I am speechless!

I've always wondered how you get the sky to be so blue. Increased saturation?

yeah i guess it's curves and saturation. but the sky is blue anyway, isn't it?

Great piece. It looks like a painting. The saturation is what does it.

I once had a professor who gave me what I now believe is some of the best advice on art. When you get comfortable with your work and you can easily control the results , it is time to change what you are doing. Good luck!!!!!

Photoshop is your best friend.

i like the shot. but i am craving something else.

I would imagine it's tough for David. Having the #1 photoblog in the world means people have high standards for it. David shots are just that... David's shots. There is no reason why he should change his style and technique only because some people are dissapointed over the last dozen shots.

I feel critiques should come into how a shot should be composed or is felt. If someone likes shooting nothing but benches, you should critique on composition, the mood, the surroundings, etc. You should be mad because the artist takes photos only of benches. It's ridiculous.

David can do what he wants, but my advice is to do what you want to do as an artist. If someone says a photo sucks, you take it in for aesthetics and technicality, not for subject...

"You SHOULDN'T be mad because the artist takes photos only of benches. It’s ridiculous."

Fixed the typo... sorry.

nicely said Jessyel ... I come here every day to be inspired ... and I am never disappointed. Whatever changes and inspiration you find and decide upon David, I am sure it will be as always an amazing expression of you and how you view the world around you. I always enjoy your perspective, talent and artistic intent :)

wow, this is just beautiful

Very nice photo. Good luck with your soul searching man. It happens to everyone, in everything.

Good luck with that, Dave. For what it's worth, I don't think you have been working within a “comfort zone”, as you say. I just think posting a picture a day it's a huge challenge, more so when you have very high standards. Being so, it's inevitable that there will be days or weeks when your work it's not as brilliant as you want, but I guess it all comes back eventually.

The work on your site is more interesting than that on pixpopuli.

I don't think you should be taking advice from anyone, you're pretty much number one right now--maybe people enjoy your comfort zone. I say don't change a thing.

Don't change too much, whatever you do. All of your work is a constant source of inspiration to me and the vast majority of your viewers. I'm challenged each day and given new ideas as a result of seeing your pictures.

Roll on Monday! ; )

jessyel has a point there, but i think Phil, that your jab at pixpopuli isn't quite fair. david himself admitted to be working within his comfort zone, and somehow david doesn't strike me as somebody who would be pushed into saying something he didn't mean. the point is, i think, as developing photographers we all should try different styles and all before we find our niche.

P.S. if i'm making any asumptions on your part, david, do correct me!

and the quality/standard of photography here is still very high, but i have to admit the subject matter hasn't been too interesting (at least for me - everyone's got their own preferences) since the 5th, with the exception of that photo which looks like a watercolor painting on the 6th. but otherwise, you're still one of my constant favourites.

This shot is great. Has that card board/ Puff Daddy feel to it. Fantastic.

Hi Dave,

I just took a look at the arcives over at pixpopuli.com, (thumbnails) and I must say that there wasn't much there that made me go wow like your pictures do on a regular basis. There were only a couple thumbs that made me want to view them as larger shots. Then I took a look at your thumbnail shots to see how they measured up and could see right away that your shots are far superior (even in their small state) to anything that Mr. Baylis has done.

You must not take one person's viewpoint as the basis for drastic change. Most of the people who make comments here like what they see on your site. True, some don't like the shots of your children, or of your pregnant wife, but you can't please everybody in the world. Just continue to please yourself, as that is all, really, that anybody can do.

While it is true that I am not currently doing any photo work, I still have a photographer's eye and I know what is pleasing to my eye. And your work is pleasing to my eye.

Keep up the good work.

Jere

"Just continue to please yourself, as that is all, really, that anybody can do.

Jere (though this isn't directed at you in particular): I guess my point about Neil's remark - that I've been working in a 'comfort zone' lately - made me think more critically about what I've been doing over the last couple of weeks.

To explain:

When I started the image-a-day thing back in February it seemed like a great way to a) force myself to take more shots, and b) accelerate my development as a photographer. And up until the last few weeks I think it's worked. Now though, at least in terms of my last run of shots, it seems that I've been putting up shots that I've found 'easy', that I know will work ok, and that I know, for the most part, people will like. And that's ok, and I'm always really pleased that people like my stuff, but my feeling is that there's a danger that things could become quite stale if I follow the path of "oh, that will work" ... snap ... there's another chromasia shot.

As for pixpopuli.com: this is one of my all time favourite sites and I think, in many ways, that Neil is a better photographer than me. In fact, I think there are a lot of photographers who have their sites listed at photoblogs.org who are much better than me. In this sense I don't think it's my talent that has put chromasia at #1 at photoblogs.org, rather it's a combination of being pretty good at what I do and something else. And the 'something else', in my opinion, is eclecticism. I shoot anything and everything, in a variety of styles, and I think this translates to chromasia having a much broader appeal than some more focused sites, pixpopuli.com included.

