Inspiring Photo: Jointly Traveling.. #3381109

Jointly Traveling..

Uploaded: February 06, 2007 22:40:46

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Comments are wellcome...

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February 07, 2007

Absolutely amazing. I love the silhouettes. Great work. #601649

Michael S. Baker February 17, 2007

Agree with Anthony. The Silhouettes are excellent! Well composed too!
Regards,
Mike B- #3959980

Remi Trepanier February 20, 2007

Amazing!!! A winner for me!!! #3967709

Kay E. Mahoney March 22, 2007

Congratulations on your beautiful finalist. Good luck in the next round. #4084290

anonymous March 23, 2007

Awesome image Ali...congratulations on your finalist. #4089424

Kay E. Mahoney March 24, 2007

Congratulations on your second place winner. #4094027

randy dannheim March 24, 2007

Ali, this is just gorgouse. Congratulation on your 2nd place winner #4094180

Janine Russell March 24, 2007

Ali, excellent tones, detail, clarity, silhouettes and lighting; congratulations on your Second Place Win. #4094288

Kathleen K. Parker March 25, 2007

Absolutely wonderful, Ali!! Congratulations on your fine win!
kk #4094959

anonymous March 25, 2007

Congratulations on you second place win Ali! WTG #4094964

Michael S. Baker March 25, 2007

Congratulations, Ali...a well deserved win!
Regards,
Mike B- #4095478

AMALIA Veralli March 25, 2007

Great winning image!! Congratulations!! #4096108

March 25, 2007

How did you do this picture? I love the photo - it has great drama, but did you do some digital manipulation after shooting? #4096837

Patrick R. McMullen March 27, 2007

Great editing on it! It's simple and effective. Congratulations on it.
Pat #4102077

Lisa J. Boulden March 29, 2007

Superb image! --Lisa #4108226

Fawn M. Schutt March 29, 2007

That is so beautiful. Nice work! #4110111

Melissa Wynn April 09, 2007

A beautiful image. All the elements work well together. Love the silhouettes. Nicely done! #4148759

Kate Jackson June 16, 2007

WOW - I cannot imagine how good the first place winner must have been!
Congrats on your win and POTD! #4401913

Donna La Mattino Pagakis June 16, 2007

Such a beautiful and creative image, great light and colors. A big congrats on your win and photo of the day!~! #4401945

Laurence Saliba June 16, 2007

FANTASTIC!!!! #4401973

Ken Ferguson June 16, 2007

It is truly an amazing image. You must be very proud. Well done! #4401995

Bill Houghton June 16, 2007

Beautiful work. Congratulations. Bill #4402018

Janine Russell June 16, 2007

Ali, congratulations on your POTD. #4402042

Lynne Morris June 16, 2007

Congratulations on your POTD, this is a stunning image Ali. #4402171

Joy Rector June 16, 2007

congrats on the POTD #4402257

June 16, 2007

Your image is definately unique and nicely composed. Great work indeed. #4402274

Deborah Lewinson June 16, 2007

Stunning winner and POTD, Ali, congratulations! #4402288

JO ANN CLEVELAND June 16, 2007

Absolutely amazing capture! Definitely one of the best ever!

jo ann c. #4402458

Sharon King June 16, 2007

Stunning! Congratulations! #4402511

Susan Feulner June 16, 2007

Great composition - love it all. Only things missing are the tracks in the sand. #4402608

RC Fritz June 16, 2007

Fantastic silhouettes. Great comp. Congratulations! #4402632

Lindley Johnson June 16, 2007

Beautiful warm light and color. Fantastic silhouettes, too. Congratulations on your very well-deserved winner and POTD, Ali! #4402694

Cindy K. Bracken June 16, 2007

Wow, Ali - what an amazing image. Congratulations on your win and the POTD!
Cindy Bracken
#4402701

Trudy L. Smuin June 16, 2007

Wow Ali...This is stunning. All of your work is absolutely beautiful!! #4402866

Colleen Farrell June 16, 2007

Stunning! Congratulations on your wind and POTD! #4402894

Michael T. Morgan June 16, 2007

stunning...a great capture... #4403034

June 16, 2007

How did you do this? #4403118

June 16, 2007

Beautiful!! This would be a wonderful picture to be used at Christmas time. I love it! #4403190

