Critique Cornish Hen

Mike Buckley · Mar 26, 2019

This is a favorite dish of mine so I finally got around to photographing it. It's fabulous with Chardonnay.

Recipe
Page 118 of https://www.amazon.com/Wine-Lovers-Cookbook-Recipes-Perfect/dp/0811820718/ref=sr_1_2?crid=32PZDM6B19CLP&keywords=wine+lovers+cookbook&qid=1553612703&s=gateway&sprefix=wine+lovers+cook,aps,118&sr=8-2
That's my all-time favorite cookbook. In addition to the great recipes, the information in it taught me more about pairing wine with food than everything else I've read combined. The photography is also very good.

Setup for both photos
The tabletop is white fabric. A small continuous-light lamp on the right was fitted with a diffusion sock to produce soft shadows. A white reflector on the left lifted the shadow tones on that side of the scene. A small continuous-light lamp above the rear tabletop was fitted with a diffusion sock to reduce its brightness. A polarizer controlled glare.

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Palouse · Mar 26, 2019

I'm just finishing breakfast and for some reason I'm hungry . . .

Nicely done.

Pa · Mar 26, 2019

I expected this to be in the bird photography section.

Nicely done, with excellent lighting, though it does look a bit foggy in the upper left corner.

Mike Buckley · Mar 26, 2019

Thank you to Nick and Jim!

Pa said:
though it does look a bit foggy in the upper left corner.

I used a negative vignette on both photos. That's what you're seeing.

Binnur · Apr 1, 2019

I remember commenting on this thread but obviously my comment wasn't saved for some reason

May be I didn't hit the 'post reply' button properly

Both nice but ,I especially like the second image. Very nice composition and the wine glass adds to the image.

Mike Buckley · Apr 1, 2019

Thanks, Binnur!

Binnur said:
I especially like the second image.

My wife prefers that one also but only because she doesn't like the crinkly skin in the first one. She knows the skin is not good for healthy eating and the crinkles make the skin more obvious. I like those crinkles because they do make the skin more obvious. Gotta love it!

acnomad · Apr 1, 2019

Both photos very nicely inspire the appetite. I like your lighting design for the setup - the soft shadows add just the right amount of dimensionality. Of the two images, I prefer the first, one caveat:

I realize that the vignetting on the left is intended to keep the attention on the leg quarter, but it actually distracts my eye to the lighter area, then out of the frame entirely

Perhaps the first image would be stronger if you pulled back slightly and included the entire hen? IMO this would make the vignetting unnecessary and highlight instead the nicely plated bird.

Last but not least, I think the crinkly skin makes it look all the more appetizing!

Mike Buckley · Apr 1, 2019

Thanks, Andy, especially for taking the time to make such detailed comments!

The vignette is just a matter of taste. As much as I appreciate that the part of it in the top left area of the first photo pulls your eye out of the frame, it doesn't have that effect at all on me. Even if the entire hen was displayed, I would still want the vignette.

Good to know you're adding your vote to mine for the crinkly skin.

acnomad · Apr 2, 2019

Mike Buckley said:
Thanks, Andy, especially for taking the time to make such detailed comments!

The vignette is just a matter of taste. As much as I appreciate that the part of it in the top left area of the first photo pulls your eye out of the frame, it doesn't have that effect at all on me. Even if the entire hen was displayed, I would still want the vignette.

Good to know you're adding your vote to mine for the crinkly skin.

Mike,
I'm learning a great deal by looking at your work. It's a privilege to be asked to examine and critique photos that are made at such a high level. I really like what you're doing with lighting here with the Cornish hen, as well as in the various other posts that I have seen in the short time I've been a Cafe member. It's much too easy to get caught up in gear discussions; our time is much better spent thinking about images instead.

Mike Buckley · Apr 2, 2019

acnomad said:
It's much too easy to get caught up in gear discussions

Not for me. That's because I don't understand the details of gear.

Having said that, even if I did understand gear, I would still probably prefer discussing the photos themselves, how and why we react to them the way we do, why people react similarly or differently to a particular photo or style of photos, etc., etc. The really fun part for me, very selfishly speaking, is when someone suggests a change to my photo that to my way of thinking makes it better. So, keep tossing out any ideas that come to mind!

acnomad · Apr 2, 2019

Mike Buckley said:
That's because I don't understand the details of gear.

That is a positive characteristic found among many photographers with excellent vision.

It has always been in my nature to get over-involved in the details of equipment, which cripples the pursuit of great light and composition.

Palouse · Apr 2, 2019

Mike Buckley said:
Not for me. That's because I don't understand the details of gear.

Having said that, even if I did understand gear, I would still probably prefer discussing the photos themselves, how and why we react to them the way we do, why people react similarly or differently to a particular photo or style of photos, etc., etc. The really fun part for me, very selfishly speaking, is when someone suggests a change to my photo that to my way of thinking makes it better. So, keep tossing out any ideas that come to mind!

acnomad said:
That is a positive characteristic found among many photographers with excellent vision.

It has always been in my nature to get over-involved in the details of equipment, which cripples the pursuit of great light and composition.

Well put, both of you!