Opinion welcome

[philgabe]

What do you guys think about this one? Shot at the University of Chicago with D30.

http://fs4.dotphoto.com/MemberImages/196973/i9D74E08A-AD45-4D4B-B0E4-38CC0DD41A2A.jpg

All critiques welcome, positive or negative!

Cheers!

Philippe

[shaunyc]

Nice ivy.

Pictures work best if they have a strong subject for the eye to focus on. This shot seems to be quite nicely exposed, but is lacking a strong subject - the pillar and wheel are too small and too close to the corner of the shot to be serious contenders.

Classic composition (about which I know very little, and besides, rules are there to be broken) suggests that its a good idea to avoid lines that split a picture in half. In this case we see the edge of the building splitting the picture vertically in two. Imagine cropping off the top quarter and the left quarter of the shot - now the vertical is to one side, and a subject (the pillar) becomes more dominant.

Some other ideas:
- have some interesting people stand near the pillar
- change the subject: photograph a single leaf, or the hub of the wheel
- change the view: get close to the ground by the pillar and shoot looking up at the building

Most of all - take lots of shots, and enjoy taking them!

Thanks for posting,
Shaun