The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
This image was taken in the Dolly Sods area of West Virginia. I took the photo during a hike to Rohrbaugh Cliffs. The location is near Canaan Valley and Blackwater Falls. Its a very unique area that is in some ways like the surrounding parts of West Virginia, and different in other ways. Its very wet, almost rain forest like, with fluorescent green moss on the rocks. Some areas have an alpine meadow feel, but its still West Virginia in the Fall with all the oranges and reds.
Specific Feedback
I was trying to capture the feeling of hiking in this area, and some of the environmental features like the moss-covered rocks. Its a forest image, and hence very complex. Too complex? I was hoping the path and the light at the end of the path would provide some structure.
So I guess my questions would be if the image is comprehensible, and if the compositions works. Any suggestions are welcome.
Technical Details
Sony A7riv with an Tamron 20-40 lens at 28 mm and f/9. Some basic Lightroom processing and also selective dodging and burning.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Vision and Purpose:
Conceptual:
Emotional Impact and Mood:
Composition:
Balance and Visual Weight:
Depth and Dimension:
Color:
Lighting:
Processing:
Technical:
Upon first opening this I thought wow it is saturated and the color needs to to be backed off in processing, but then realized it is that saturated due to everything being wet, so no foul. I like how the rocks form a line that leads the eye deep into the scene. Not sure if that is the trail you are following, or its a off trail, but it does give the viewer a sense of following that line of rocks as a pathway into the forest. Nicely seen. Forests are complex and you did a great job if both conveying the complexity while still composing an engaging photo.
Hi, Will. Your photograph made me feel back at home. I live now in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona, but I come from the rainforest of the Western Cascades in Oregon. Your setting is not the same as a rainforest, but they are similar in powerful ways. Thanks for such an excellent photograph.
I think you achieved your goal, Will. I like where you placed your tripod with the leaves on each side directing the eye down the path. Very successful image imho.
Hi Will,
This works very nicely for me. The scene is complex, but I think you arranged everything perfectly. I also like the way the pathway takes the viewer into the image as well as it’s framing with the colorful autumn leaves. This looks like you had my kind of weather with the damp lush conditions. No suggestions from me as this is beautifully done. How did you like Dolly Sods?
Thanks all. @Youssef_Ismail , The colors were pretty saturated in the actual scene. The yellows in the leaves, because they were backlit, and the green because, with all the water, they just were that way. That was the path we were following., and all those rocks and wet leaves were slippery! It was about 5 miles out and back to the Rohrbaugh Cliffs view point, and I slipped twice on the trip.
@russ_carpenter The area does have a bit of a PNW feel in all the wet moss. Not a full on rain forest, but a “cousin”.
@Michael_Lowe No tripod used. It was all handheld. My wife is an avid hiker, and I squeeze the photography as we go (to be fair, she’s a good photographer, and really doesn’t mind when I ask to stop). I do use a tripod when needed.
@Ed_Lowe I liked Dolly Sods and hope to return. The Rohrbaugh Cliffs hike ends in a spectacular mountain viewpoint, and I hope to post some images from that as well. That hike is not the most popular one at Dolly Sods, which is Bear Rocks. Their trailheads are both off the same dirt road, but at Eagle Rocks you get a view right away, whereas you have to hike in for Rohrbaugh Cliffs. Both are about an hour from Blackwater Falls, but each is closer to a different end of the road, so you go in at different points. The road was not too rutted, but had a lot of large rocks embedded in it. I was happy we took my wife’s high clearance Subaru.
At first I thought so as well. But after I downloaded it and gave it more time I realized how good this image is in a subtle way. That’s one of the benefits of complex images I think. There is more to discover. They don’t reveal everything at first glance.
There are a couple of minor yellow leaves at the bottom and llc you might want to remove.
I like how this beckons Will. It makes me want to wander down the trail and see what is hidden beyond. I agree with @russ_carpenter that this has a real Cascade feel to it.
