I have been experimenting with different ways of depicting juvenile lemon sharks in their mangrove habitats - mostly in Bimini, Bahamas working with the BBFS-Sharklab.
Shot this with Canon 20D, Tokina 10-17 FE, and Canon 580EX Flash - used a slow shutter to blur out most of the shot, except where the flash filled in. I was interested in other people's opinions on whether or not they liked this shot. I may try to use this technique more extensively in the future if many people like it.
cheers!
- MDP
Hi!
IMHO it's a very original technique and I like the results, specially the overall softness and the color combinations.
A good idea to try in my next dive!
Cheers
Juanma
I love the results. the way the water bleeds into the air looks amazing. the way the shark is a perfect reflection of the distorted horizon really holds this image together composition wise. i think a half second later and this shot would fall apart (think of the sharks body curved the other way, pushing your eye off the bottom of the page).
my only complaint is the overexposure of the cloud at the top right that detracts a little. a little retouching might help but honestly since there is no colour or texture data there to begin with i'd just leave it.
very nice work. might i ask what settings you used to shoot this?
Mike
Very creative. I have to agree with acco205 though, the cloud looks a bit blown out and lacks detail. I feel you should continue working on this type of shot.
Thanks for the feedback - and sorry but just to mention this - this isn't a split shot - this was taken above water. the shallow lagoon in Bimini can be pretty calm, so I waited until a shark swam almost directly below me and then snapped, using the fish eye to still capture some horizon and sky. That's what gives the "circle" of light around the shark - its where the flash went straight down the three feet to the sand/seagrass bottom and the rest is distortion from the fisheye - which I like in this application... It also gives that "fuzzy" texture to the surface of the water - which I was going for...As for the cloud - I had the aperture and ISO set to limit the amount of light - but the long shutter speed got it - would need a neutral grad that worked with the Tokina FE to fix this properly. I can try a little burning in PS and see what happens...
Exif - 10mm ISO100 F22 @ 1/15s
here is another shot from the series - similar exif (except F16)
cheers!
- MDP
ah i get it...very cool technique. i wish the waters around me were clear enough to try that sort of thing.
a word of caution on the burn tool- since there will be little of no data in that area (the camera sees this as being solid white) the burn tool with just make that spot grey. you could try adding an exposure adjustment layer and masking out all but that area and see what you get but you'll be hard pressed to make it look natural.
Mike
edit:
i also really like the comp of the second one. really nice work.
I love it!
It would look brilliant as a print.
Often its a trade off between techniques that work well for web viewing or well for printing. As a web viewed picture its hard to really grasp the soft tones etc but as a print it would be beautiful.
Not to gainsay everyone else, but it looks too much like a painting to me: the shoreline and sky are so strangely coloured that they distract me from the lemon shark.
As an environmental shot it doesn't work. As an art shot (which it is), whilst it works for the guys above, I don't like it.
Technically interesting and, I guess, successful, though.
Tim
hello all -
I have been experimenting with different ways of depicting juvenile lemon sharks in their mangrove habitats - mostly in Bimini, Bahamas working with the BBFS-Sharklab.
Shot this with Canon 20D, Tokina 10-17 FE, and Canon 580EX Flash - used a slow shutter to blur out most of the shot, except where the flash filled in. I was interested in other people's opinions on whether or not they liked this shot. I may try to use this technique more extensively in the future if many people like it.
cheers!
- MDP
Good photo! Have you thought about using a polarizing filter on a shot like this? COuld give you some really dramatic results. I love my polarizing filter for water shots with clouds in the sky. Give it try next time you're out.
Bob
Good photo! Have you thought about using a polarizing filter on a shot like this? COuld give you some really dramatic results. I love my polarizing filter for water shots with clouds in the sky. Give it try next time you're out.
Bob
bob -
I used the Tokina 10-17 for this shot and haven't tried to use a polarizer on it - wondering if there was a good way to get a polarizer on that lens...I usually use a polarizer when i am shooting with my 10-22 or 17-40 lenses as I have 77mm circ polarizer to accomplish this. maybe I can try to attach this on the front of the tokina with a creative app of duct tape - just dont know if the 77mm filter will cover its full angle of coverage...If I get the chance to try this I will post results...
cheers!
- MDP
... maybe I can try to attach this on the front of the tokina with a creative app of duct tape...
My guess is "only at the 17mm end", as the lens sees a hemispherical shell of light rays that's nothing like the plane of a filter, particularly at the wide end. The closest I have come with a Nikon is using a polariser on a 12-24mm zoom, but I don't know if Canon have a similar lens.
Tim
My guess is "only at the 17mm end", as the lens sees a hemispherical shell of light rays that's nothing like the plane of a filter, particularly at the wide end. The closest I have come with a Nikon is using a polariser on a 12-24mm zoom, but I don't know if Canon have a similar lens.
Tim
After a little fooling around in the backyard with the tokina and a 77mm circ polarizer I found the following - this combo will work with the lens down to about 12mm. At 10mm there is some vignetting - you can see the corners of the filter. I placed the polarizing filter up against the petals on the front of the tokina lens. Since the filter at 77mm is much larger than the lens diameter this works when you zoom out a little, though I had to basically hold it in place - and I am sure a better solution can be engineered. Its not elegant but it can be made to work...Hope to try this again soon on some real subjects...
