Hello.
Great work! I really like both sets (but I had to delete one because you’re only supposed to upload 1 set!). I choose to leave your first set, which I found to be more impressive.
Let me start off by saying that you did a wonderful job of showcasing the power of what careful attention to detail can have. Your first shot looks exactly how I wanted it to: Boring, dull, unimaginative and easily forgettable. The first shot shows various distracting elements and cuts off objects on the 4 edges of your photograph. However, these are some of the biggest mistakes that first time photographers make. They focus too much on the main object (in this case the stereo system) with complete disregard to other important photographic elements. Your second shot however, incorporates some very powerful visual elements which really make it stand out. In fact, this shot is great for 2 main reasons.
1. It uses informal balance which is often more visually pleasing to the eye. You’ve used the rule of thirds (to be discussed in a later lesson) to organize your photograph and you’ve adjusted your depth of field to help with simplifying the photography and helping to place emphasis on more important elements (In this case the blue light).
2. Most impressively you’ve managed to color simplify. This is often hard for first time photographers to do. They let in too many colors which leads to an overall unorganized and chaotic look. You have chosen only a few colors which really make the photograph stand out.
Overall, great job. Exactly what I was hoping for!