***COMMENTS THREAD...May Contest..."Backlit"***

[Celebration]

This is the thread to comment on the entries to the "Backlit" contest found here

Limit your comments to the photographs. Please do not comment on photographers, guess the photographers, etc.

[Mira]

1. I feel moved to say, out of the gate, so to speak,

that in the absence of entries so far I want to comment on not only our hostess's courage to take this on, but after just reading the rules she laid down, and the potential pitfalls she has anticipated and hopefully warded off, that I have not been this impressed with anyone's taking the helm as I am tonight.

I bow to you, Celebration, and hand back the crown you gave me.
I do not deserve it. You do.

[Celebration]

5. fun to do something a bit different

I hope it will be interesting to vote on anonymous photos............

[Celebration]

6. oops n/t

[Celebration]

2. So much fun

To wake up to seven new gorgeous entries in my inbox! (making eight entries so far). Keep 'em coming. So far my numbers seem to match. I had to stop myself from replying to my own replies sometimes, rather than the OP in my non-submission thread. Now I know to watch myself on that, LOL.

I think we are off to a great start!

[MissHoneychurch]

3. Thank you for your commitment to this contest

I can imagine to be the first to try something like this is a lot of work.

:thumbsup: :applause:

[Celebration]

4. I'm glad that people voted for the change

It takes just a bit more time on the front end, but I am thinking that it will be made up for later, since the entry thread should be nice and straightforward (unless I screw it up, LOL).

And it really IS fun to get all these photos in my inbox. It also makes a difference that this is a topic that I love. I can't imagine hosting a contest for some sort of genre or theme that doesn't really appeal to me much. I love backlit photos.

[Mira]

8. I dreamed last night that I was you

and that I turned on my computer and that the entire screen from top to bottom was horizontal vibrating red bars from incoming mails.

Just sayin'- you have my full appreciation!

[Celebration]

9. I never felt so popular!

It is rare that I send or receive PMs, so that part of it is pretty amusing.

[Celebration]

7. Please check entries for pixels!

If it goes a bit over, I will probably let it slide, but too much over could affect the downloading time of the whole entry thread. It took me a year to figure out how to do this. Some nice person told me to download Irfanview (free) and click on the Save for Web. There it has a sliding scale for how many K it is. There are more detailed instructions for this somewhere in our archives. Let me check. Here goes.............

Thanks to Happy Cynic for this tutorial.....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=280&topic_id=64152

[MissHoneychurch]

10. Love "waiting for me... again"

great picture and I like the story behind it.

[Celebration]

11. It has a cool, vintage type vibe

Reminds me of old movies from the forties, but with modern decor. Definitely interesting.

[Saphire]

12. Fan Dance is doing it for me. n/t

[Celebration]

13. the detail in the feathers is pretty amazing

That could also have worked for Performances and Festivals, or whatever title I gave that suggestion on the poll.

The way this contest is shaping up I am reminded just how much I love backlit photos! Everyone has done a phenomenal job.

[alfredo]

18. When I read Fan Dance, this came to mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpNnMSFmKtQ

[MissHoneychurch]

14. Fan Dance is a winner

:applause:

[Mira]

15. It's astounding. We collectively keep getting better and better entries. As least

that's how it looks to me. And the guessing at who entered what gives it a whole new dimension.

[Celebration]

23. the photos are great this month

I have no idea how the voters will decide. I am loving the theme.

[Mira]

34. I have no idea how I'll vote. These are collectively awesome. n/t

[regnaD kciN]

16. If these entries weren't anonymous, I probably would have hesitated to offer this critique...

...but it seems to me that some don't understand the difference between "backlit" and "silhouetted."

A backlit object is not one that appears pure black against a bright background. It's one where the object itself is illuminated (i.e. filled with light) from behind. There have been several nice submissions like that, but others that are pure silhouettes, which is a very different matter, and far less of a challenge to photograph.

[Celebration]

17. I hear ya!

I will put a definition up of backlit, and ask people who vote to please vote for the one that best represents the theme. I stated ahead of time that I was not going to disqualify photos for not being backlit enough. Hopefully the voters will consider the criteria.

[Mira]

19. This unnerved me a bit, enough to go through the lineup of photos and study

them with that in mind. And then to go and google "backlit photos" and study their interpretation.

A consensus emerged in my own mind that made me realize that Nick Danger is right. There are a number of photos in the lineup that don't exactly fulfil the proper specifications. Including mine. When I realized it was not mine alone but others I was able to just let it go. I did learn that the criteria was not fully and alone that light had to pass through something.
(My original planned entry would have really qualified without a doubt, damnit)

So, there we are and live and learn.
Would it not be fun, in this new and untried environment of blind entries, to have a discussion afterwards about our photos, once we know who submitted which one?

As an aside, I thought and said so, that I could guess a third of the photographers and match the photos to them.
NOT SO. I would not put real money on any of my guesses, and I'm a gambler at heart and in real life.

[Ptah]

20. Googling "backlit photos" give this and other similar images:

[Celebration]

22. awesome backlit photo

But no better than many of our entries :)

[Sheepshank]

35. So is it the dust that is backlit?

The silhouette of the horses just offering a contrast the items (dust) being backlit?

