Photo Portfolio Critique Thread.

[oddio1]

the film shots dont really have much post, nothing more that 5 or 5% of any adjustments, and only levels and maybe whote balance or tone. i dont rememebr specifically but thats the case with most of my film shots, if anything at all was done. as far as the digital ones, the first three didnt have anything done, which you can kinda tell, they arent quite as nice looking. the fire fighters and some of my newer shots, i run through lightroom, and adjust levels and tone, hue, warmness, etc..sometimes a little contrast. i dont know a lot about post so i tend to only do basic things and usually not more than abotu 5 percent = /- .

[MayorMeanBeans]

@ Leland - regarding that couple that took those grain silo projects, i know exactly who you're talking about and its killing me that i can't remember their name now. It sounds german-ish.

 

Also, interpret 'portfolio' however you want. if you think its more helpful for you to receive advice on a versatile general use portfolio, present it as such, no problem at all. I chose not to do that cuz I a. already have one and b. most of the work i get is more for stories and less for one or two slam dunk images.

 

@ raven - thanks a lot for the comments - the vast majority of those pictures were taken with a digital nikon body (either a d40 or a d3000) with a 35mm usually pretty wide open, the f stop being between 1.8 and 5.6 im guessing without double checking. as far as film, the digital ISO was usually 100 or 200, sometimes 400 though. i kept the equivalency value at 0, so the speed was for the most part pretty fast.

 

you've actually seen a fair amount of those in color, i went back and tweaked the shit out of them one day in photoshop. liked how they came out, but i think im going to end up staying with color for this project.

 

@ oddio - i've been looking at your work at various times over the past couple days - and i think you'd be great at doing a more graff-centric project - check this guy's stuff out http://www.willsteacy.com/, the project called Down These Mean Streets. normally im not a fan of the tendency of medium format to just say 'look at this', but i could see this project being waaaay doper if it was more along the lines 'the things that bombers encounter at night' - sort of like dash snow's polaroids. anyways, more food for thought

[OhMyGosh!]

Mayor..good looks on that link..some really nice stuff in there.

[loseryouthcrew]

alright well it's been a week and i guess i'm up now. these photos are gonna be pretty much based on things i like to shoot-graffiti, live music, and urban exploring. i'll include a little story with each picture and will probably even critique some of my own work. all these photos were taken with a nikon d80, a tamron 10-24mm lens and when using a flash i use the sb 600.

 

this is my friends band skin like iron. i shot this about a month after i got my camera and didn't know about shooting manual yet. this was done in jpeg not raw in the black and white setting with no editing. i think it came out pretty good for not being messed with at all.

 

 

this is an abandoned adult developmental center in new jersey. i like the fact that you can pretty much see the whole room, but don't like the fact that it's kinda lopsided-i didn't have a tripod with me.

 

 

i took this photo for a book that trash talk was going to be putting out. my friend gloom is friends with them and he basically wanted to paint their logo all over this abandoned warehouse. i like it because their new record "eyes and nines" just came out and gloom is rocking the hoodie for it. this image also got used for a flyer for a show they did in japan which i thought was pretty awesome.

 

 

rival schools at fun fun fun fest in austin 2008. i was lucky enough to get a photo pass for the fest and got to shoot some awesome bands. walter schreifels is one of my favorite musicians and i'm glad i got the chance to shoot rival schools.

 

 

my friend klue painting a freight. i like it because you can see how big a freight looks compared to a person. i don't like it because i had to crop it weird because i didn't want the bags we had out in the picture. in hindsight i should have just moved the bags.

 

 

third and jurne. it's a basic picture, but i like the way the graffiti reflects in the water.

 

 

a graffitied cal tran tunnel in san francisco

 

 

an abandoned commuter train at a train graveyard.

 

 

the light at the end of the tunnel

 

 

this was in an burned out apartment building in oakland. it kinda creeped me out a bit as in my sick head i could picture someone who had been murdered or committed suicide in the bathtub.

 

 

walking through a train yard with my friend aaron who i shoot photos with a lot

 

 

 

i'm really interested in street photography, but i'm usually too chicken to ask a stranger if i can take a photo of them. this is a homeless man named gino who lives by the cal tran tracks in san francisco. i was taking pictures of graffiti one day and he asked me what i was taking pictures of and asked if he could watch me. i said sure and he followed me around and kept telling me what a great photographer i was and asked me to take his picture as well.

 

 

danny diablo DJing at a bar in berkeley. i like this picture because i didn't mean to take it and it came out good.

 

 

punk is dead. my friends band grace alley playing at gilman. this is my current favorite photo that i've taken recently.

 

 

 

 

so that's it. i look forward to hearing everyone's comments, feedback, suggestions, etc. thank you all for letting me a part of this!

[Leland Palmer]

Yeh that bottom photo is well good mate, love the smooth transition from light to dark and the wall of disembodied legs. Definitely getting some dope music photos (really like the first one as well). I think your photos of places could have done with a little less exposure though. I think you've kind of lost some of the mood of these places cos some of the shadow isn't dark enough and the areas of light are a bit blown out. Liking the shots from the inside of the train though and that bath looks pretty hideous haha.

