And ... the chimping was fast and furious!
Our "Chimp and Chew" session turned out fine, after-all - and, it was fun! Thanks to the efforts of my wife, Assunta, we managed to get a last-minute group lunch organized at Jack's Bistro. We met Oliver Brown, publisher of the Ye Olde New Castle Crier website (www.NewCastleCrier.com) who facilitated our accommodations at Jack's Bistro. I enjoyed meeting everyone and talking about our common passion. I saw lots of business card pumping! Jack's Bistro was a perfect spot, the food and service were excellent, and we practically had the entire dining room to ourselves.
By now, you should have received instructions for submitting your ONE photo for the contest. Those instructions are sent by the Scott Kelby Worldwide Photo Walk organization, and you will be submitting your photo through the web page where you signed up for the walk. (Hopefully, you remember your login information, yes?) The instructions are also located on the home page of www.WorldWidePhotoWalk.com ... just scroll down a bit to where the blog entries start.
Don't forget to keep checking www.DEPhotoWalk.com for updates from me as we go through the image-selection process.
Now, the hard part begins ... looking over your hundreds of images; deciding which one to submit because they're ALL good.
I'll speak for myself and tell you that in general, I shoot 80/20. Eighty percent are culled out; the rest are keepers. This is why I tell people to TAKE LOTS OF SHOTS of each subject. Try different angles, different orientation, different focal lengths, closer, farther away, try selective focus through aperture settings, etc.
When reviewing your images, don't go crazy selecting your good and best ones. Delete with impunity! At the very least, move your discards off your computer and onto external media.
Additionally, I urge my students to really understand and work with the three components of Exposure - Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO. That and correct metering willminimize your time post-processing at the computer! The idea put simply: get it right in-camera and minimize digital editing.
One final suggestion; choose an image that is YOUR favorite.
Having said that, there are certain elements I look for in a winning photograph:
1. Does the image have a theme? Does it tell a story? Is your message clear? For example, even if you take a picture of the diagonal patterns on the boardwalk, that is your theme. Don't ruin it by framing poorly and having distracting elements within the frame.
2. Does the image focus attention on the subject? How are you using certain elements of composition to help my eyes go immediately to the subject? For example, we had lots of "S-Curves" at the Riverfront. The S-curve is a classic element of composition and can be used successfully to lead the viewer's eye. Framing techniques and selective focus are other techniques to try.
3. Does the image simplify? Distracting objects within the frame are definite no-nos. Get into the habit of examining every bit of your frame when shooting, especially the edges. Watch out for clutter (unless, of course, clutter is part of your theme), and things that don't belong.
So, fire up the 'puter, backup your files, and let the culling begin!
I'll speak for myself and tell you that in general, I shoot 80/20. Eighty percent are culled out; the rest are keepers. This is why I tell people to TAKE LOTS OF SHOTS of each subject. Try different angles, different orientation, different focal lengths, closer, farther away, try selective focus through aperture settings, etc.
When reviewing your images, don't go crazy selecting your good and best ones. Delete with impunity! At the very least, move your discards off your computer and onto external media.
Additionally, I urge my students to really understand and work with the three components of Exposure - Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO. That and correct metering willminimize your time post-processing at the computer! The idea put simply: get it right in-camera and minimize digital editing.
One final suggestion; choose an image that is YOUR favorite.
Having said that, there are certain elements I look for in a winning photograph:
1. Does the image have a theme? Does it tell a story? Is your message clear? For example, even if you take a picture of the diagonal patterns on the boardwalk, that is your theme. Don't ruin it by framing poorly and having distracting elements within the frame.
2. Does the image focus attention on the subject? How are you using certain elements of composition to help my eyes go immediately to the subject? For example, we had lots of "S-Curves" at the Riverfront. The S-curve is a classic element of composition and can be used successfully to lead the viewer's eye. Framing techniques and selective focus are other techniques to try.
3. Does the image simplify? Distracting objects within the frame are definite no-nos. Get into the habit of examining every bit of your frame when shooting, especially the edges. Watch out for clutter (unless, of course, clutter is part of your theme), and things that don't belong.
So, fire up the 'puter, backup your files, and let the culling begin!
Remember ... check www.DEPhotoWalk.com for updates.
Thanks for making our Photo Walk a big success!
Sandro Cuccia
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