* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #822 / Revived #042 on 2024 01 17 *

I like the color version.
I've never done it, but there's a technique which is to apply gel to the front filter of the lens or to a piece of glass, is that how you did it?
Perhaps a piece of glass would work better, you could position it at an angle to bring out the texture of the gel lines.

It's a piece of glass "painted" on, trying to mimic brush strokes. I'm not sure how angling would work as my issue, I think, is one of distance.

The glass piece has texture and that's at one distance. The object behind it, further away is at a different depth. Even with something like F22 I don't think you can fully make everything sharp.

My current thought is to mount the glass and use a tripod for the camera. Take shots at several distances and stack. Unfortunately that defeats my goal of achieving this all in camera.

Curiously, I tried the same sort of technique on a reflected surface and it too seemed to have a "distance" issue on being unable to focus on all the right things at once. The camera seems to either pick focusing on the texture or something else, but I can't seem to get the texture and whatever else I'm aiming at in focus at the same time, even when reduced to capturing in flatter dimensions.

I'm all ears on any ideas.

Beautiful scene well composed and well captured. The crystal clear reflection is jewel-like, with perfectly contrasted complementary colors, excellent geometry, and just enough distortion to include the whole scene but not so much that it bothers the eye. Nicely done.

Both are quite nice. The mountain is impressive in its majesty and amazing size. The botanical study is my favorite, though - it brings us into the small world of nature closely examined. The out of focus parts set the stage: plant life dusted with frost, radiant mix of cool and warm colors, subtle light illuminating the single red leaf. Beautiful image.

Well now this is interesting. You have the reflections splayed out across the lenses like abstract art paintings, but only the mostly hidden rear earpiece is in focus. We have to hunt it down. I'm curious as to whether you meant to have more in focus, Or is this an exercise in treasure hunting? A secret message? Either way, it is an interesting shot that asks us a lot of questions.

😀

I imagined a process that is very laborious and I wouldn't have the patience for it myself, but if you do...

1 - It has to be a long exposure, maybe 20 to 30 seconds (you need an ND filter)
2 - Set the lens to manual focus and make two marks on the ring, one for the scene and one for the glass.
3 - Set the flash to fire on the second curtain.
4 - Start the exposure without the glass and with manual focus on the scene.
5 - A few seconds before the end of the exposure, you quickly position the ring on the focus mark of the glass and put the glass on.
6 - Wait for the flash (which will only illuminate the glass) and you're done.

If you're very lucky, everything will be fine on the first try.😀

Fascinating travel image that captures architecture, history, and human story. The scene feels like we are looking into a dollhouse, where we can reach past invisible walls and access areas that should be blocked from view. Is this the tailor shop advertised on the signage? If so, the proprietor is working late into the evening presumably to meet a deadline for a customer. There are so many intricate and mysterious details to explore in this scene. A fine capture.

I like this simplistic shot a lot. It is modern but the simplified geometric composition and choice of processing make it seem like it's from the 50s. The dominant blues set a certain mood as well, emphasizing the loneliness of the setting. Reminiscent of Stephen Shore's work,

Too long, things move, and the weather is currently in a state of freeze. I think I have one electronic camera with second curtain options.

I've go plans to try other materials, but I feel like I'm just going to hit this same wall again.

Interesting abstract with a nice muted color palette.

A colorful array of shapes and forms, well spotted and taken. The thing that worries my eye is probably the thing that makes it most successful: the uneven slant of the top shelf. Just enough uneven-ness to make me keep going back there, then I cycle back through all the colorful puzzle pieces.

Lovely water lily. The flower appears to be lit from within by golden light. We can drown in that bloom. The lily pads with their water spots and shadows and worn edges almost look painted. A very nice botanical image.

Nice travel set that illustrates what you describe: a vibrant mix of old and new, art and architecture, sturdy and frail, classic and modern. And the people who accept all of it and even add graffiti to celebrate it. Seems like a fine place to visit and explore. I see some connections between your offering and Pete's, though they are far apart.

These are both effective. Whatever you did to achieve the look of distorted glass is working. I think the effect is more pronounced in the color version, but for reasons I can't quite explain, I prefer the monochrome, maybe for the bleak midwinter mood the classic timeless look invokes.

Excellent! And great title as well! The combination gives us a photo worthy of the Atlantic's weekly photo display. You found a scene, you interpreted it, then you helped us see it as you had. We can't help but smile. A good street photographer can do no more.

I might at least experiment with raising the shadow on the "winner"'s upper body and face with a gradient. Her unsmiling arrogant expression would be more recognizable if you could find a way to do it without causing the reflected tents to create trouble, or stirring up too much noise. And if there is any more of the "loser"'s lost hair visible in the original, I'd include it.

This is SO good. Love it.

This is a fine street portrait. I have always enjoyed your street cat portraiture, and this is quite perfect. The colors in those sage green eyes and the brindled fur are beautiful, and the texture of the fur is palpably soft. But the war scar, the nicked ear, is what really commands our attention: the flaw that explains this animals difficult life. Nicely isolated against the background. A powerful photo.

"Where are you taking me?"
Waking up. Head concealed in a bag. Noises all strange. Voices, unfamiliar. Terror as only a child can understand transformed into a phrase said weakly.

Nice photo!
There are many street cats with the tips of their ears cut off, which indicates that they have been sterilized and vaccinated by veterinary services (right ear if female and left ear if male). The cut is made under anesthesia during sterilization.
But we also know that cats are quarrelsome and this could be the result of a fierce fight.