Nancy Donnell June 16, 2007

Ali, this is just beautiful! Love the texture in the sand, the warm colors, and the way the palms and behind that, all softly fade out. Congratulations!! #4403236

Helen N. McHugh June 16, 2007

Just stunning, Ali! Congratulations on this brilliant POTD! #4403255

Patricia Ronan June 16, 2007

Great image! Congrats on your POTD:) #4403271

Mary K. Robison June 16, 2007

Big Congratulations on this beautiful POTD! #4403626

Rich Collins June 16, 2007

Ali I gotta tell you, this reminds me of the types of movie posters I recall seeing when I was just a lad for Disney. I remember thinking "Wow, this is really some terrific art". I still think that & your's is fantastic. Some PP work makes that moon look like it rests just over the next sand dune. Well done. Congrats on the POTD. Hope we see more. #4403638

Lynne Hoad June 16, 2007

Congrats on this stunning, gorgeous image Ali!!! #4403921

June 17, 2007

Are these paintings, photos, or "Photoshop Paintings?" (a new art form, it seems). Really does remind me of a "movie poster" as the other person mentioned. Would love to know how this was done, including the long shadows from the camels. Very arresting photo. #4406022

Mary Clarke June 17, 2007

Congratulations on POTD Ali, fantastic image! #4406325

Rich Collins June 17, 2007

Hi Catherine. Not sure but the movie poster look may be a photo transformed in a Graphics software, maybe Illustator, http://www.totaltraining.com/prod/adobe/illustratorcs2.php?mscsid=

Maybe Ali can let us all know.
#4406382

June 17, 2007

Thanks, Rich... I do hope Ali lets us all know. I have come to think of many "photos" and "photo paintings," with all the digital tools available today. A whole new blended art form! #4406497

June 19, 2007

this looks like a photo with illustration on it. The two camels in the back are absolutely identical. I wish the photographer would elaborate on this photo and tell us how much of it is photography and how much is post work. I feel like there is a very gray area here between photography and Illustration, but we are giving a lot of credit to this image as photograph.
just my two cents #4414430

June 20, 2007

Thanks Rich and Kaveh for your responses. I really can't understand what these "comments" are for, if it just "applause" for a picture that another group has chosen as a "winner," or "as the Photo of the Day (POTD)."

There is so rarely any real discussion about the photos, techniques, even the location used, one can't tell the "real" from the "false." I have long loved TrekEarth for it's wonderful critique and commments section, where people can actually learn about photos and how they are made.

In contrast, on this website, with no information given about this particular "camels" picture (I hesitate to call it a "photo") I am at a loss as to what I am supposed to be learning here. What are we doing, except patting each other on the back? It doesn't make any sense.

The pictures, lovely though they may be, so often seem to take on the look of graphic illustration or catalog cover photo shots that I have seen elsewhere. Where does one end and another begin, and how does this fit into the "photography" category? What is the criteria used in choosing the POTD?

Why isn't some kind of description required of a photo that becomes a "winner?" What good does it do to the rest of us if it's just another pretty picture?

Very frustrating for an amateur who wants to learn photo techniques, like me.

But I do want to thank the people who have responded to my questions, as they have been very informative. I greatly appreciate and do thank you for your time. I hope there is something that as a newcomer I am "missing." I would like to find out what that is. Thanks in advance... Sincerely, CT #4418482

June 20, 2007

Kaveh, thanks for your comment about the "identical camels."

<<
from Kaveh N.
on 6/19/2007 5:50:55 PM this looks like a photo with illustration on it. The two camels in the back are absolutely identical. I wish the photographer would elaborate on this photo >>

On closer inspection, it looks like all three camels are identical, with one being a bit smaller. The shadows look like they have been added with another graphic program I came upon recently.

Why are there no footprints for the camels or the man holding the reins? The sand is in perfect waves, with no trace of moment upon it.

Nothing about this picture looks "real," yet it has been awarded TWO PRIZES.

I do not understand what all this means.

Could we PLEASE get a bit more info from someone, the photographer or the people who awarded the prize? #4418486

June 20, 2007

Dear Mr. Seena, I do not wish to say that your work is not striking, but I have found a number of websites with your photos posted. Others have asked about whether your photos were "constructed," and many looked "painted" as well. Please give us a bit of information as to how you have created these pictures.

