An Uncertain Focus themed collection

I recently completed organizing my 2020 images into themed collections per the advice of @williamneill. Doing so has improved my vision and portfolio tremendously and I owe him credit for his ghost mentorship over the years.

This set of images is from a theme called An Uncertain Focus, images utilizing intentional camera blur - a technique I have come to enjoy a bunch.

Let me know if you have any questions about composition, technique such as shutter speeds, location, processing, etc.

All comments welcome.

What technical feedback would you like if any?

Any

What artistic feedback would you like if any?

Are you a fan or not of icm images?

Pertinent technical details or techniques:

3 of the 4 were taken with my Nikon D610 and 70-300mm lens. The sunset and lake image was taken with my iPhone 6s.




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@Matt_Lancaster I am a sucker for ICM! I haven’t pulled off too many of my own. With the first one, I’m having a hard time telling if the horizon is a little uneven or if it is the clouds, and if so it may be intentional due to the ICM. The 2nd and 3rd are my favorites something about icm with the muted tones works well. I really like that there is some detail retained in the third one. Was that done intentionally? Did you leave the the camera stationary for just a bit to get that? Thanks for sharing…

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Matt, it is good to see you continuing to push the boundaries with your photography. I enjoy seeing ICM images, and do some of it myself. I like the “Life is Like a Box of Chocolates” aspect to it, you just never know what you are going to get.

I really love Image #2, it is light, delicate, and looks like a painting. Image #4 is my second favorite, nice bold color, and one often doesn’t see a horizontal pan done in a vertical aspect ratio. Image #3 has interesting patterns, but I would prefer to see it with more midtone contrast and a bit more saturation, it feels a little flat to me. Image #1 is my least favorite due to the tilted horizon, and the darkness of the image. Maybe the image darkness stands out more in comparison to the other three.

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Thanks for the mention. My favorites are #2 for its subtle, high-key effect and #4 for strong colors and textures. Did you try a horizontal with #4?

Keep up the good work of editing and adding to your themes!

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Hi Bill,

First, Thank you very much for your comments. Funny you should mention the orientation of #4 - it was captured as a horizontal that I rotated 90d CCW because the background lake on the right side could be interpreted as sky while the shadowed objects on the left side could be a ground plane, so I took advantage and liked the result.

Next, I just received a signed copy of your book Light on the Landscape as a birthday present today and couldn’t be more thrilled! So glad you produced it and offered signed copies. It will be an inspiration the rest of my days.

Have a Merry Christmas and keep up the fine work!

I enjoy playing with ICM every now and again but I forget about it much of the time when I’m in the field. I think @Ed_McGuirk nailed it when he said it’s like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get. By far my favorite is #2. Far and away the best of the bunch. I find 4 too saturated for my tastes and I really don’t care for the first one but I do like the third one. The fact that I have no idea what it is makes it even better. Good of you to have an entire category in your portfolio just for ICM shots. Thanks for sharing these with everyone and reminding me not to forget to think about ICM when I’m in the field next time. :slight_smile:

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I’ve never played with ICM, but I’m enjoying yours Matt. I appreciate the wonderful variety of the group you posted.

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Hi Matt,

I think I’ve mentioned before, so apologies for repeating… but I think for some, many? ICM is not their cup of tea - and I get that, probably even understand why. But I’m not one! I love the results! I find the results not only fascinating, but touches the imagination. The colorful patterns are most often amazing, if not mind-bending. I particularly love how the technique seems to bring out ALL the colors - ones you might never realize were in a captured image.

There is a lot to be said for the “you never know what you’re going to get…” and the obvious, “anyone can move a camera and make a random image…” yup, that’s true. But, guess what? IMHO, there is skill and thought involved being able to recognize scenes and situations where ICM has the potential to produce great results. Just today, I was on a walk with my wife. Walking down a path of beautifully back-lit autumn trees with reds, golds, yellows and even some greens still… the light, all of it - and I was thinking, man, I wish I had my camera as I could have great fun with ICM!

Anyway… to your images.
#1 - the most obvious of the group, but still quite enjoyable. I think a slight crop off the top might increase the abstractness of this one. what I like is that sweeping pull from right to left - as if you’re being pulled to infinity - or something. In fact, the slightly slanted horizon and diagonals enhance that feeling for me.
#2. As mentioned, the delicate nature of this is upfront - I might even go as far and sensuous - or is that sensual (cue Animal House quote…_) I didn’t see this the first time around, but now I see rolling hills on a puffy, white cloudy day.
#3. I love these kinds of results with ICM - it’s like some textured paper, a whimsical canvas - I can almost feel the texture. the colors are subtle, but a terrific example of the breadth and depth of colors that can be captured.
#4. Love the variety of colors and the patterns. Maybe too much all in one frame though. I think maybe the lower half and the upper half+ could work well independently.

thanks for sharing Matt and motivating me to post a comment!

Lon

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@David_Wallace, Thanks for your feedback. With the first one, the horizon is definitely skewed a little and I like that about it - it conveys yet another element of departure from reality. Intentional perhaps but Ed is spot on that you never know what you are going to get, although as I take ICMs I am conscious of the angle of the camera to the horizon and often frequently deliberately tilt the camera slightly. The results are dynamic and unexpected.

Regarding the 3rd image, I cannot recall whether I left the camera stationary momentarily although that is entirely possible and something I practice. Successful ICM requires a LOT of experimentation to develop techniques that prove fruitful and sometimes I don’t recall exactly what I’ve done. I just keep making them anyway…

@Ed_McGuirk - Your comments are always very insightful, so thanks for providing them again. I do enjoy pushing the boundaries and am thankful for the community of NPN for providing feedback. I would never ask on another SM platform.

There is general agreement in this group with your comment that with ICM you never quite know what you are going to get. It’s true with my experimentation and I really enjoy that. A true benefit of having an LCD to review images is that results can be reviewed instantly to determine if the technique is working. Then I learn what works and develop repeatable techniques so the process becomes less unpredictable.

Thanks for commenting on each image. I wasn’t sure how or if respondents would do so, but I appreciate each comment. #4 is actually a horizontal with a vertical pan rotated 90d CCW (see my description to William Neill’s comment). I actually like that you interpreted it differently - that is success for me!

Now that’s pretty interesting to know…

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@David_Haynes, thanks for your comment and for explaining your preferences. #2 seems to be a favorite of several people. The third one, fyi, is long grasses, but I am pleased that you like the mystery of not being able to identify it. So maybe we’ll see some ICM images from you?

@John_Williams, thanks for your comment. Yes, I like the variety as well. It’s easy to fall into the trap of applying this technique to the same subjects in the same way over and over, so I deliberately move on to a new subject and experiment with different techniques.

@Lon_Overacker, Thanks for your comment. I agree - the results are not for everyone and that’s a central reason for doing ICM and anything else I do. I just don’t want to do what everyone else is doing.

Your use of the term mind-bending is spot on. Sometimes the results are just a complete abstraction and departure from reality where the effects could never have been imagined. I’ve got some captures that I’ve been reluctant to post even to this group because they blew my mind and really push expectations, but maybe I’ll post them just because I can.

Agreed, and is true for any subject or technique.

And thank you for your comments for each image, which I wasn’t expecting (actually, I don’t know what I was expecting). Some like the tilted horizon on #1, others don’t. Cool with me. To me it conveys an immediacy of the moment - that it wasn’t a carefully composed shot but was capturing one moment in the midst of many. #'s 1 & 4 seem to evoke the most widespread responses. Glad you felt motivated to provide feedback - always welcome!