[Celebration]

36. pretty sure a silhouette IS a backlit photo

But a pure 100% black silhouette you don't really see the "lit" part of backlit. Doesn't mean it isn't there--but it is more like the dark side of the moon. So, it would depend on what the viewer is looking for. In this photo, it is the "lit" part of the photo that makes the photo a great representation of the theme. Having said that, sans the lit part of the photo, it is still backlit, IMHO. But would I be as likely to vote for it? Probably not. I am speaking now as a voter and not a Czar.

But I would have submitted a pure silhouette photo, most likely, birds against the moon. I guess I wouldn't have voted for it. :shrug:

As you can tell, you asked a complicated question. And a lot of people here would probably answer it differently.

The important thing is that we have a really wide variety of great backlit photos that are entered into the contest. We can see how the voters evaluate them.

[Celebration]

21. interesting thoughts

I have received some PMs on the issue. I actually feel that any photo taken facing the light fits the definition for our purposes. I am going to let the voters decide which ones best illustrate the concept. I am not going to comment on any individually in this thread.

As a voter (not as a Czar) I might have a problem with the few where you can't really tell where the light source is. I have to say I personally am a VERY literal thinker on matters like this. To me it is just very simple

Facing the light=backlit
Not facing the light= not backlt
Facing the light, but you can't really tell from the photo=backlit but I probably wouldn't vote for it (personal thing).
Facing the light, where you can tell it, and where there is an added dimension from being able to ascertain the light shining on the back of something=contender
Any photo anyone says is backlit=I accept into the contest.

I am thinking that many silhouettes do meet the definition of backlit. The lightsource, as an example, could be the moon. I probably would have entered some bird silhouettes against the moon. If people didn't think that was backlit enough, they wouldn't vote for it. When I started the contest I posted some of my own photos that were backlit, and a couple were silhouettes. I do have to say that the very best backlit photos (to me) have a kind of glow around the object.........not straight out silhouettes.

LOL, I think I could match more photos to photographers than you. But that is pretty easy for me to say since I know anyway. ;)

I am extremely pleased (overall) with the photos in the contest so far. Not every single one represents the subject perfectly, but we will let the voters decide on that. I think it is a learning experience for all of us.

[Mira]

24. :hugebigfathumbsup: to your response about all of it n/t

[Blue_In_AK]

26. I was there when I took my shot,

and I know the light was coming from behind. That's all that matters to me.

[Stevenmarc]

25. Not every

backlit shot is a silhouette but every silhouette shot is backlit. You can't really throw out a subset of back lighting a subject simply because it appears to be easier to do, this isn't like a diving competition where you grade on degree of difficulty.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

27. YES

agree

[Mira]

28. Dear Celebration: I think the time has come

for you to stop hogging the submission thread.
OKAY ALREADY! That's almost 30 now and we already know you are a prolific photo artist to say the least.

On a lighter note, there is one in there where, in trying to guess the photographer I would stand on a stack of bibles and swear and bet money that it's yours.
Yet, alas. It can't be.

We're havin' fun.
:)

[Celebration]

29. I could only wish

that ANY of these could be mine!! I'm having a great time and feeling no pressure so far.

[Mira]

30. Has this come up? Just to make things a little more interesting...

let me ask the question: Will we EVER find out whose photos they are/were other than the top three?
I am amazingly ambivalent, actually, about the answer, and could make a case for it either way.

[Celebration]

32. I thought about that

I'll reveal everyone in the finals, and the host's choice. Beyond that people can post their own if they want. Maybe we could start a thread.

[MissHoneychurch]

33. We could start a thread

and let the people guess :)

[Celebration]

31. "Backlit" definition in the contest

Here is the definition of backlit that I will put into the contest. Feel free to comment on it, especially if you think it can be improved. I may or may not take your suggestions into account, however. In general I am pleased with this definition, but I am not overly adept at wording things, and consider it a minor weakness of mine. So I will take into account minor wording changes, but will probably not change the general idea that I am attempting to convey. But you may comment on that as well.

The theme for the contest is “Backlt.” Usuallly photographers make sure that there is a source of light shining onto a subject. Outisde, that could mean that the sunshine is coming from over the photographer’s shoulder, for instance. The light source thus perfectly lights up the subject of the photo. In this contest, we are turning that general rule of thumb on its head. All photos in this contest are taken facing the main source of light. When you vote, please take into account the effect that the location of the source of light has on the subjects of the photograph, and consider those that illustrate the theme “Backlit” (literal meaning: “lit from the back”) the best.

[Richard D]

37. Beautiful collection

So many of those are so beautiful and inspiring.
The quality of the work here is just getting better and better.

[Celebration]

38. +1

as they say. I am amazed by these photographs and have no idea how the voters can possibly limit the finalists to ten. There is also a lot of variety.

We are really raising the bar here. It's odd. Suddenly I really feel proud to be a part of this group, even though it is not "exclusive."

[tabatha]

39. You have done really well in this new blind submission format.

You made it look easy; but I know it was probably not, since you had the responsibility to load others' pictures and titles.

Well done.

[Celebration]

40. Thanks

Not really hard at all, just have to bring out my deeply buried inner "detail oriented" person. Will probably have to keep searching for that inner person for the next several days..............