stevesottl Loc: Morristown, NJ

I'm trying to understand using blurry effects...I'm not a very linear type of person..my mind works more along the lines of a Japanese aesthetic so I see in perspectives that are not necessarily conventional.

Where the Eye Takes You

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Bark and Lichens at Lewis Morris

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ebrunner Loc: New Jersey Shore

The second photo is interesting to me. The way I see it, there are two major elements of composition in this photo. You have the pipe and the water, and then you have the tree. The viewer does not have a good take on which element you are interested in and the eye moves from one subject to the next. Then there is that wall that also steals attention from the other two. You might want to practice isolating one subject and then trying to use leading lines and such in your compositions to focus your reader on the part of the photo that you want his/her eye to move to. Just a thought.

stevesottl Loc: Morristown, NJ

Thank you. I actually wanted the ambiguity of the subject though my main focus is the tree. I see your point, now how to work that into the final composition.

HowardPepper Loc: Palm Coast, FL

Interesting takes Stephen. One thing I noticed is in the first photo, if I even try to look at the bank on the right, my eyes hurt. I guess it might be my eyes trying to compensate for the extreme blur.

I like the second shot, although I feel the storm tunnel outlet and embankment should be a bit more blurry, to emphasize the tree bark and lichens.

Out of curiosity, what lens did you use for these?

stevesottl Loc: Morristown, NJ

Thanks for your comments. I used a Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm 1:2.8GII ED. I am trying to learn to use the blur techniques in PP, still a little rough so I appreciate your insights.