I found another similar sunset photo at

http://www.usefilm.com/image/1138110.html

To Better Photo, what is the criteria for a "photo" here? I realize the lines may be blurring quite a bit, but some information would be appreciated. Thanks. #4418494

June 20, 2007

Here's what a poster photo looks like:

http://www.allposters.com/gallery.php?CID=CDFF15C36DCF41B3B0506A8DC6854D7B&txtSearch=camels&imageField2.x=0&imageField2.y=0&CID=CDFF15C36DCF41B3B0506A8DC6854D7B&startat=%2Fsearchadvanced.php%3FCID%3DCDFF15C36DCF41B3B0506A8DC6854D7B #4418498

Lynne Hoad June 21, 2007

Catherine, you've brought up exactly what I have thought many times. Being an amateaur myself I found it frustrating when people would'nt answer any questions about how to do things. There are a lot of people on this site who are great and really helpful, glad to give advice but there are some who just plain ignore your request for info unfortunately. I think any photos that have been edited any more than just a slight crop, lightness and color saturation adjustment should go only in the digital darkroom category. Otherwise it seems to me that it's just not fair on other members who submit 'true photos' and not 'photo art.' This is what I have done with images that I have merged together. And to Ali, this is still an awesome image even if it is technically classed as photo art. #4418540

June 21, 2007

Thanks, Lynne... I have felt the same way so many times, and with this picture I just "had to say something." Looking at the gallery, it is clear that many "photos" appear to be mainly "art." Beautiful, but certainly not what we expect on a teaching photo website. I love TrekEarth which has strict rules and a moderator that keeps things informative, and will probably go back over there. People really do respond and it's a wonderful learning experience, and FREE.

Thanks so much for responding. I was very nervous bringing this up, but with other people mentioning the "movie poster" aspect and the replicated camels, I just had to. When there were no footprints in the sand, I really have to wonder who is giving out the "awards" and what exactly are they worth?

Thanks again. Write me anytime. CTodd1000@gmail.com #4418636

Rich Collins June 21, 2007

Catherine I am beginning to think you're point is the most valid point her. This is a photo learning site. So a graphics artist can win without even using a photograph? Hmmm. Suspect indeed as to the staff awarding POTD's & the like. It even caught me at first but I don't know that I've had awarded any prize. It still looks like a movie poster; art.

And the fact that the OP or a moderator will not respond is strange.

Good call Catherine. Patting each other on the back makes for a nice warm fuzzy community, but how is one supposed to learn? #4419626

June 21, 2007

Dear Rich,

Thank you as well. I can't tell you how nervous I was posting my comments, questions and concerns... I truly thought I would be "asked to leave" and that my membership would be revoked, or something like that, but so far no one has responded at all. Who knows what the 'morrow will bring. Thanks for mentioning the "movie poster" aspect, as that was what really struck me about the image as well, and with someone else (finally) asking a question, I found the courage to do the same.

I've seen pictures that I swear are almost exact duplicates of catalog cover shots (my gardening catalogs, to be exact) that are "winning" left and right, yet little if any response to requests for more info. Only one person ever did respond when I wrote with questions about the photo, and they said they had photographed the "tulips in Las Vegas" or somewhere like that. Wherever it was, I had never heard of tulips in a hot climate.

TrekEarth.com is a wonderful site that is moderated, where one can "comment" or "critique" and has a "workshop" section where one can really learn from each other. I have gained so much just reading through the detailed comments section, which helps prepare me for my first manual camera.

I really appreciate the people who have responded to my posts here, and hope to see more. To them, I say "thanks again" for your comments, and that will keep me on this site for a little bit longer. I'm here to learn, and it's good when we can all do it together! Sharing is a wonderful thing. #4419866

June 21, 2007

Thanks Catherine, Lynne and Rich,

I am glad to see that I have opened a GOOD can of worms here. Catherine, I found all your comments very refreshing and I had the same feeling of nervousness that you had when I first started writing my comment.

This was my first time ever commenting on a photo. I was somewhat angry that most people before me had given rave reviews of the photo and yet I could see that it was not truly a photograph. Along with a friend, I examined other photos on Mr. Seena's Gallery and I found similar “STYLEs” of work. I would like to challenge Mr. Seena and the judges who awarded this photo with POTD with the chance to analyze and review the photo and perhaps present a compelling argument for it. In general, they should re-assess the judging criteria.

