Critique Iowa State Law Library

[gnagel]

One of my favorite spaces in any of the state capitol buildings is the law library in the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines.

1

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2

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3

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Thanks for looking...
Glenn

 

[Butlerkid]

Stunning set, Glenn!

 

[gnagel]

Stunning set, Glenn!

Thanks Karen...I was praying for overcast conditions that day. The strong light coming from the windows made it very challenging...especially with the mixed lighting. It's such a beautiful space, as you know...but also difficult to photograph.

Glenn

 

[Butlerkid]

Thanks Karen...I was praying for overcast conditions that day. The strong light coming from the windows made it very challenging...especially with the mixed lighting. It's such a beautiful space, as you know...but also difficult to photograph.

Glenn

When I was there it was a mess. They were using it as a working area and tables, chairs, presentation slide screens, computer, etc were all over the place! We were lucky to slip in for about 15 minutes....but it was not photogenic that day. LOL!

 

[gnagel]

When I was there it was a mess. They were using it as a working area and tables, chairs, presentation slide screens, computer, etc were all over the place! We were lucky to slip in for about 15 minutes....but it was not photogenic that day. LOL!

I was fortunate to have the place to myself for about an hour. Once or twice a tourist or two walked through for a few minutes. For me, the lighting was the biggest challenge. And, it was driving me crazy that the tables weren't positioned in the center of the floor. I started moving some of them before realizing that aligning all those tables was going to be a massive effort and would probably attract unwanted attention from the librarian!

Glenn

 

[MiriamJ]

I thought you nailed the composition and lighting in #2. I wouldn't worry about the tables, they don't distract. Beautiful shot and beautiful place!

I did find the angle of the ceiling of the 3rd one a little distracting.

 

[daveg]

#1 does it for me. Excellent.

DG

 

[gnagel]

I thought you nailed the composition and lighting in #2. I wouldn't worry about the tables, they don't distract. Beautiful shot and beautiful place!

I did find the angle of the ceiling of the 3rd one a little distracting.

Thanks Miriam…with such a wide angle lens it is much easier to control distortion when the composition is symmetrical (like #2). The side compositions can cause distortion in the ceiling (#3).

Glenn

 

[gnagel]

#1 does it for me. Excellent.

DG

Thanks Dave…I like 1 best. I placed these in the order of my preference.

Glenn

 

[dossy]

You keep doing this, Glenn! These are beyond stunning b&w's!

 

[Allan]

Very impressive building - well done. 1 is my favorite too.

 

[jbailey930]

That is an amazing library. Superbly, composed and processed....you'll have to share some secrets of the BW conversion as the tonal range shows all the detail.

 

[gnagel]

You keep doing this, Glenn! These are beyond stunning b&w's!

Thanks Dossy

Very impressive building - well done. 1 is my favorite too.

Thank you, Allen...I have visited a lot of libraries and I think this is one of the more impressive ones.

That is an amazing library. Superbly, composed and processed....you'll have to share some secrets of the BW conversion as the tonal range shows all the detail.

Thanks John...I start by selecting one of the presets available through Nik's Silver Efex software. From there, I bring the photo into Photoshop and do some selective adjustments. I will usually apply a curves adjustment to a specific area in the frame (for example, the tile floor) and then brush that adjustment into that one section. I may then do further curves adjustments in other areas. Those adjustments tend to bring out a lot of detail.

Glenn

 

[Hylander]

I was fortunate to have the place to myself for about an hour. Once or twice a tourist or two walked through for a few minutes. For me, the lighting was the biggest challenge. And, it was driving me crazy that the tables weren't positioned in the center of the floor. I started moving some of them before realizing that aligning all those tables was going to be a massive effort and would probably attract unwanted attention from the librarian!

Glenn

These are fantastic images, perfect for black and white with their repetitive lines.

The reason you had the place to yourself is that legal research in law libraries like this is a thing of the past. Today lawyers use electronic media to research cases, instead of hunting them down in physical books.

 

[Bart]

This is really stunning and beautiful b&w work, Glenn!
I can see how the light would be a challenge. Since I suppose you were using a tripod, would it not have been an idea to do some bracketing for the lighting, I wonder.

I think my preference would be 2 - 1 - 3

 

[gnagel]

These are fantastic images, perfect for black and white with their repetitive lines.

The reason you had the place to yourself is that legal research in law libraries like this is a thing of the past. Today lawyers use electronic media to research cases, instead of hunting them down in physical books.

Thanks Bill...no doubt that physical books are becoming a thing of the past. I'm a Kindle reader myself!

I can see how the light would be a challenge. Since I suppose you were using a tripod, would it not have been an idea to do some bracketing for the lighting, I wonder.

I think my preference would be 2 - 1 - 3

Thank you, Bart...yes, these are bracketed up to 9 stops! The light was horrendous.

Glenn

 

[Hylander]

Thanks Bill...no doubt that physical books are becoming a thing of the past. I'm a Kindle reader myself!

I haven't been able to wean myself away from physical books. Which is a problem: they're taking over my house as insidiously as vines are taking over my yard.

 

[Mike Buckley]

I especially like #2. Well done!

A lot of my reading is about photography, which of course includes the photos themselves. I can't imagine reviewing them on a Kindle; I'll always enjoy printed books.

 

[gnagel]

I especially like #2. Well done!

A lot of my reading is about photography, which of course includes the photos themselves. I can't imagine reviewing them on a Kindle; I'll always enjoy printed books.

Kindle doesn’t work well for photography books. For those, I still go with the printed copies.

For most other books, I prefer Kindle. I like being able to adjust the font size. I also like that the screen is backlit so that I can read it in any lighting conditions. And, the Kindle is super light…almost like holding a book of just 25 pages. Finally, I like being able to touch a word and have the definition pop up.

Glenn

 

[Bart]

I suppose we're getting off topic but I recently discovered a number of books that were only released as e-books.
I used to be a ferocious reader and hope to pick this up again when I'm retired so I've started to collect information on e-book readers.
(by the time I am retired, I'll have added so much plans that I most definitely will have too little time )