Bob Horowitz

Unintentional Camera Movement.

Taken while I was running with a friend through a tunnel on Hawk Hill. As we ran, my finger accidentally hit the shutter button and I ended up with a 1/6 of a second snap of Nicole and the tunnel. A happy accident.

But that led to a tough question: how should I process the resulting photo? Post-processing involves many choices and Lightroom has so many buttons... so I pushed them all, lol.

Anyway, I ended up with four final candidates and I really like them all, for different reasons. My favorites are the first and the last.

#photography

Mar 26, 2025 at 5:06pmWeb
Show threadMike 🇨🇦 NuanceRhymesWithOrangeMar 26, 2025
@BobHorowitz Lovely ochre vibes in the first image!
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025
@NuanceRhymesWithOrange That's the one my husband's Chris likes the best.
I'm leaning towards # 4... the slasher graphic novel illustration.
Show threadDonncha Ó CaoimhMar 26, 2025
@BobHorowitz fabulous. I think no.4 is my favourite!
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025
@donncha It's amazing how different approaches to post-processing can completely change the mood and vision of a photo, innit?
Show threadAntoinne SterkMar 26, 2025
@BobHorowitz First and last are my favorites too. If I had to choose, I would go for nr 1 👍
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025

@antoinnesterk I go through these decisions just about every time I take a photo. I usually know where I want to end up but sometimes I get sidetracked along the way when I see something else I might like.

Photo # 1 was my original intention. But then I got pulled into the possibilities of softness, desaturation, and monochrome. Number 4 was where I ended up... with a graphic novel illustration from the 1990s.

Show threadAntoinne SterkMar 26, 2025
@BobHorowitz I know what you mean. I usually get back to the first one. Editing could be fun, but it also could take a lot of time. If I have two or three shots, I sometimes paste the alternative edits on the second one 😀
Show threadNeoTeNuMar 26, 2025
4th is amazing!!
Show threadGreg HillsMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz
They're all so applicable, but 1st and 4th are the extremes, hanging themselves on the viewer's internal state.

In the first, it can be the rosy light at the end of the tunnel, to the end of all things with the red glare of the hell bomb reflecting on the tunnel wall.

The starkness of the last makes me wonder about that human(oid) figure. Is it really running away, or is that an illusion?

Great montage to start my day with. Thank you!

Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025
@winterknell That's a thoughtful analysis. I agree. The first and last make more of a statement with a capital S. The middle two set a tone with a lowercase t.
Show threadGreg HillsMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz I'm up now and have looked at them on the laptop (a much better screen than my tablet), and still prefer the first - but the second image has grown on me. The reduction of colour encourages introspection. The sunset on the wall might be a human figure in a long robe, one hand held up in blessing or caution, to which the hurrying person is oblivious - or perhaps they are ignoring it.

I'm going to keep coming back to look at these today, though I'll stop yammering about them now!

Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

Tough choice. Good decision posting all four. Viewer's choice. I'm in the minority. No. 2 is my fave.

Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025
@EricMartin I kind of like the metallic sheen in the second shot... That, with the movement, makes it shimmer.
Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

I'm not sure why, but I often gravitate toward that hue when I'm post processing monochrome shots (and then ultimately abandoning it it favor of another). I should go with mu gut, because I really like that photograph.

Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

You're right. It does shimmer.

Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

It also begs the question: Why were you running? Trying to get a fleeting photo on the other end? Sheer joy? Fleeing the scene of a crime?

Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025

@EricMartin Nicole had just spotted the sun setting at the far end of the tunnel. She ran to get a picture because there was no time. The sun was already touching the horizon and the Pacific Ocean.

Women. Sunsets. 🙄

Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

Guilty. I used to run (well, jogged) to the spot at the lake I liked for sunrise shots. This was the first year or two I was serious about photography as art. Heck with that nonsense! Those shots have died of overexposure (pun intended).

Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025

@EricMartin *chuckles*

Give me gloomy skies any day. In fact, the sky is full of heavy clouds right now, so I'm heading downtown in a little while to do some shooting.

Show threadEricMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

Bring back some keepers!

Show threadEmMar 26, 2025
I vote #1 😊
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025

@CeliasFlores I trust your opinion. You do marvelous work in both black and white and color.

And you shoot with a Pentax. That counts for a lot, he says as he waves his Pentax in the air.

Show threadEmMar 27, 2025
Thank you so much, that means a lot coming from you as well! I’ve been enjoying your photos!
Show threadFishing for MomentsMar 26, 2025
No. 1. While many seem to like no. 4 – it‘s my least favorite. 😅 I have a similar photo with a tunnel and a woman and unintentional long exposure. And I really like it.
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 26, 2025

@varnoshooter *nods*

It doesn't take long to get some interesting movement. I've found .2 to .8 seconds seems to be the sweet spot.

Show threadChancerubbageMar 26, 2025

@BobHorowitz

What’s in tow? Is there a dog on her heels?

Show threadBob HorowitzMar 27, 2025
@Chancerubbage no no, that's her camera swaying from a strap :)
Show threadChancerubbageMar 27, 2025

@BobHorowitz

I didn’t want to say purse, it could have been any sort if trailing outdoors equipment strapped on.

Show threadRobert PickeringMar 26, 2025
@BobHorowitz
I like the third one, softer feel. The black and white of the 4th is striking but feels a little harsh for the mood of the photo.
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 27, 2025
@robertpi Aye, that one has the feel of suede.
Show threadCharlieMar 27, 2025
@BobHorowitz The second one is my favourite, but the colours are great in the first.
Show threadSalim MedjellekhMar 29, 2025
Very successful, there's movement with a nice atmosphere. I tried to capture this atmosphere myself, I had a lot of rubbish, but I noticed that it worked much better in the evening with the city lights. 👍👍👍
Show threadBob HorowitzMar 29, 2025
@smartmedj Trying to do this intentionally would certainly require experimentation and have a high failure rate... Especially without a tripod. I know because that's what I was doing, with a handheld camera, last Wednesday inside a subway tunnel.