Critique please.
Discussion
As some people have said in thisforum section, there is not enough photos of cars appearing, so i thought i would post one that i edited on friday night, it was taken without flash in a studio with a white coved background with the spotlight effect added in post processing.
I think i like it, but there are a couple of bits I am not convinced about.
I am therefore opening this up to everyone to say if you like it or not, what bits you do and dont like about it.
I think i like it, but there are a couple of bits I am not convinced about.
I am therefore opening this up to everyone to say if you like it or not, what bits you do and dont like about it.
I think it is cracking 
However being picky as you asked, I would say the Led lights are a bit distracting, are they on or is that just how they have come out on the pic. If they are on I would have been tempted to go for an all lights on shot or an all off. The other small thing is not sure what is just at the top left of the front wheelarch but it is catching my eye, maybe a shadow or something. Possibly would have gone for a slightly lower angle as well but difficult to say and maybe you did and they don't look as good. Overall however I think it is still a lovely shot.
However being picky as you asked, I would say the Led lights are a bit distracting, are they on or is that just how they have come out on the pic. If they are on I would have been tempted to go for an all lights on shot or an all off. The other small thing is not sure what is just at the top left of the front wheelarch but it is catching my eye, maybe a shadow or something. Possibly would have gone for a slightly lower angle as well but difficult to say and maybe you did and they don't look as good. Overall however I think it is still a lovely shot.The sidelights are in fact on, I was trying to show them off a little, and they did not really show when the lights were on full.
The reflection on the wing is something that i saw too, but as much as i tried to get rid of it, i always failed to get it looking right, so decided to leave it in.
The other bit i am not sure about is there is no spot effect through the front passenger window, again, only another small detail.
The reflection on the wing is something that i saw too, but as much as i tried to get rid of it, i always failed to get it looking right, so decided to leave it in.
The other bit i am not sure about is there is no spot effect through the front passenger window, again, only another small detail.
I like the angle and don't have a big problem with the sidelights, but I do have a big problem with the spotlight as its shining on the wall behind the car. Your eye tends to be drawn to the brightest part of any image so in this case I find myself looking at a blank wall with a silhouette of a wing mirror instead of the main body of the car. I'd try putting the spotlight somewhere around the gill on the wing or the bonnet badge instead so that you're highlighting some unique feature of the car.
As UKBob says, it's all down to preference.
Personally I think having the side lights on add nothing to the shot except distraction. Either have all lights on or none at all. If you have the lights on you could create a little star burst to emphasis this...studying CAR magazine studio shots is a great way to see what works.
In general in my opinion the lighting overall is a little unbalanced, it is too central (where you have the highlight on the front of the car and the lighting from behind on the same horizontal plane) and the front left hand side of the car and the right rear are too dark. Using some white boards you could have thrown more light onto those areas to even it up. Also a small silver board to throw light onto the right rear wheel would lift that too.
I like the lighting from behind, it better defines the lines of the car but perhaps a bit softer next time.
But hey I have never shot a car in a studio so I don't know what problems are faced (I only know what photography 'rules' I apply to my photography) but on the whole it is a great shot, nicely composed and captured.
The guy I bought my Caterham from is a pro car photographer and says he spends a day lighting the car before even taking a shot so it's clear that it is not the most straightforward or simplest thing to do.
I'll point him in this direction and see if he can give some first class tips.
cheers
Personally I think having the side lights on add nothing to the shot except distraction. Either have all lights on or none at all. If you have the lights on you could create a little star burst to emphasis this...studying CAR magazine studio shots is a great way to see what works.
In general in my opinion the lighting overall is a little unbalanced, it is too central (where you have the highlight on the front of the car and the lighting from behind on the same horizontal plane) and the front left hand side of the car and the right rear are too dark. Using some white boards you could have thrown more light onto those areas to even it up. Also a small silver board to throw light onto the right rear wheel would lift that too.
I like the lighting from behind, it better defines the lines of the car but perhaps a bit softer next time.
But hey I have never shot a car in a studio so I don't know what problems are faced (I only know what photography 'rules' I apply to my photography) but on the whole it is a great shot, nicely composed and captured.
The guy I bought my Caterham from is a pro car photographer and says he spends a day lighting the car before even taking a shot so it's clear that it is not the most straightforward or simplest thing to do.
I'll point him in this direction and see if he can give some first class tips.
cheers
Edited by snapper seven on Sunday 26th November 14:40
It doesnt particularly float my boat.
Aside from other points people have made about the visual distractions (i personally dislike the reflection on the front arch, dark patch in front of the rear arch, partial illumination of the cabin and double shadow at the front) I find the lighting rather dull and the composition relatively awkward: To me it looks a bit like its about to fall off the frame to the left. I have shot one of these cars before and its a difficult car to shoot but:
The camera's elevation has disrupted the shoulder line of the car which flows from the top of the headlamp into the haunch above the rear wheel arch, by sticking the wing mirror through it, which has dimished the harmony of the shapes.
Also at this elevation, the beautiful curve the rear roofline flowing into the back of the car is not shown in its most flattering angle, an issue made worse by similarity of colour between the car at that point and the background.
Furthermore I believe from this angle because of the comparative prominence of the grille, profile and bonnet line the car looks shorter and stubbier than it is. In reality the lines on the front are far more elegantly proportioned (incidentally this is true of the photos within the brochure which are frankly terrible) which is something that is difficult to capture.
These are relatively minor technical/compositional flaws, but I see the biggest problem as that it just doesnt create an emotional response. It is just a photo of a car in a white room if you see what i mean. It doesnt infer anything of the cars character, it doesnt make me want to get in it and drive it.
The problem with critiquing a photo such as this is that it is easy to be blinded by the subject matter, and draw your conclusions from that rather than from the photograph. Overall its not a bad effort and i know that studio stuff is difficult, but god, as they say, is in the details.
Matt
Aside from other points people have made about the visual distractions (i personally dislike the reflection on the front arch, dark patch in front of the rear arch, partial illumination of the cabin and double shadow at the front) I find the lighting rather dull and the composition relatively awkward: To me it looks a bit like its about to fall off the frame to the left. I have shot one of these cars before and its a difficult car to shoot but:
The camera's elevation has disrupted the shoulder line of the car which flows from the top of the headlamp into the haunch above the rear wheel arch, by sticking the wing mirror through it, which has dimished the harmony of the shapes.
Also at this elevation, the beautiful curve the rear roofline flowing into the back of the car is not shown in its most flattering angle, an issue made worse by similarity of colour between the car at that point and the background.
Furthermore I believe from this angle because of the comparative prominence of the grille, profile and bonnet line the car looks shorter and stubbier than it is. In reality the lines on the front are far more elegantly proportioned (incidentally this is true of the photos within the brochure which are frankly terrible) which is something that is difficult to capture.
These are relatively minor technical/compositional flaws, but I see the biggest problem as that it just doesnt create an emotional response. It is just a photo of a car in a white room if you see what i mean. It doesnt infer anything of the cars character, it doesnt make me want to get in it and drive it.
The problem with critiquing a photo such as this is that it is easy to be blinded by the subject matter, and draw your conclusions from that rather than from the photograph. Overall its not a bad effort and i know that studio stuff is difficult, but god, as they say, is in the details.
Matt
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