HIGH KEY BOND !

[haseeb badar]

Hello everyone !

Sorry for not posting for a couple of weeks , but here is my contribution to this months theme .

This image is taken at Amboseli. It was a cloudy mid day and we already had a lot of time clicking images of this mother-calf pair submerged in the swamps , so I decided to do some experiment by going the high key way .

CS6,DPP4, Levels and cropped slightly for comp.B/W conversion, sharpening.

Canon 70-200mm f2.8 IS II , Canon 1DMK IV , Bean Bag.

ss 1/125 , f/7.1, iso 800 ( that ss is real low and i guess i got away with it ) .

All your C&C's are most welcome.

[Jonathan Ashton]

An adventurous image style, but sorry not for me, I feel as though I want to see the outline of the elephant and I can't. Maybe if it was toned down a little but I suspect that defeats the purpose of your post.

[Stuart Philpott]

Haseeb,these high key images are something of an unknown to me. I am aware of them and have read threads here about them but still feel a bit unsure,so that needs to be taken on board. I feel similar in a way to Johnathon but personally I'd like the tusk nearer to me to have some form of presence. I feel the image needs those outlines if only on a subliminal level. That said,little ele is the star for me in this ,I presume she is suckling. It is an enchanting moment caught Hasseeb,but my opinion definitely needs to be qualified with my lack of expertise.
thanks for sharing buddy ,

take care

Stu

[Andre Pretorius]

Hi Haseeb

My suggestions is just did on top what you did below- see what comes out...
Then do some D&B..

[Steve Kaluski]

An adventurous image style

I second that Jon and nice to see you flexing your wings.

I rather like it because of the content and the young calfs behaviour, personally I think you have the right concentration where it counts and so it draws the viewers eye directly to what's going on. There is a minimal amount on the adult, but I would not like to see less.

Saying that, I might try having a hint more tone just to create more of an outline around the adult and straighten the image, but also somewhere you need some black, basically to balance out things so you have tonality across the board rather than just white & greys IMHO. It may not work and this is only a suggestion if you have time.

TFS
Steve

[Gabriela Plesea]

Hello Haseeb,

I am so glad someone else is experimenting with Theme images, I felt a bit alone here... So here's a humble critique from me, while still busy finding a technique to achieving a nice high-key myself:

1. I like it that you put emphasis on the little ellie
2. framing is great
3. love the content
4. Mama ellie is fading a bit too much at the top, I would have preferred a gentler transition. Since her limbs are visible, I think the trunk should be too?
5. Like Steve, I too feel there is a need for some black in places
6. The tusk of Mama ellie is invisible near the mouth but suddenly pops up past the trunk, I would either try bring back the tusk altogether or just clone out that bit, looks untidy and confuses the viewer.

I stand to be corrected, but to me some of the most compelling arty stuff appears to be somehow tidy and neat looking, well planned - therefore extremely aesthetically pleasing. Content and composition essential. Then we are talking shapes, lines, and finally contrast between grays, whites and blacks. The latter is something that IMO helps convey emotion beautifully, but only when the photographer knows what he is doing:) You have some lovely patterns in this frame Haseeb, and I am now talking about the ellies' skin. Those ellies would come alive if you could play around a bit, so I think Steve was spot-on when he mentioned the need for more tonality. I too am in deep waters when it comes to conversions but I think I am slowly starting to at least understand what they are about, will try share more of my experiments and counting on you for some feedback:w3

Kind regards and many thanks for sharing:5

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Haseeb - An interesting take on high key and a matter of taste. Unfortunately I find myself in Jonathon's camp with it not being my cup of tea. Great to see you experimenting though.

TFS,
Rachel

[haseeb badar]

Thank you everyone for your comments . I feel such images always draw extreme opinions and as far as I am concerned, I really liked this image as for the moment it has and the way it came out for me was exactly on the lines of what i was hoping to get .

I will try to implement the suggestions and see how it helps to improve this image and as far as this months theme is concerned it is a bit challenging and i hope to add more to it .

TFS !

[Marc Mol]

I have to first declare that I'm not a big fan of HK images in general and find that it requires a very special image to truly do it justice, this is just my personal opinion.

I would like to see the full definition of mum's back, the composition is very nice and there is plenty of scope for another version, if not a simple monochrome version?

TFS

[Steve Kaluski]

I feel such images always draw extreme opinions and as far as I am concerned

Indeed Haseeb, this is where you may need to distill from all the feedback to see if any of the thoughts help.



this months theme is concerned it is a bit challenging and i hope to add more to it

Can't beat positive thinking, go for it, nothing to loose and everything to gain. :cheers: It's such a shame to see that some of those who view, do not participate?????

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Haseeb what lovely frame from the content POV .... very intimate moment captured .
Sadly as presented it is not working for me , as there is not enough to grab on for me from the tonal POV .
Never stop experimenting ....
TFS Andreas

[haseeb badar]

Hello everyone , sorry for getting late on posting a RP based on your suggestions . WDYT ? would love to know your suggestions and opinions on this .

[Steve Kaluski]

Hi Haseeb, I think the OP has more 'Merit' than the RP, as it looks as if it's going more Mono, like a conventional B/W. For me it's trying to strike a happy balance between some tone, but also having the contrast of lines, blacks & whites too, with white areas left so the person can 'visualise' the missing content, if you know what I mean? I'm not saying that is Hi Key, just my take on the direction of this image.

This is way off for sure, but it may show in part what we mean about hints of contours etc. Perhaps Morkel can chime in as he loves his B/W stuff????

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Haseeb this works better for me , but would try to use Steve´s route for the darker tones :w3 to a lower degree as i think contrast is a wee bit too strong in his version .
Well worth to play with this frame .
Cheers Andreas

[Gabriela Plesea]

Haseeb, thank you so much for RP!

I had a good look at your RP as well as Steve's, first of all I like the frame better without the grass (just like in your OP and Steve's ). Regarding ellies, Steve's interpretation is closer to what I had in mind when I opened the thumbnail the other day, and this is because it retains that lovely hi-key look, despite being more contrasty. I like this "sketchy" look of the frame and having a little bit of definition around the subjects helps, especially on Mama Ellie: I can see the outline of her body and her back does not completely melt into the BG.

Let us have some more, I just had a look at your most recent thread and I think it is fantastic!

Kind regards,

[Morkel Erasmus]

Late to this one, Haseeb.
I like your last repost, nicely toned and good detail where it needs to be. Steve's last RP has added a bit too much contrast for what I would envision here, but it does work and it's all based on taste in the end.