The Building Next Door

[Jtedlin]

EXIF:
Camera: Nikon D3100
Exposure: 1/200 at f5
Focal Length: 18mm
ISO: 400
Edited in Lightroom 4

I was in the mood to take a picture of the abandoned building next door to where I live and I saw this door. It seemed to give that worn down, abandoned feel I was after. This is as far away I could physically get from it or else I would of tried a bit further away. Overall I am looking for things I could do better composition wise or anything better for that matter. Just trying to figure out how to get better is what I am trying to get at I guess.

 

[Eye-level]

Oh it is OK...haha

The most interesting detail to me is the dual windows...Boards and Bricks are BORING!!!...make a face out of it...change the composition...think of it as a portrait..tilt it...there is something there better than what you are showing...

Your settings are sound...technique is flawless...come on there is more artist in you than that...

 

[STM]

I really like this image! The vines really add, rather than take away from this image. Well done. The colors look HDR-ish.

 

[BackdoorArts]

Really nice. Only thing I might have done was to remove a bit of the lens distortion just to square up the lines around the door frame (it looks to be bulging a little in the center), and then square off the lines a bit (seems to be tilted just a touch to the right). The lens distortion is personal thing as some folks like the distortion a wide-angle gives, and it probably isn't as noticeable when you straighten the horizontals as well.

 

[Jtedlin]

Oh it is OK...haha

The most interesting detail to me is the dual windows...Boards and Bricks are BORING!!!...make a face out of it...change the composition...think of it as a portrait..tilt it...there is something there better than what you are showing...

Your settings are sound...technique is flawless...come on there is more artist in you than that...

Honestly the idea of treating it like a portrait never crossed my mind I may have to venture back next door here soon when I am bold enough to be outside in the cold longer.

I really like this image! The vines really add, rather than take away from this image. Well done. The colors look HDR-ish.

I appreciate it! The vines are from poison ivy that covers the entire building during the summer. I may hate it then but the vines are cool to see covering a building for me. Not sure if the HDR look is bad or not, I played around with it a little in Lightroom and have several versions of the same image, some dark, some bright and vibrant this one was the more natural one.

Really nice. Only thing I might have done was to remove a bit of the lens distortion just to square up the lines around the door frame (it looks to be bulging a little in the center), and then square off the lines a bit (seems to be tilted just a touch to the right). The lens distortion is personal thing as some folks like the distortion a wide-angle gives, and it probably isn't as noticeable when you straighten the horizontals as well.

What would be the best way to fix the distortion? I'm sure I can find a few videos but it never hurts to ask aswell!

Thanks for the comments guys!

 

[BackdoorArts]

If you're using Lightroom then down in the Lens Correction section of the Develop module, in the Profile tab just click on Enable Profile Corrections. LR should have the lens profile in there and it will do its default corrections for you based on the lens and focal length, fixing vignetting and distortion. That's usually all you need to do. Sometimes I'll go to the manual section and further adjust for vertical and horizontal distortion as well, particularly if I'm shooting up at a building - it squares the lines a little more.

 

[Jtedlin]

If you're using Lightroom then down in the Lens Correction section of the Develop module, in the Profile tab just click on Enable Profile Corrections. LR should have the lens profile in there and it will do its default corrections for you based on the lens and focal length, fixing vignetting and distortion. That's usually all you need to do. Sometimes I'll go to the manual section and further adjust for vertical and horizontal distortion as well, particularly if I'm shooting up at a building - it squares the lines a little more.

Great! I really appreciate the information and help!

 

[BackdoorArts]

Lens Correction is always the first adjustment I make, regardless of the photo. Some lenses need it more than others, and I don't know that I've ever decided the photo looked better without it.

 

[Rexer John]

The lens distortion is personal thing as some folks like the distortion a wide-angle gives, and it probably isn't as noticeable when you straighten the horizontals as well.

My thoughts are that straight lines should either be straight, or obviously have wide angle distortion.
If the barrel distortion is slight, it always looks unintentional to me.