The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Having just finished participating in a fall photography workshop, I thought I’d post a shot I really like - an amazing little detail at the Caney Fork River Gorge in Tennessee. Grand landscapes are great, but sometimes it’s the smaller slices that really grab me. I will post a shot of the larger view at some point, but this one is just too special to ignore. That and it was one of the only falls really running as so many others were dry or trickling like someone left the hose on.
Anyway…after spending time in the usual location to shoot the falls, I moved to another one since I was uninspired and nothing was working. The new area proved better for the grand landscape, but after getting that, I spent time with the long tele picking out scenes and slices. This one was especially cool and after some remove tool and gen fill magic, I think it’s where I want it.
Specific Feedback
There weren’t many ways to isolate this glowing yellow bush and there were distractions on either side, but I think it works. I’d like your thoughts on the water and if it adds enough context for you. Does it tell a story? Is it a happy one or a sad one? I have intentions for this, but want to see how it strikes others.
Lr for basic RAW processing including a bit of a crop, exposure boost and the usual global adjustments for contrast. HSL panel to finesse yellows and greens. Some vibrance & saturation boost. Distraction removal in Ps.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
I like the image, and I think it tells a story of how plants grow and survive even in the most challenging places. So, a happy story.
The composition is good and I think it provides enough context. I often like a little more texture in the water, for waterfall shots, but that’s totally a matter of personal preference.
Kristen, it’s a happy , positive story for me, life can thrive even in the most difficult situations. In this image I think I want a larger section of the falls showing to help with that story. The shutter speed works nicely on the streamlets next to and above the bush, but not so well on the flow adjoining those areas . If you haven’t already, you could try a Lr mask to brush and minimize the highlights and increase the texture to try and coax a bit more detail from the flow. Just some thoughts .
Thanks @WillR & @Stephen_Stanton for your time and input. Glad you find this a more positive image - that’s what I was going for. Normally I do also like water with more contour and detail, but for this I felt it would be too heavy, so I kept it light and cloud-like, hence the title. It just makes me smile.
Kristin, living in the Pacific Northwest, and having spent over 40 years photographing waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge, I am so over done with waterfall images. This one, however is unique and original. Well done. It works on a lot of levels. Well done. The framing of the shrub is excellent. I might dial back the whites a bit, but that might be my monitor so take that for what it’s worth. Nicely seen.
A great find, I just love this type of smaller scenes!
To me it is a positive story of the plant surviving despite the harsh environment. The colors in the image seems to me to be very realistic, however if you want to emphasize a positive story maybe the yellow parts could be made to stand out even more.
The whiter softer parts of the fall frame the important parts of the image situated in the middle diagonal, hence not drawing attention away from the main character of the image. However, according to my taste a tad of more texture could be added to the whitest parts of the fall.
A great image, looking forward to more images from your fall photography workshop.
Beautiful! Everything has bees said but I want anyway tell you how much I love this photo. It is for me an emotional immage with so many falling waters that seem to invest the plant and drag it away. For me the image is perfect, no flaws.
Thanks @Ola_Jovall, @David_Bostock & @Giuseppe_Guadagno for your input and impressions. After not being happy with the typical wide view of the falls, I went for a different composition and then picked out small slices with the long lens. More to come.
I don’t get happy from this - it’s more like hopeful and inspiring. Wouldn’t change a thing! The (relatively) texture-less water works, IMO. The star is that bush and there’s no need for the water to compete with that.
A visually powerful image. That goes without saying. It has a wonderful sense of vitality both due to your choice of shutter speed, which adds drama and depth, as well as the the juxtaposition of the faded colour of the subject and the almost monochrome of the rest of the image.
The one thing I might suggest has to do with the large white area that begins in the lower left corner. To me it is just a bit too much visual mass that pulls my eye. I see that there is some shadow detail within that area and I would tempted to bring it up - just a bit - to reduce the mass and bring it down so it doesn’t compete quite so much with all that is happening in the centre of the frame.
Wonderful picture that both conveys a mood - resilience and tenacity - and also tells a story - resilience and tenacity.
Sometimes you learn to like an image by reading people’s comments. I didn’t see this in this image but now that I read it I am starting to understand the overwhelming positive reaction to this work.
My first impression is of a bullseye composition with a lot of white around it. I was not in tune with the story it contained.
Hi Kristen
this image of resilience, as people have called it, caught my eye for that very reason.
On the other hand, I agree that it would be worth trying to recover a little more detail in the whites.
Kris: What a great find and you’ve done the subject superior justice. For me the water is just right and the image speaks to how life can be tenacious and glorious at the same time. Most excellent. >=))>
Kris, this is marvelous. Great eye to have visualized and isolated this, and perfect comp to showcase the falls and branch. The colours offset the perfectly-handled whites very well.
A real eye-catcher!
Thanks @Bonnie_Lampley, @Kerry_Gordon, @Igor_Doncov, @joaoquintela, @Bill_Fach & @SandyR-B - phew! I think I got all of you. Certainly one of the more popular shots for me. I knew that water would be controversial so I added a slightly darker version up top. I do like the white very much though and deliberately shot it that way so I probably won’t change it permanently, but it is always good to try suggested alterations when they work as they do here. I may end up printing this one.
Your comments are interesting Igor about connecting emotionally to things via others’ reactions or connections. I find that emotions are catching even if we are out of step with events or situations at the outset. Just try not to cry at a wedding! Glad it was worth a second look for you. Our approaches are often so different to nature photography that we don’t interact much here.
