.J]

Your b&w pictures are very good, but in my opinion, it still a problem concerning the darker values. In my opinion, dark values should be VERY, DEEP BLACK. But it's my personal opinion and you now how I love dakness as black values. Hope my english is correct.
Salut, Molly ! Merci pour les belles photos ! ;)

[Poohgee]

Ohh actually Mollyducker u are right .. I mxd Photoshop stuff up ... I had some of Julien Lions Photoshop image stuff in my mind .. ooops sorry :)

Lookin forward to more photos ... :)

Glad that my crits were helpful :)

Okay .. wearing a jacket while playing cello ? ... so not the typival .. cello player inorchestra photo :)

[squirpy]

Em- still have no mail!

Sooorrrryyy.... I haven't found envelopes yet. You should send me some cookies. That would probably help. ;)

Actually, don't. It takes like 3 weeks for stuff to go through our package room.