Thanks for the tip on trekearth.

Regards

Kaveh
#4421156

June 21, 2007

Thanks to Kaveh, Lynne and Rich and whoever else has responded... this is the first time I have ever been described as "opening a good can of worms!" What a nice way to put it.

I was so nervous about saying anything, but it got to the point as to be ridiculous, especially for a site that proposes to be a "learning facility."

It's good to have met such sincerity where I thought there was none. Check out TrekEarth.com for sure; it's inspiring like no other. I'm going to stay here a bit longer to see if any moderator or the photographer, Ali Seena, ever responds, but I have canceled my subscription to the "photo of the day" as it was really useless. It was not much different than seeing a picture in the pages of an advertising magazine.

With no information given, no criteria for why one photo “won” over another, nothing but another image with congratulations, pats on the back, empty compliments and "rave reviews," what is the point of a daily photo “win?” It doesn't make anyone any money, it doesn't even necessarily generate any work, so what is the point of handing out an "award?" Surely there must be more to earning that award than this.

We in this culture are flooded with images! I need more than just another picture to look at. I have millions of photos to choose from already. I came here to LEARN.

I have no idea what is going on with this website, but perhaps people are on vacation? In any event, let me know if you all move somewhere else, as I would love to see more of each of your work, and one day I hope to post some of my own. It's great to have a real community of people to share with, and learn from and support as we all have so much to offer, from beginners to advance.

Thanks again for all the supportive comments, and I have to thank the first person who mentioned that the photo "looked like a movie poster." That is what got me going and gave me the courage to really ask some questions. Too bad there hasn't been a response, but perhaps later. Who knows.

Now it's to TrekEarth I go. Fantastic shots, and a real community has developed over there. Please feel free to keep in touch. I'll check back here as comments are made.

Your friend in photography, Catherine Todd, ctodd1000@gmail.com #4422191

JO ANN CLEVELAND July 03, 2007

Awesome image Ali! Congratulations on a very well deserved POTD AND GOLD medalion!

And to those who are questioning this piece, I suggest you do so privately to Ali in the contact section. To my knowledge, there is nothing that says we can't use Photoshop, etc.? The judges are quite well aware of the rules wouldn't you think?

This is a 21 year old who is doing beautiful work and it appears you are being quite critical. Just my opinion ~
or you could contact BP or write in the discussion area.

Hope you all have a wonderful week, and wishing you all the best in your photography!

p.s. I am a "year old" new photographer too! So what do I know? lol #4471048

July 06, 2007

Hi Jo Ann,

last time I checked, this was a site for better photography. not fake pictures and Illustrations that are made to look like a photograph. We should may be call this site “Better Photoshop”, but then it will not be fair to those photographers who work hard and genuinely shoot amazing photos and therefore are well deserving of their awards. I don't care how old this person is, I hate to be fooled into believing that this is a photograph. I would like the artist or one of the judges respond to any of the comments here or at least honestly explain the image. This is not a photograph. It is a FAKE picture, but a good illustration.

You are entitled to your praise and I am entitled to my criticism.
#4479946

Gregory LaGrange December 20, 2007

Funny how I seem to find these conversations.
First. Suggestions about where to discuss photos are suggested to be done so privately. It doesn't make sense to use a feature labeled "discuss photo", to discuss a photo.
Second. Yes it is photoshop. You've answered your own question about how it was done. There are other signs, the focal length required to get the sun that size doesn't match the compression effect of the same focal length.
There's another in the shadows of the camels. There's a complete silhouette of the camel(no detail), but there's detail in the sand from the camel's shadow. Doesn't work unless they are semi-transparent camels.
Third. The back foot of the camel driver. Doesn't sink into the sand. (as well as other foots. Back foot is up, so that stood out).
But regardless, isn't photo of the day just a preliminary thing that somebody just noticed something for a particular day only? Now for the contest, there's legitimacy in the gripes, mainly depending on the two things of which category was it entered in. And whether these are paste jobs of his photos, or paste jobs of somebody else's. #5235994

Gregory LaGrange December 20, 2007

"in the desert" and "jointly traveling" are the same, except he changed the shadows.
But some are nice representations of the local culture. Personally, I'd call them digital darkroom stuff. But if somebody wants to recognize them if they were outside that category, it's okay with me. You have to look at things like the idea of an image in combination of other things. #5236041

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