 

Have you thought about covering the rest of the concert situation apart from just the band playing? I think it'd be dope to see the full picture especially if you're friends with a lot of them, the preparation before getting to the venue, setting up, the crowd, the aftermath etc.

[loseryouthcrew]

hey man thanks for the response. as far as exposures and lighting i still feel like i have a lot of room for improvement on those areas. shooting concerts can be hard because a lot of places are dark and the lighting isn't so great. i really need to take a class to learn better lighting techniques for sure. anyone have any suggestions? as far as shooting the whole show like getting there, setting up, crowd shots, etc it's a good idea for sure and something i'll consider doing for the future. as it is right now i'm 30 and i've been going to shows since i was 15 and it takes a lot for me to go out to a show these days and usually i'll go, shoot friends bands and leave as most shows happen on the weekends and i work early saturday and sunday mornings. def something i'd be willing to try in the future as it would make a cool project. thanks again for the advice and opinions, etc.

 

-walter

[oddio1]

i like the tub in the abandoned building the best. and the train car and inside building ones. one thing i will suggest, because it has helped me a lot with events, is to get an off shoe flash cord, even if at first you just hold it a foot to the side of your camera at first, it will make a huge improvement. also i agree 100% about getting other things at shows other than whats on stage...

[MayorMeanBeans]

yeah you definitely have some good shots - definitely established the ability to take future good ones as well. Now I feel like the tricky part starts - you got good concert shots, good graff action shots, good abandoned building shots. I can imagine that you took these shots because you are interested in these things, I also imagine that you have plenty of friends that are interested in the same thing. What are these people doing when they're not punking out, exploring abandoned places or painting on shit? Get those shots, and you'll start to get a really cool project going on. One thing I think you could benefit from is the fact that in the popular conscience, you have this popular (mis)conception that graff is all about these '4 elements' graff'n'dance stuff. You could definitely get into the idea that punk music is a big part of graffiti's subculture, and vice versa. When I see your photographs, it is clear that you are more or less photographing your lifestyle, ie, that you are the subject of your photography. If you could figure out a way to step back a little bit and photograph the type of people that are into the type of stuff that you're into, you'd have great access to a great project.

 

Just some food for thought, hope it makes sense.

[oddio1]

i also really like the trash talk photo quite a bit.

[andrewreynoldsx]

this thread is really inspiring..i'll keep my comments to myself because i know-not but keep up the good work fellers. -drew

[loseryouthcrew]

cool thanks for the advice guys. i actually do have a flash cord and def used it for that last photo of grace alley. like i said earlier i still need to work on my lighting and i def wanna improve on that in the upcoming year.

 

mayor-i feel what you're saying. but are you saying to get more action shots of dudes painting, etc? i do have some action shots in my personal collection, but really try and refrain from putting that stuff online. i can see what you're talking about with bands though-maybe hanging out before/after they play, getting stuff set up etc. but yeah i'd def like to work on some of the stuff you suggested so like you said i'm less of a subject and more of an outsider taking photos like that.

[MayorMeanBeans]

no personally i think painting shots are pretty boring actually haha. Henri Cartier-Bresson oftened covered 'official' planned events. But never took pictures of the actual parade, performance, etc. Instead he only took pictures of the audience, their faces told the story. You can do the same. If someone is painting, try photographing the look out. You have plenty of pictures of abandoned places, but no pictures of how you got in/people getting in. Assuming that you're painting more than freights, there is a lot that goes into a late night bombing mission. You can tell this story without a single shot of someone actually painting -

 

Late night grub

Look-outs

Waiting for the coast to be clear

driving

paint on hands

smoking a cigarette after

dawn rising

meeting random fools in the night

conveying that feeling that you're kind of on your own when you break the law at 4 am.

[da1lyoperations]

Just jumping in here, I agree with Menino 100% on that one. Painting shots are painting shots, they're always going to be there but you have to tell a story through your photos. although i do think that you should include some painting shots, but put a bit of style to it, don't make it the normal snapshot.

 

there's a dope segment in Artillery Chapter Four, aussie mag. it's a few pages of full page photos, from one panel mission. I'll try to find some scans of it. It shows the open gate - crouching by the paint - standing in the yard - painting - sunrise - waiting for the train in the morning (and this is commuter trains so it adds to the whole experience haha.)

 

one of the painting shots in there is taken from behind the guy filming it. you can see someone painting in the background but the focus is on the handycam and the image being filmed. great shot. it's stuff like this that makes graffiti photos interesting

http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lbirjf90qI1qbxjpzo1_400.jpg (stolen)

[loseryouthcrew]

ah ok i see what you're saying. i guess i don't take photos of getting in/out of buildings because i find out about a lot of spots via writers who ask me not to post too many details on flickr as they don't want the spots blown up. but next time i go out with some writers i'll be sure to take more photos like that you're right it def would make for more interesting shots.

[da1lyoperations]

This isn't so much my 'portfolio' but I would like to expand on the general idea for a small book or set of prints... "Day in the life" kind of thing.

