Digger sunset

[Drew Smith]

Hi there

I have a liking for construction site machinery and find it a challenge to try and make them 'beautiful' or at least interesting.

What are your thoughts on this one? Do you think the Landscape or the Portrait works best?

Please bear in mind that it may look like a picture of a sunset spoiled by a piece of machinery, the aim was to create an image of the Digger in an interesting light.

Drew

[Baffled]

Interesting shots Drew. Great colour in that sky. Personally, I would have tried to take the photos from a different angle or possibly moving/zooming in closer to leave out the post, in the fore ground, which distracts from the main content of the photograph.

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John

[Drew Smith]

Hi John - thanks for your comments.

The 'post' is actually a part of the distant construction site; a steel and concrete support pillar for a bridge. It's several meters high. Does it look like a foreground post to you?

Just shows what you don't see when you know what is there!

Drew

[Baffled]

Yes, I didn't realise what it was. Personally, I just felt that it is distracting.

_________
John

[karenoliver]

I like photographing ordinary things and beautifying them as well. I like the sky and sunset very much and think your best bet would have been to moved in closer to make the diggers more prominent. You could also try cropping out the area to the left of the concrete post which would place the focus on the digger more. Why not ask at the site office for permission to photograph inside? I asked last year for permission to photograph the construction of a new psychiatric hospital and the company allowed me in with no problems at all.

Karen

[silversnapper1]

From your comments I can see what you are trying to achieve and the post would not be out of place on a construction site. I agree with Karen that if the digger is meant to be the focal point then it should be more prominent. Addiotionally, I would like to see the digger placed on a third to improve the composition.

I like both shots but, of the two, my favourite would be the second one as the portrait format brings in that super cloud formation.

[pburness]

Hi Drew,
I think the portrait version works best for me. Karen is right, and moving in closer to the diggers would have shown that they are the 'statement' you are trying to show within the photograph. At the moment they are too small relative to the rest of the frame, and too close to the edge.

There is also something slightly surreal about the digger; The sun is setting behind the digger, yet the lens side of the digger is very bright - that seems odd in my mind, I would be expecting it to be in shadow.

In both of these images I think the sky is the real picture here, so maybe an option would be to silhouette the land / digger and let the wonderful sky be the main statement.

Phil

[Drew Smith]

Thanks Guys

Yup, I fully understand what you are saying. I was going for a different look and feel with this image - I've mostly failed, as I'm now going to explain what I was after, and you shouldn't need to 'explain' what your photo is about if it works!

The picture, as stated, is a composite. The sky and foreground are one picture; the digger, soil mound and concrete pylon are another. These two I've put together in photoshop.

I wanted the pic to say, here is the magnificence of nature and here is the attrition of 'man' and his machines encrouching on this wonderful world. Hence the digger off to the right edge. I could make the digger image lay on a third and also make it bigger (get closer) but that would no longer make the statement, for me, that the current image does.

Thanks for all the feedback, it's very much appreciated. Here are the changes (done quickly, please forgive me) you suggested:

Drew

[pburness]

Now I like the second one - looks like a duel at sundown. Digger vs. Concrete post at 50 paces

Your explanation in post #8 seems to differ from your comments in post #1 which suggests you are trying to make the machinery look beautiful, while post #8 indicates the diggers are messing up the beautiful landscape - could this be why the message in the image was unclear?

Phil

[Drew Smith]

Thanks Phil - glad you like it.

Yes, a confused message, entirely my fault.

I do think a lot of construction machinery looks beautiful; almost prehistoric. And I try and contrast them against a landscape back-drop, as with this picture.

As for the sureal look to the Digger - well yes, it's front lit in it's original picture but I thought the colour matched the sunset sky in this pic well. And of course if it had been in this picture for real then it would have been back lit as you say, not front lit. But then if I'd had a lighting set up to illuminate it in this way I would have used it!

Drew