The Trouble With Photo Walks

[mbrager]

I also participated in the Worldwide Photo Walk a.k.a. WWPW in Calgary on Saturday. The trouble is having to choose one photo to enter in the contest. There were 35 photographers, many with better equipment than I have. It was interesting to observe what others shot, as well as to try to slow down and not get caught up in hurrying along with the rest. Didn't go that well. Anyway, here are five wildly different shots I thought were candidates, and I'd be happy to hear opinions. There is a Flickr group Flickr: WWPW Calgary 2012 (http://www.flickr.com/groups/wwpwcalgary2012/) that has some other photographers' shots as well as my own if you are interested. Comments and critiques much appreciated.

1. Bird in the Bush
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8468/8088736318_2f8d6f1e8c_c.jpg

2. Bakery
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8195/8088745987_0406b55485_c.jpg

3. Behind the Garage
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8468/8088744099_b35259f6be_c.jpg

4. One tree, many branches
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8189/8088741454_d62ffedbeb_c.jpg

5. Joggers with Stroller or Pink Socks, Really?
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8186/8088738578_5f5195ac8a_c.jpg

[theantiquetiger]

I like #'s 2, 3, & 4.

#1 is too busy, distracting from the bird.

#5 missed the POF. You titled it "Pink Socks", but they are out of focus. The sign was your POF.

My favorite is #4, but the tree could use a little more burning, some spots of the tree blend with the background.

[mbrager]

Thanks. Wow, you're up late. Great comments.

[Iguanasan]

TheAntiqueTiger has some good comments. My pick from this set would be #3 but I'm a bit of a fan of colour. I also like the composition on this one with the car in just the right spot. The B&W tree is just not interesting enough for me, sorry.

[Marko]

Very different images which is cool - here's my take
1 - Nice colour but the bird is lost
2- just not crazy about the comp here - image has a bluish cast.
3 - best composition in the bunch imo - I dig it
4 - Not crazy about the comp or cropping here.
5 - I think my sharp zone would have been on the runners not the bkgd.

Hope that may help

[mbrager]

Thanks for looking these over and commenting. Great comments all and much appreciated. Gave me much to think about and also helped me compare with other posted shots. Don't think I'm going to win any contests...but it's the journey, not the destination, right?

[Iguanasan]

It is most definitely the journey. Photo walks can be difficult... you are relying on what you stumble across to provide you with something interesting to photograph. Sometimes, that doesn't always happen. In fact, it's often rare that you get a great shot. It can be an opportunity for some very nice shots and your third shot is an example of that. If you came away from a photo walk with only that image, it was a success. You should be quite happy with yourself for identifying that as a suitable scene to photograph and then photographing it well. Most people would walk past the car and see nothing.