Hi Dave .... I don't usually comment on too many dog pics, for most are just too cute and saccharin for my taste, and I'm not the biggest admirer of dogs in general. I say this not to alienate any dog fanciers but to emphasize how much I like this portrait of Copper. Although it has a few technical problems, you've nonetheless managed to capture him in his element, and show him as a strong creature. In this respect the portrait is quite good.
Technically, however, there are a few flaws, which, if corrected, might move the power of the image up a notch or two. The first thing that struck me is that his rear paw is cut off a little, which lessens the impact of him standing on the rock, negates to a small degree his solidness and strength. The rock grounds him, and losing that bit of paw lessens that. If it's not really cut off, but just a result of the process of printing, try reframing the shot. You may see the character of the image change a bit. Secondly, the darkest parts of his body show no detail - specifically in the area of his chest and neck. Once again, it's a small thing, but more detail might bring out a little more of his character as the relatively large, detail-less black areas take away from his strength and presence. Playing with the photo in PS didn't bring up any more significant detail. Perhaps that's a result of the scan. Did you scan from the negative or from a print? In any case, does the neg show detail in those areas? If so, you might try another scan. There is a bare spot on his ear, and another on his leg, up near the chest. While they may accurately represent how Copper looks, it could also be that by touching up those two spots with the healing brush, you'd end up with a better portrait. It's truly a judgement call, and while I'm the first to eschew major retouching, I do think some minor blemish removal can sometimes help a portrait, whether human or animal. The crop is pretty good, but I think it could be a little tighter. The washed out sky in the upper left corner would not be missed, and bringing the crop to something like a 7x5 format instead of the full frame of the 35mm negative might reduce some extraneous detail and give a bit more of the focus on Copper without taking away the sense of place or diminishing the character of the photo. It could result in a stronger portrait. Copper seems a bit soft, almost OOF, and I wasn't able to get him much sharper. If he could be sharper, especially around his eyes, but overall, you might see a major enhancement to the image. A little more contrast and sharpness in some areas of the photo might be helpful as well, primarily in the rock upon which Copper is standing. Well, there y'have it ... Shel > [Original Message] > From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > ... but i like this one of Copper. Very over cast day,in the > hills of Madawaska Ontario,K1000 with 35-80 4.5/5.6 zoom, > developed in Tmax developer. I went over the time > by 35 sec cause i was not paying attention to the stop watch.<g> > (It was Friday night after all.LOL) > > Hope you enjoy and comments welcome. > > http://www.caughtinmotion.com/paw/copper2.jpg >
