rlaugh Loc: Michigan & Florida

Linda...that first shot was taken at the perfect angle and an excellent idea to convert to B&W...we can feel the wind blowing through that unruly mane...good one!

Dave Chinn

Linda, IMO, the composition and lighting of the horse, a Norwegian Fjord, is outstanding. I feel the composition is unique and rarely seen. I do believe that is what draws me in. I absolutely love it !!!
Dave

Dave Chinn

Thanks Bob !!! I do believe that is my first gorilla B&W. I may have to think about doing more.
Dave

TheeGambler Loc: The green pastures of Northeast Texas

Well, Linda, Chuck would not like your photo because the donkey is not looking at you, and neither is the cook. That is why Chuck said he didn't like my "Pooch Photo," as he called it, the pooch wasn't looking at me. Isn't that the craziest thing...

St3v3M Loc: 35,000 feet

When you present an image here you're encouraged to reply in an honest, and respectful way, and whether we agree with the assessment or not the amazing thing is that we're all trying to help. The key is to listen, evaluate, and think about what's been said, then use it to improve our work in every way we can! S-

TheeGambler Loc: The green pastures of Northeast Texas

Well, Steve, Chuck was less than respectful. I expect an apology from him about the last paragraph in his post, where he said that my photo didn't qualify as much of anything, in his "judgment."

St3v3M Loc: 35,000 feet

No, you don't expect anything here other than being polite. Chuck's assessment was his assessment, was said in good faith, and will remain as is. If anything it's the other way around and I'd hoped you would have understood that by now.

As I've said before, people are encouraged to say what they want here, both the good and the bad, as long as they say it respectfully, and to think anything other would be a disservice to all. To post here, or anywhere for that matter, and expect everyone to gush over your images does no one any good. You may like what's being said, you may not, but the key is to listen to everything, think about it, evaluate it, then decide whether it's helpful or not.

The matter stands as is. S-

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

[quote=Dave Chinn]

In that second one you have applied the classic and highly recognizable Chinn look to an animal portrait! Very dramatic and full of attitude! I really like it. I watched a video tutorial last night about using luminosity masks (which made no sense to me) but the subject was a portrait much like this one. Very nice work on the capture and the processing.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

Excellent horse image, Linda. He's much like the Icelandic horses. The profile pose really showcases the effect of the wind in his mane. I like that his chin is tucked over the fence. It keeps the barbed wire from interfering and actually makes it into an effective component of the composition. Beautiful capture paired with beautiful processing.

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

Linda, that horse is an awesome photo. Every hair, the veins on it's chest, standing out in bold relief. The only criticism I have is for the owner. You don't put horses behind barbed wire! Be a saint, remove that wire and replace it with wood, either poles or boards. At least the top wire. That's enough they can see and avoid.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

rlaugh, Dave, Minnie, Neil - thank you for the lovely comments about the horse. He was a beauty, for sure. Regarding barbed wire: unfortunately, it is used extensively in these parts, though there are more cattle than horses.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I've already posted these images on UHH - I originally took them for a portraits "challenge" a couple of weeks ago - but I decided to add them here also, adding commentary to explain how these images came to be. Sometimes a challenge will encourage me to do something I wouldn't normally do. In the case of the portraits challenge, I decided to take portraits of the cats who live with us.

Two felines live with us - anyone who understands cats would never talk about being a "cat owner". Velcro joined us as a kitten in 2003; we were moving from Indiana to Kansas, and our daughters insisted on adding her to our family as reparation for uprooting them; over time she has become very close to my wife. Magic, the cat I use as my avatar, was close to me {she would often awaken me in the middle of the night when she decided my beard needed grooming}, but she died of lymphoma in 2011, so we went to the cat pound with my wife being determined to find one that would favor me; it would be fair to say the result of the trip was that Leila adopted me.

I decided to do this challenge with a 50mm f/1.4 Super Tacumar lens, a MF lens last manufactured around 1975. Mounted on my Pentax K-30 APS-C camera, this gives roughly the same view that a 75mm lens would give on a 35mm camera {and roughly the focal length often used for portraits}. In order to get a comfortable DOF, I set the aperture at f/6.5, which then required I use an ISO setting of 3200 {much higher than I would normally use with that camera}.

I thought Leila would be most comfortable on the cat tree, but 60 minutes and 6 futile pictures later, we took a lunch break to allow our emotions to settle a tad. After the break, I put Leila on a dark brown sofa, which allowed me to take portraits of her while I was sitting, and within a few minutes I had just the picture I wanted.

Velcro had been in the kitchen all this time, so while sliding around sitting on the floor {did I mention that I'm 68?}, I managed to encourage her to stand in front of the dishwasher {nice bland background} just long enough for me to get a truly good image of her {she usually approaches life with a deer-in-headlights appearance}.
....

Leila

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Velcro

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neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

To get two cats to pose requires more patience than I have. I tip my hat to you. The only way I can get similar is to always have the camera close at hand and, in most cases use the long lens to not disturb their repose.

RichardTaylor Loc: Sydney, Australia

I only shoot portraits when the oportunity arises with existing subjects.

#1 A vacation shot. I was lying on the ground - full sunlight.
#2 My favorite subject F=140mm and f=f4 (wide open)
#3 Heavy shade (inside a garage with an open door) F=400mm f=f8 and ISO 3200 (max). B&W conversion done make the effects of noise a bit bearable.

#1 F=300mm and f=f10 full sunlight

(Download)

#2 my favourite subject - clear sky howver shot in fill open (to the sky) shade.

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#3 The driver

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Dave Chinn

Thanks Bob!!! I will have to agree. Your biker dude is one I always keep an eye out for.
Dave