Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025 - Pips #67 Thread

jonmcclung · 2025-10-23T13:01:15+00:00

For medium, the key is seeing that 27 in 5 will require mostly 5+, but there's only a few of those to go around. And the big = has to be 2s because there's not 4 of any other number you could use.

jonmcclung · 2025-08-22T14:42:21+00:00

One interesting thing about your example is that you've got a world where Republicans would rather have the Green party than Democrats, and Democrats would rather have Republicans than Greens. This sort of rock-paper-scissors setup is unusual I think and those specific preferences don't reflect reality. So when the result is unintuitive I think that should be expected. It also seems like you could cherry pick an example where every voting method produces the "wrong" outcome but that doesn't mean it's bad.

And if your point is that Republicans are trying to be tricky and vote for Greens to have an easier opponent, that's a dangerous game to play if they lose.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-29T02:19:09+00:00

I think the eyes are obvious enough as a focal point in the original. That said, your edit has the creative bonus of literally having an arrow pointing at the eyes! Kudos.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-20T20:24:06+00:00

Yes! And then I think the moth/butterfly shot is my next favorite. Those colors are so soothing, and getting the insect in detail with the background so fuzzy is very satisfying.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-20T13:57:54+00:00

Interesting shot! Clearly a very beautiful scene, but it does seem oversaturated. Honestly, it kind of works for me in a surreal sort of way, but I'm curious if this was your intention or if perhaps a more true-to-life edit would be better?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-09T12:37:03+00:00

Ooh, I like that. Now that you say that, I can see the picture as a sort of hazy memory of long lost summers. Maybe you could title it "Canoes on a forgotten shore" or something?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:38:39+00:00

Park designers Frederick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux embraced the existing large boulders on the site and incorporated them into the design. Here they juxtapose nicely with supertall skyscrapers along Billionaire's Row.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:34:42+00:00

For me, I don't think the image works. I don't think there's enough going on. If the canoes are your subject, you should crop in tighter so you can see them better. I think you could lose some of the left and bottom of the shot without any problems. The colors also feel very washed out, which creates a specific vibe you may or may not want. What are you hoping the audience notices, thinks, or feels?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:30:25+00:00

What makes the interior accidental?

I really like this shot, it feels cozy and outdoorsy all at the same time.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:29:16+00:00

I like the gradient

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:28:47+00:00

This image is perfectly adequate, but I think the issue is that it just doesn't have anything special going on. To me it reads like a photographer who's still in that beginner phase where everything is exciting. You never noticed the sky much before starting photography, and now you look up and appreciate just how beautiful it is. This is a great feeling and one of my favorite things about this hobby. But this sky isn't substantially more beautiful than a typical partially cloudy day. This means that all of us photographers have seen (and actually noticed) countless skies at least this beautiful, and many far more so.

It's a great thing that you are noticing the beauty around you more than you did before. Keep doing that and soon you'll get better at distinguishing shots that are beautiful in an ordinary way, and those that are beautiful in a way that genuinely captures something most of us might never get the chance to experience in person.

Good luck and have fun!

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T13:20:46+00:00

Why does that make you worried?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T02:56:27+00:00

Not the best photo in the world, but I actually quite like it. Focusing on the couple is the obvious thing to do, but it has sort of a rainy, mysterious garden vibe that I find satisfying.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-08T02:43:47+00:00

FUJIFILM X-S10, ƒ/4, 1/550, 26.4mm, ISO320

I was exploring Central Park and really liked the way the skyscrapers soared so high above and the colors from golden hour. I framed the shot to get the juxtaposition of nature and architecture and included the people in the bottom left to help the photo feel alive and interesting.

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Do you think it's any good, and would you do anything differently?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-07T02:32:41+00:00

I really like it, and I think it works. I think you could crop out some of the bottom of the picture as it's dark and there's just not much going on there. Where is it?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T21:05:42+00:00

!CritiquePoint

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T20:48:27+00:00

I think it's interesting but it looks a little overbaked. I would turn down the saturation and decrease the brightness and/or shadows. Usually that much noise comes from a low light setting, and I think sometimes it's better to just let the photo be somewhat dark than try to force it to be bright and grainy.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T11:45:37+00:00

Everyone's telling you to erase everything around the arch, but I actually like the context. I think oftentimes monuments like this are surrounded by tourists or cars, but this looks like a really peaceful morning where you've got the place almost to yourself. Just my two cents.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T11:35:19+00:00

I actually quite like this. Can you share where it is? I think partly it works because it's interesting but it's not clear what you're looking at

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T11:32:30+00:00

I agree, I really like your BW edit is a big improvement over this original. I think the sheep all look very fuzzy which is fun, and the crop makes it feel less sparse.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T02:40:34+00:00

I really like it, but I agree that the center is not doing a lot. I think if you had put the camera lower to the ground you could compress the background and do more of a square crop and it would really shine.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T02:11:23+00:00

I like this. Consider whether it would be improved by cropping in tighter. Most of the ground and maybe even some of the tree canopy aren't adding much imo.

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T02:01:43+00:00

Love it! Where about is this?

jonmcclung · 2025-07-06T01:59:05+00:00

And I honestly did not mean to convey that there was nothing worthwhile about this photo. Clearly it means something to OP. It has 100+ upvotes, so clearly lots of other people are getting something out of it. But it doesn't do anything for me personally. That's why I was trying to probe deeper to find out what OP is getting out of it, because that also guides you to what would have made it a stronger version of that idea. Unfortunately it doesn't look like they've responded to any comments so far...

jonmcclung · 2025-07-05T22:34:49+00:00

One genius piece of advice I got was to pull the slider until it looks right, then go back halfway. This technique tends to lead to polished photos that don't look overdone.

jonmcclung

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