Performing Shrimp shot

I took this in Indonesia in Oct. It appeared the shrimp was performing on a stage and that is what I attempted to capture in the photo.

I like the photo but some how I feel there is more to be obtained there than I have recorded.

So I thought I would come to the experts to see what others think.

Post work includes a slight crop, removing a bit from the bottom and right of the photo.

Shrimp performs on stage

I would have liked to be shooting up from the lower right of the photo - up more towards the shrimp - but that was not an option.

I think the main problem with this shot is that the subject ( shrimp ) is too small in the frame and anyone looking at the photo will have to search around for the main subject. Perhaps next time that you try a shot like this you get in a little nearer.

Stew

Beautiful image....I liked a lot.

Great job.

GHN

Okay... these little Thor Amboinensis shrimps always make good and colorful subjects but they are soooo tiny..

I like the whole environment, which is rich in geometry and textures, it's also good that you tried to snoot the light on the main subject. I think I get the general idea of what made your time worth for this image.

But from my side, I also see some problems in your image :

- probably not close enough, the subject is a bit lost, too centered too, I would have put it more aside. The benefit of getting closer is that it would probably get rid of the remaining disturbances in the bottom foreground

- now for the angle, it looks difficult from the grounds around to shoot otherwise than from top, I would have liked you to aim this shot with a lower angle, coming from the right side. You say it was not possible, which I understand. Personally, I now skip photo opportunities with an environment that isn't convenient to shoot nor aesthetic enough. I used to feel guilty missing a potential shot but since I read it from Martin Edge's book, I am now comfortable with this option.

- third problem is the light. Again that was nice trying to focus the lighting only on the shrimp, but since the area is so small and it is so difficult to get the exact beam coverage, it also lighted up the coral in the top right corner, which attracts too much of the reading.

Anyway that was just my feelings.

I don't disagree with the comments suggested above. I have many times run into the right subject and setting but the surroundings or the subject them self did not allow me to get the exact image I had visualized. It is a nice image and, as I always say, the right combination will present itself sometime. I just hope to be in the water when it happens.

Cheers

Todd

Thank you for the comments. And you are quite right, there really is no main subject due to the small size of the shrimp in the photo. I think the only option to approach capturing what I wanted would be to have a tokina 10-17 with 1.4x in a small dome and have access from the lower right. That way there might be a chance to have the shrimp larger and still have the background to approach the view of a stage.

But then, there is no access from that angle and I did not have that setup on the camera.

I appreciate the comments. And you are right Todd, better to not waste time on setups that just do not work.

dave

Personally, I now skip photo opportunities with an environment that isn't convenient to shoot nor aesthetic enough. I used to feel guilty missing a potential shot but since I read it from Martin Edge's book, I am now comfortable with this option.

I also now think like this and IMHO the quality of my shots that I do take have improved as I actually spend more time where I know that the " shot " can be executed properly. I may not take as many shots as I used to, but that just means less battery consumption, more card space, less uploading, less deleting, less frustration.

Stew

Wow so beautiful. Thank you for your share dave.