Ian Bramham's Photoblog
Waiting for the Tide
Posted by Ian Bramham (Manchester, United Kingdom) on 17 April 2009 in Landscape & Rural and Portfolio.
A photo from Morecambe Bay that I took back in February on a misty winter's day.
You can still see the snow on the tops of the Lake District peaks in the background.
The crop on this photo was suggested by John Leech after seeing this variation here that I produced at the time. Which do you prefer?
You need to bear in mind that they are two different photos - personally I like the extra room that this version has to the right of the red rowing boat but I'm not sure there's enough room on the left hand side on this version.
I think John's probably right about cropping the reflection of the boat in the wet sand.
For purchasing high quality archival prints of any of these photos you can send me an email by clicking here or by going to MY NEW WEBSITE where prices are listed in the gallery sections under each individual photo.
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Links to the websites of other photographers whose work I love and who have all helped me enormously over a long period of time. I find the work of all 3 to be inspirational.
yz from Budapest, Hungary
love the colours in this one: the pale background vs the vivid boats give an etheral mood
as far as cropping is concerned (just to be complicated) i'd crop on top and bottom like this but on the left and right i'd crop like the other image - if it makes any sense
17 Apr 2009 6:33am
@yz: Thanks yz....cropping is such a difficult subject isn't it. The fact that these are two different photos doesn't help. The link photo is uncropped by the way. These days, if I don't get it right in-camera then it's rare I'll improve a photo by cropping it in post processing. Sometimes a square crop or a long thin one works but that's about it.
Mike from Lichfield, United Kingdom
I think the height to width ratio works better for this shot than your Flickr one. Maybe here the picture might have benefited from the boat on the left having a little more room. However I think it's crucial that the large boat has less room towards the edge than the smaller boat on the right to balance the picture. I'm wondering if the picture wouldn't have worked a little better if both boats had slightly more space. That said, it is still a terrific photo. If you don't mind I wouldn't mind taking a copy of this photo and doing a quick experiment in Photoshop to see if moving both boats slightly more towards the middle of the frame improves things.... just to see if my hunch is right really. I'd delete it of my pc afterwards.
17 Apr 2009 7:32am
Mike from Lichfield, United Kingdom
Ian I couldn't wait for a reply as I need to shoot off to work. I've shamelessly nicked your photo and moved the boats in Photoshop. I was really quite excited at the result and learnt a lot more about composition. I'm away down Devon for the weekend but if you drop me your email address in contact or email mikespriggs at g mail dot com before 12.30 today I'll mail over the result. I'm sure both yourself and John will find it an interesting study of space and composition. Really hope you don't mind. regards.
17 Apr 2009 8:26am
MadScientist from Düsseldorf, Germany
First off, I love this shot and its delicate colours. Concerning the crop, I think that yz and Mike are right: I prefer the Am3 shot, and it might be more balanced if the left boat would have gotten some more space. Besides that it's a wonderful shot.
17 Apr 2009 8:34am
Anna.C from LA ROCHELLE, France
I love the subtle light and colours ! and I prefer the crop of this one, more balanced I think
17 Apr 2009 8:57am
gavin hart from Gold Coast, Australia
Out of the two images, I like the am3 shot more as it is less bare on the right hand side because of the inclusion of the sand bar and sea birds, adding more interest there. I don't mind the size of the space on the left. I ever so slightly notice the reflection of the mast and rigging cut off at the lower edge whereas it is complete in the link photo. The other shot is more of a portrait of a boat because it is more dominating in the scene. The am3 shot is tending slightly more towards a sea scape with a boat in it. I'm thinking that the space on the left in the link image is maybe just a tad too wide. I imagine many varied personal opinions could be had for this compositional juggle. Regardless of all that, both photos are really very nice - maybe we are all analyzing too critically? :-)
17 Apr 2009 10:15am
Marcie from United States
Love the subtle desaturated colors and tones. Excellent balanced composition. Very peaceful
17 Apr 2009 11:49am
john4jack from Corvallis, Oregon, United States
This is very much like a lovely painting, Ian. Superb composition and processing.
17 Apr 2009 12:22pm
Laurie from New Jersey, United States
So beautiful. This is another gem to be sure. Such a wonderful composition and perfect exposure and toning.
17 Apr 2009 2:31pm
Dustin W. Fletcher from Dallas, United States
I like this photo better in terms of the color and all that. Maybe I'd take down the reds a little. Not much. I like the other crop, though. When looking at this I want to see more detail in the boat.
17 Apr 2009 9:52pm
ordinaryimages from Kentucky Bluegrass, United States
I prefer the linked image as it allows more space for the subject. best...jerry
18 Apr 2009 4:47am
Paolo from Udine, Italy
I prefer this form factor, although I would have kept the horizon higher, in order to view the complete reflection. another thought: I'd keep the diaphragm more closed (1 f-stop)
18 Apr 2009 8:57pm
Claude from United States
The pale background lets the brightly colored boats stand out. I think a panoramic format fits very well this type of photograph: I would leave the small sandbar on the right, but I would crop the boat's reflection at the bottom - you may end with quite a collection from this single shot!
20 Apr 2009 6:48pm
amy from Nanaimo, BC, Canada
I must admit I prefer the one on your other site... however, both are Excellent!
23 Apr 2009 3:16am
David Billington from Manchester, United Kingdom
Like the colours and subtle contrast, the eye being taken in to the image by the left hand boat. I think by taking out the line of birds to the right of the red boat improves the image.
29 Apr 2009 4:06pm
Nikon D40
1/160 second
F/8.0
ISO 200
102 mm (35mm equiv.)