It was a nice day on the lovely island Madeira. The sun and fog alternated regularly. That sounds like the perfect conditions to photograph in a laurel forest.
After we spent some time photographing the iconic trees that everyone knows, I left my buddies to explore the wider area.
Behind a small hill, I found this friendly tree that seemed to welcome me with open arms. I loved the shape of it and its moss and fern-covered branches. It was clear that I had to photograph this charismatic tree.
Unfortunately, at this point, my wide-angle lens stopped working. So I had to switch to my 24-105. The tree was quite big, it wasn’t possible to shoot the entire tree with 24mm in one shot. Because of the hill behind me, I couldn’t get any further away from the tree either.
I decided to shoot some panorama images. This image consists of seven vertical format shots.
Type of Critique Requested
Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.
Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image.
Emotional: Feedback on the emotional impact and artistic value of the image.
Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality.
Specific Feedback and Self-Critique
Since this is a panorama, I couldn’t see the end result when I was in the field. I just hoped that the composition would work. I shot several panoramas from different positions to increase the chances that I would get something useful out of it.
What do you think? Does it work? Isn’t the foreground too messy? Is there anything that I can improve in post-processing?
Jens, this works so fantastically, it’s just awesome!
The comp is great, the colors are nice and cool, representing the foggy nature of the scene. I might crop a bit off the bottom to more securely ground the tree, but that is totally minor. I think this is a perfect image for those perfect conditions. Well done.
Jens, this is a wonderful portrait of a tree for me, a real story teller. This tree has been there long before we were born, and maybe will still be there long after us. These words by Henning Mankell came into my mind when I first saw your image.
In short, I wouldn’t change anything. All the elements of the composition work perfectly together in my opinion. While the foreground adds context, the landscape vanishing in the distance provides depth and a sense of vastness for me. The fog helps separating the tree aptly. Finally, I think you did a great job with the panorama stitching. Thanks for sharing.
Oh, this is a very nice shot. There’s lot’s of separation in the greens. The trees have unique shapes. I like the V shape in the middle that allows the eye to follow it to the tree trunks. The sky and fog blends in well. This is just a tiny suggestion. There is a triangular light spot that I think might be water that’s toward the RM that’s under the large branch that hangs down on the R tree that could be cloned out. Just nitpicking. Wonderful processing.
Jens, The only thing which bothers me is that the size of the brown area lower left distracts from the tree. It cannot be eliminated but I tried cropping off a bit. See what you think. Clever intent and capture!
I’m afraid I was not able to identify the spot you described. I’d like to check it out, though. Can you briefly describe again where this spot is located?
This is an enchanted forest. There are countless trees there with a lot of character. I will definitely show some more pictures of it.
I think it works quite well. The composition is pleasing and I don’t find the foreground too messy: it has a nice wave-like shape that compliments the tree.
Wonderful. I would have to say a mind-bender as well. Not because I don’t recognize a tree… but it’s almost a mystery trying to figure out if it’s one tree, many trees, and where that forward limb is coming from. I dunno, looking at it a few times now I guess it’s not that hard to figure, but still I think at a minimum this is very engaging and keeps the viewer exploring.
I do like Richard’s suggestion and edit about the slight desat of the reddish-brown elements.
A very nice take on an overshot area. I’ve never seen this tree so well done, Jens. You were rewarded with nice atmosphere as is typical for this area but it nicely separates the foreground trees from the background trees. I’m enjoying the rolling mounds in the foreground which I have not seen in an image from here. I do find that the rusty looking pine needles in the LLC pulls my eye a little bit but it’s not a deal breaker at all. So nice to see something different from this location so kudos to you for that. Love these trees.
I have not but I’ve seen utube videos and images by the truckloads and many of the trees are the same, so good of you to capture something unique with your twist on it. Love it!