So, to get back to the point, there isn't anything wrong with working in a comfort zone, if it's a conscious decision, but lately I don't think it has been; i.e. I've been shooting 'easy' stuff because I'm not sure where to go next or how to get there. And I guess that's what I meant about it being time for a change.

The irony here (as you'll see if you read the update to this entry) is that one of the other things that Neil told me is that Christopher Koller (one of Neil's former photography teachers) always begins each new photographic project with a new camera; "to make things seem unfamiliar, and to impose limitations on himself that his creativity will be forced to find ways around".

Anyway, the bottom-line here is that a) I'm currently without a decent camera, and b) *need* to move forward as a photographer, both of which translate to a small sabbatical for chromasia.

Your pictures are very inspiring. I love the linearity of this shot with the soft ripple effect. The color composition is very nice with the red splashes and espresso foreground to complement the impossibly deep blue pseudo sky. The tilted image pulls my eye across the image in a smooth floating way.
Thank you for posting the EXIF data for the shots you take. I have a 10D and a G2 canon camera. It's a whole different experience when shooting with the different cameras. I would love to see what you could do with the 20D. However, from my own experience, the best shots I have are ones I took with my G2. I think this is because there are so many options with the 10D that I don't focus enough on composition and lighting. When I come here I am continually inspired to improve my shots and my post-processing skills. (This is my first ever comment post)

1. you have a great site

2. your pics are always inspiring, whether it be the color, the angle or the thought process in your head which led to the shot in the first place.

3. since your camera is in for repair and you're not sure whether to use the fuji or buy a new one, i say go and get a polaroid...maybe working with something different will mix up those creative juices. or if not a polaroid, something entirely different that you haven't worked with yet. i'm in the same situation regarding the creative aspect of my work...so i'm on ebay trying to buy a lomo. it's different, it's not digital...maybe it's what i need. if i don't get the lomo, i'll buy something really cheap and see how it works out.

either way, whatever you do, don't stop shooting.....

You are a great photographer, someone who imposes his defined style. But why don't you by a digital reflex (Canon d300, Nikon d70, fujifilm s2 pro) system and get huge sodisfaction with many different optics. You really should think about it expecially now that your camera is broken.
I hope you'll visit my web site and congratulation foryour work, ciao from Italy!

steven's suggestion is a good one. If you can justify the expense, how about picking up a cheap film camera with 'quirks' (eg Polaroid, Lomo/Smena or a Holga if you feel like going mad with 120 film) and shooting a roll or two. I think it'd be a good challenge and quite a departure from the clinical world of digital photography.

I agree that you're working in a comfort zone. I still 'ooh' and 'aah' (and 'grr') when I see each shot, but I'd like to see something new. Now that winter has started in the UK (ho ho) you're going to be short on blue skies :~)

I'm sure you have the skill to pull it off!

For me its the combination of the pictures and the personality that make a photo-blog worth taking a look at every day.

The fact that you've been so honest with "us" about how you are feeling with your pictures and the conversation that has taken place is what makes this such an interesting page to look at.

Good luck, and thanks for sharing your pictures and your thoughts.

Interesting discussions throughout here, and while it's too bad your G5 got mashed, I hope you end up getting a new toy out of the deal that you're happy with. I'm tempted to throw my G2 at the ground as we speak, just so I have an excuse to move to a dSLR. :)

In any event, it seems there comes a time when we need to 'move ahead' and if you feel that - then move ahead. I'm sure we'll all be pleased by what you offer next. Looking forward to your next chapter indeed - and if it's more of the same, then that's just fine too. Always looking forward to it...

I wish all artists pushed themselves the way you do. Then again, we're not talking about a long stale period here - I mean, working in your comfort zone for a week or two? LOL Ohhh noooo. You can't stay uncomfortable ALL the time ya know. :-P

My husband (a jeweler/tea accessory designer) is like that though. He isn't content to just become the best at what he does within a limited range. He'll be content for a little while but then he'll start putting metals together that aren't supposed to work that way or look up some ancient technique that nobody knows how to teach anymore. It's like he gets hungry. LOL He's so sexy when he's like that.

If you can afford it, I think you' shoult definetely consider the switch to a dslr. I feel it's the logical step if you want to move forward.

David everyone has these blocks now and then so thats natural and you obviously know it.

What has probably happened is that you have simply outgrown your camera and are finding that its limitations have contributed to working on shots that your camera is capable of.

I am sure that when you get the DSLR and some nice glass the opportunitys will flood back. One of the things that I know you will revel in is when you start to use better optics in terms of real wide angle stuff or telephoto.

It is a big pressure to produce the goods day in day out and to be honest you have done better than most.

john

Thanks everyone - it's much appreciated.

omg! A 20D!!!