Which shot should I enter?

[bobt]

I've got a comp coming up which I have to enter by Tuesday. The subject is "Nighttime photography", and I only have two images that come close.

I'm working on the hope that these qualify, but you know judges .........

Any thoughts on which one is better? I don't really "do" night time photos.


small-deer on rocks.jpg


small-xaviour-4.jpg

[Tannin]

Hmmm ... interesting.

#2 is more likely to pass as "nightime", and catches the casual eye more easily too, but #1 is by far the better shot. #2 is more likely to get you in the door, I reckon, but destined to finish middle-of-the-pack if the opposition is half decent, where #1 will either get glanced at once and completely ignored, or sneak through as a dark horse into the final round.

Why not take a punt on #1?

(Posted drawing upon my vast knowledge and long experience of competitions, which is to say none whatsoever.)

[bobt]

Hmmm ... interesting.

#2 is more likely to pass as "nightime", and catches the casual eye more easily too, but #1 is by far the better shot. #2 is more likely to get you in the door, I reckon, but destined to finish middle-of-the-pack if the opposition is half decent, where #1 will either get glanced at once and completely ignored, or sneak through as a dark horse into the final round.

Why not take a punt on #1?

(Posted drawing upon my vast knowledge and long experience of competitions, which is to say none whatsoever.)

Thanks for that ... I was leaning that way I think. My wife was leaning the other way (always the case). 21 views so far and only one comment ..... maybe that's trying to tell me something!!!

I tried cropping it, but without the framework of the cliffs it didn't look so good. I've also tried darkening it a bit - that might work.

[ameerat42]

...21 views so far and only one comment ..... maybe that's trying to tell me something!!! ...

I'm just waiting for it to get a bit darker

[mudman]

bob, i would go with #2 as the scene is dark enough to have lights on. not just on the subject, but in the background too
cheers

[Geoff79]

I looked in earlier and didn't post as I had to ponder.

The noise in both of them... is that just a result of the resizing? Or being night shots, maybe just a naturally higher ISO used?

My honest opinion? I'd go with number one as it's more realistically lit. Both dark and light where it should be. Plus it's a simplistic frame, but appealing.

The second one... I dunno. For me personally, I'm not sure about it. Seems a bit over-saturated and although I assume lights are illuminating the red building, the white part of the building next door looks a little out of place, as well as the bright bark chips / leaves (?). It's an eye-catching image, but I prefer the simplicity of the first.

Whatever you choose, good luck!

[feathers]

Convert them to black and white Although l love the first one just a bit more, the lights reflecting on the building in two, definitely paint a later time of day. Two lovely images All the best in the comp

[bobt]

Interesting thought ... tried it, but didn't much like it.

Geoff ... the noise is irritating but I haven't manged to get rid of it. Mostly the problem is with it being a grab shot out of a bus window which I have then doctored half to death !!!

[feathers]

Bob, can understand you not wanting to fiddle with the pics, as that golden glow is pretty cool My only other thought would be to drain the color just a fraction, and then add a light blue filter over it, that shouldn't take away from the glow, but darken the sky a little. Cheers.

[bobt]

Bob, can understand you not wanting to fiddle with the pics, as that golden glow is pretty cool My only other thought would be to drain the color just a fraction, and then add a light blue filter over it, that shouldn't take away from the glow, but darken the sky a little. Cheers.

Yeah .. it's hard removing bits I like just to give more of an impression of darkness. I'll try that suggestion tomorrow - I've already had some success with other suggestions and noise removal, so hopefully by tomorrow afternoon I'll have a better version. Not really photography I guess, but you've got to do this PP to keep up! It's not as if i can go back to this place and have another crack - it's in the UK !

[Hamster]

Definitely 1. I'd crop the bottom off to make it square. Watch the halos around the antlers (at least that's what it looks like on this tiny screen).
Simple wins competitions.

[Mary Anne]

Neither of these images look like night time to me.

[farmmax]

For a competition, no 1 is an easy choice for me. I agree simple images often are easier to win with. It is borderline on "night" so don't know if that is a problem. The noise probably should be cleaned up a bit.

The second image looks very cluttered and confusing to me. Did you drop a sunset into the sky in it? There look like sky blue remnants around some of the trees.

[Glenda]

#1 for me is the stronger image but would depend on the comp's definition of night - does dusk qualify.

[bobt]

Neither of these images look like night time to me.

Yeah ... that's a problem. Definitions vary, but it seems that it's classified as night if the sun is below the horizon. This is a bit borderline i agree.

- - - Updated - - -

Did you drop a sunset into the sky in it? There look like sky blue remnants around some of the trees.

I did indeed ......

I don't have any genuine night photos that are worth anything, so I'm scrabbling around at the edges! My genuine night shots are easily critiqued by one word ..... boring!