Just some old photos I dug up recently and tried to make them read like a photo essay. Adding it in here because we were talking about adding a story to photos!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry for the small size, just used the size tumblr gives out. These aren't great by any means, just trying to motivate myself to shoot more by showing more stuff. Aiming for that raw, gritty, street feel.

[da1lyoperations]

If I could edit that post I would have the photo of him locking up the bike under the first one. Reads a bit better

[loseryouthcrew]

yeah if him locking up the bike was after the first shot it would def be better. i like the way it tells a story though keep up the good work!

[da1lyoperations]

He was actually unlocking the bike after we ate, but I dunno which reads better for the viewer!

Cheers though, gonna keep working on stuff like this

[MayorMeanBeans]

yeah it looks more like a work in progress than a body of work. kind of hard to judge one way or the other just because there are only five photos, but they look good. make sure that they are interesting enough that they pass the 'who cares' test - a lot of people do day in the life type projects.. i really like the photo of the sydney opera house - that is the only way i would have known it was in australia -

 

thebest advice i can give is keep it up - maybe after everyone else has gone and you've done more work, you could re-present it. they are a good set of five images though..

[MayorMeanBeans]

bump - i lyost track of who's up next - anyone know - or does anyone wanna jump in?

 

ps. all the stragglers remember to hook up dude with some advice/comments.

[OhMyGosh!]

I think either load limit or leland was up next..?

 

I would like to get down on this after..

 

 

..and for advice on that last post. Similar to whats been said before..I think more pictures are needed. What you have there looks good for a showing at a gallery...but not an entire portfolio.

[Leland Palmer]

According to mayors list in his first post it's mn up next but I'm easy either way.

[OhMyGosh!]

Ill post mine because nobody else seems to be jumping in now.. In no particular order..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was very difficult for me to choose which ones I wanted to pick. I tried to show a decent variety..not really targeted for any specific viewer. I like some more than others. Each one has a story around it. If anybody would like to know more about any one..please ask.

[loseryouthcrew]

i really really like that red doorway/brick photo. the wheelchair photo creeps me the fuck out, but in a good way. not really feeling that last one with the car driving down the street for some reason, but that's just me. what kind of camera, etc are you shooting with?

[OhMyGosh!]

The majority of the pictures were taken with my D70 using the stock 18-55 lens. The other ones were taken using my "bring along when I paint" camera. I believe its a Kodak DX6490. None are film...im way to poor to develop that shit.

[mn1_fuckos]

my photography career started by catching flicks of graff the more i did it the more i liked it. As the time went buy i began experimenting with other subjects that weren't graff related. The more i did it the more i realized that i began to get better. While in high school alot of people said i was wasting my time with photography. Thankfully i never listened to all those douche bags in high school because through photography I have met a lot of great people through my journey which have helped motivate me to become an even better photographer. School has also helped me out a ton being around so many other photographers makes you step up your game to try to be the best in the bunch.

 

I would call my style of photography documentary. Aside from shooting graffiti i love street photography and taking candid shots of people. I also love shooting cotillions and weddings whenever i have a chance i feel its really high pressure and always a good challenge because you only get one shot to do right.

 

 

Props to the 12oz photog crew for also makin me step up my game when i started.

 

 

 

Here are a couple of shots that you all might have seen before but pretty much sum up the different types of subjects i like to shoot.

 

Up to this point i have shot with a Canon Powershot A530,Nikon D80 and Nikon D300s

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mn1_fuckos]

i havent commented on this thread as much as i really should have tenidng that wast the whole point

 

i really dig OMG's photos but i dig the firefighter photo and the man peeking over the bushes the most. i like the color and framing in the firefighters shot and the minimalism in the man in the bushes.

[loseryouthcrew]

i really dig the one of the dude with the spray can-the second one not the first one. i'm kinda like you in the sense that i started shooting graffiti as a hobby and now i like doing it even more-coming up with new ways to make graffiti shots to look interesting instead of just a straight shot at a wall.

[wafflecakee]

pose!

 

sorry i don't know shit about photography i can't really provide any critique.

 

i dig both posts on the page, thats all i've got.

[OhMyGosh!]

MN..i enjoy that B and W bus stop shot. Good variety in those flicks too. Only advice I have as far as a portfolio goes..I think I would just add more pictures. Maybe include a wedding, or commissioned event youve done also. 3 or 4 from each genre or style or subject to show that you are comfortable with doing each. Ive never taken a class in photography or ever really tried to do anything with my pictures so I dont really know if thats what people look for. Ha. Take it or leave it.

 

And thanks. The guy peeking over the bushes, is actually my father. That picture was taken at the Bronx botanical gardens...probably 4-5 years ago. Difficult to tell in the flick..but there is actually a 3-4ft walkway where he is standing.

 

The firefighter picture was taken in Londonberry, NH. While driving back from a weekend at Stowe, we saw a plume of smoke from the highway, and decided to see what was causing it. Eventually, we arrived at a suburban house completely engulfed in flames. We got there very shortly after the fire department did. We got to watch the roof, and all 4 walls collapse.