* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #809 / Revived #029 on 2023 10 18 *

I prefer the first one, but why?
Starting with the second, I see the buildings as an unattractive row, but, since they are smaller, I don’t take in the individual buildings as much as I do in the second. Also the leaning doesn’t work for me. I find that works well, when the buildings are closer to the camera, because we see the buildings that way anyway. It also works as an artistic touch or as a compositional tool, but neither apply here, as they are too far away and not dominant enough. The buildings could be straightened, but there is another thing too. The bright clouds on the left are beautiful and would work well in a different composition, where they could be the subject, or at least a major part. Here their beauty simply draws the eye away from the buildings, making them even more insignificant, and act as a competing focal point to the bench in the foreground. A crop of the top left quarter or so would work better, but the best part of the idiosyncratic buildings would be missed.
So I prefer the first, where the bench is a good visual fixed point, and I like the subtle hint of it turning its back on the architecture behind it, preferring the (unseen) attractions of the beach, sea and sky. Also the buildings themselves have a more important role, and we can appreciate their wildly different sizes and styles in horror or with a smile.
In both, but particularly the first, we don’t see much of the natural surroundings, so I appreciate the sand drifting over the paving by the bench, making a quiet statement that nature can never be tamed completely. Also the light is sublime, with its pastel tones of blues and greys and yellows.

Pete

There is a lot of warmth in the colours in your shot (perhaps brought about by humidity? - it is pretty dry here and the scenery is looking quite washed out and harsh). It has a soft painterly look - perhaps a touch of motion blur with the long exposure or soft focus? There is a lot of driftwood clutter in the bottom left but that has never bothered me... 😉 You may be right that a shorter exposure will have less milkiness in the waterfall. It is a nice scene, I hope there will be more to come.

There is a saying that you can’t make a silk purse from a pig’s ear, but you prove week after week that it is not true, and turning the phrase making something of nothing from an insult into a high commendation, with great vision and creativity.
This photos is yet another example of how a subject, most would throw at a rubbish bin, can be transformed into something of beauty and interest with the creative use of depth of field, bokeh and colour. That is what makes your work so recognisably a leader in the Simplejoy style.

Pete

Lovely soft golden light with reflections and shadows combined. You have a hall of mirrors infinity effect with reflections from different chimes bouncing back and forth. The dark background with soft, indistinct elements allows the off centre crop. I wonder if a little background above and below would work? I am sure you tried it.

Yes, birds know every trick to annoy a photographer! But every now and again they reward, as this one has here. The composition, pose and background are great. Looking at the larger image reveals quite severe noise, which would be worth reducing. The image is quite bright, which doesn’t matter in itself, but means you could darken it a bit and it would still look good, and have the advantage that the noise would no longer be so visible.

Pete

A very good series, which again proves that dodgy, but changeable, weather may not be most people’s first choice, but is ideal for photography. I agree that the last has all the ingredients, but I also particularly like the first, for the same reasons. The mountain, the subject and destination, is in sunlight, making it stand out attractively from the duller surroundings. Maybe the clouds could be darkened slightly(!) to enhance that feeling?

Pete

Mike, is there a sort of protected area where the public can view? The bears aren't too perturbed by human presence?

Thanks Pete,
It was bright overcast but failing light. My camera with small sensor needs reasonable light otherwise noise becomes an issue as you see here. I do need to invest some time in learning to use better pp tools.

re-edit further down, sorry

along the road

Thank you very much! I'm often attracted to contrasts, especially when the background is very dark and the subject is in sunlight. My processing aided my vision 😀

I too recognize your images immediately, Johannes - and not just for the very clever "punny" titles 😁 Yes, windchimes. Thanks for your comments!

Thank you Bryan! The chimes are hanging from a large pine tree. They are quite long, so to include anything at the bottom - which would only be a deeply shadowed patio full of a resident's "stuff," I would have to create my own. I certainly have no moral objection to that 😁

The Gitga'at people are very protective of these bears who hold a spiritual significance for them. For example, we were asked not to post GPS data of the exact location out of concerns that poachers might shoot one of the bears for a trophy. And there is no public access without a Gitga'at guide.

This area of the Great Bear Rain Forest has the highest concentration of Kermode Bears (also called Spirit Bears) anywhere in the world. Estimates vary on their numbers - on the order of 200 or so. Our Gitga'at guides led us about a mile into the dense forest to a viewing area where the bears are known to fish in this small river. We sat quietly for hours waiting for them to appear. And they did. There was no "physical" protection, only the guides' knowledge of their behavior and our willingness to respect their habitat. We watched for hours as they moved up and down this small river fishing for salmon. At times they were as close as 15-20 meters away. I frequently had to switch to my medium telephoto (40-150) because they were too close for my longer lens.

Windswept

Location is Lake Huron, Ontario, Canada with water surface of 59.600 sq km, consequently wind gusts of up to 30 knots in the fall are not uncommon.

I like where you've placed the center of the coil, Rich. I have a similar photo, but the center is centered, and perhaps not as interesting as yours.

I wanted to comment on your backstory as it also applies to the "knots" and cleat (?) on the dock from last week: in replies to feedback, you are providing a lot of context and interest about the setting and history of these photos. However, when we view without that knowledge, or when we can view only on a computer monitor (mine is 13" though very bright and sharp), we are restricted in a lot of ways from understanding and appreciating the shared photo.

I guess there's no solution to that aside from presenting photos that require no explanation and that are suited to web viewing, or photo stories with both information and multiple shots, or like MinnieV posted last week, explaining the purpose.

I love fog and weather contrasts in any location. For locations such as yours, the moods are far more interesting to me than sunny tourist brochure photos. Some of mine of Mount Rainier in sunshine I call "postcard" shots. This was a highly enjoyable series, giving me a sense of the real Hochkönig region.

The steel wool textures, gaping mouth and oversized eye definitely make me smile!

It did take me awhile to figure out what the circle/cylinder was in its mouth 😀

I might try reducing the opacity of the background object on the left, or cloning over with trees. Even with the impact of our star, it distracts a little.