Dawid Sadkowski – Enviroment

HNC Photography Evaluation

5 Seascape Pier

50mm, 1/15s @f22 ISO100

Research and planning

I was planning to take a completely different picture from the one I took. I wanted to make
them with a long exposure time like Paul Grogan, but (spoiler here) something failed. I also looked
for inspiration in the works of Sylvan Buclky.

To achieve this, I needed a tripod and ND filters for the location.

Contact sheet

Camera technique

In order to be able to take a photo with a long exposure, I had to set the camera on a tripod
and close the shutter as much as possible. Due to the small aperture, many objects are also in focus.
Since I was taking the photo with an exposure time that would make the camera shake, I used the
shutter delay. However, because I did not take the ND filters (I did not check the checklist) and I
could not take exposure longer than 1 / 15s, I tried bracket.

Composition

In this photo I use the pier as a line to the angler at the end of it and at the same time in the
center of the photo. The horizon line runs halfway up the photo. Far in the background, we see a
fragment of the island which disturbs the angler's sense of loneliness.
Post processing

In Lightroom, as always, basic tweaks at the beginning and a gentle cropp to compose the
photo. Little change in curve and bigger in calibration. Then, in the HSL panel, I adjusted the colors to
the right shades. I did not correct the lens distortion as it gave a greater sense of depth in the photo.
I put a minimal and barely visible vignette to tell the recipient what to pay attention to.

Self-evaluation

Despite the poor preparation (checklist), I was able to take a nice photo. I like its sea colors
in it, broken with the rusty colors of the pier. But I would improve the framing this time. I would
have used a wider focal length and I would have tried a long exposure for sure. After a cool analysis,
I came to the conclusion that I had too few photos taken because I wasn't looking for new
perspectives too much. I had too much of a vision of what I wanted to do and got stuck. This photo
taught me three things - checking the equipment twice, being flexible and adapting to existing
conditions.