Stilettoes* by Canon DSLR Challenge

Canon DSLR Challenge | all galleries >> Challenge 47: Creative Telephoto (hosted by Bruce Jones) >> Eligible > Stilettoes*

previous | next


03-AUG-2005	Olaf.dk

Stilettoes*

Copenhagen Central Station

I have tried several different crops, but keep coming back to the original framing, so I figured I'd just post that.
This is the full frame. Taken at 85mm with a 20D translates into a 135mm lens on a 35mm camera.
I'd be glad to hear your opinions on how to crop this, if at all. The best of the crops I came up with was crop number 4.

Since I wrote the above I have made more attempts and the following three were the finalists next to the original framing:
Original rotated and only cropped to the extent that was necessary to get the edges straight: 5th crop.
Similar to crop number 4, but with more room on top so as not to separate the legs too much: 6th crop.
An attempt at finding the golden mean, rotated and only slightly cropped: 7th crop.

*

Canon EOS 20D ,Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
1/800s f/1.8 at 85.0mm iso400 full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto

previous | next

Please do not delete, update, or otherwise edit others' entries
* Submitter retains all copyrights *

Guest		07-Aug-2005 20:45
Alexeig and Michael - thank you! Good to have your own conclusions confirmed by others.

Guest		07-Aug-2005 05:40
Olaf, it was great fun and very informative to review the cropping considerations you've explored for this image. I'm in easy agreement with your final choice, it just plain works and is very visually satisfying. -Michael

alexeig		06-Aug-2005 07:34
Very nice. I like the color palette and how the skin looks against the patterned floor. Keep it as it is.

Guest		06-Aug-2005 04:59
Thanks Jim! I have made seven different crops of this, all of which are acceptable to me, but my conclusion is that I was right to stay with the original framing in the first place, so it remains unchanged. Anyway, I decided to share my "cropping history" and left the finalists for all to see in the caption field above.

jimhwy		05-Aug-2005 09:02
I like the shot just as it is right now. The way the legs come together right at the top of the frame is perfect and we see just enough of the floor, I think. For some reason, the round patterns in the tiles seem to really make the shot for me.

Guest		05-Aug-2005 07:18
Thanks Gerald and Jono - your input is very much appreciated! I have some more options to try and then I have to make up my mind. I just need to find the time. Gerald, about the position of the heels over the target - a man has the right to be lucky, no?

Canon DSLR Challenge		04-Aug-2005 12:33
If the rules of cropping were easy to define, it would be a plug in and we wouldn't have to worry or debate on it! In this instance I can se how a tighter crop would take away some of what makes this a good photo. lighting, stance, pose, tile pattern, bokeh position etc. Who says the usual rules need to apply to all photos? - Jono

Canon DSLR Challenge		04-Aug-2005 12:22
Olaf, I second your considerations which made you select the original crop for submission. Yet not each and every point that you mentioned should be thought as indispensable provided that the overall composition can be improved. In my opinion, the linked version, although separating the legs, looks better. I like how the shallow DOF makes only the tiles in front of the feet appear sharp. This effect is emphasized in the linked version, thus making it look more dynamic. Perhaps you could even crop it a bit more at the right border. Only my two cents; this is a very strong image even without changing everything, and it is an example how a telephoto can be a creative telephoto. No matter how you crop the image, I like how you have managed to capture the right moment with her left foot positioned just above the target. Gerald

Guest		03-Aug-2005 22:03
Wow Pete, that means a lot to me, coming from you, whose photos I admire so! Having more space in front of a moving subject could be said to be a general rule of composition as well as avoiding placing your subject dead center in the frame. This is why I tried and I tried to find a good crop, but somehow I kept coming back to the original framing. I think my reasons for that are twofold: Firstly, the reflected light on the floor takes on a spotlight-like nature in the original framing that gets lost when cropped - there is a darkening of the edges (esp. the upper left corner), which I feel is good for the image. Also, I like the leg shadows. Secondly, I like that the legs come together at the top of the frame. In the cropped version, the legs seem too separated, almost like they don't belong to the same person. The cropped version is also slightly rotated (about 3.5 degrees CCW), so I have now tried rotating the original the same way but only crop to the extent that it is necessary to get the edges clean. I'm still debating with myself... I meant to delete my own comment because I wanted to add something. Happened to delete the following comment instead (which I recovered with the back-button): Peter Siejka_____________________03-Aug-2005 21:16 First of all, Olaf, it's a superb picture. Really stands out! I personally think that the linked crop is MUCH stronger... Best Pete