It is a small bridge
Have to find a path to it
And cross the water
Specific Feedback Requested
All feedback is more than welcome
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
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As always, Ben, the light and colour palette are exquisite. But I question the choices you’ve made in composition a little bit. I really want to see more of what is on the right side of the image - the trees leaning over the water, the bridge and the gorgeous reflections. Even in your haiku, the bridge is central whereas in the image it becomes incidental, almost an after thought. I think that has a lot to do with the visual mass of the dark vertical trunk on the left of the frame. So, I wish the camera had been moved more to the right. That being said, with the image as presented I might try cropping out to just past the vertical trunk on the left of the frame (aspect ratio of about 4:5) as its presence creates a tension that I’m guessing isn’t what this picture is about.
@Kerry_Gordon beat me to the comment I was just going to make, which is using a 4x5 composition with a crop away from the left. The tree on the left just seems out of place with the rest of the image, given how dark it is (and to me it’s uncomfortably close to the left frame edge).
What I do like about the image is how the tendrils of the plants drape across the 3 leaning trees, it adds some depth and interest to the scene. I also like how the leaning trees point to the bright area of the scene on the right. And the colors and light are very nicely handled in your processing, you have really mastered the warm green/yellow glow that appears in so many of your images.
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@Kerry_Gordon , @Ed_McGuirk , I thank you both for analyzing my image and the suggestions ( the same as my wife Ria did. But I am a bit stubborn.). I did carry out these suggestions on the raw image without bother about further processing. Just to show what was possible with the image. See the rework.
I find it always difficult to find a good crop what tells the story . I find my solution more intimate and even a bit mysterious .(personal feeling)
Again I thank you both, wish you a great 2022. And hope for a lot of your comments and critiques.
Ed, congratulations with your election of Photographer of the year. So well deserved!
Rework
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I love the thick dark straight lines and the thin light wavy lines. That to me is the crux of the matter. The bridge may be interpreted in several way due to it’s location and how it exits the image. You can leave that up to the viewer. In fact your haiku does that. I wouldn’t do any cropping because it breaks down the design of the image. I would, however, remove the small green bush peeking in from the lower left. Everything is moving left to right towards that bridge and I think that’s a good strategy.
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Ben, I like where you cropped the left side of your rework. I’m not as sure that the reworks adding of canvas on the right is a big help. For one thing, It introduces a lot of empty white space in the LRC, which is an eye magnet . And I prefer the more limited amount of the bridge you showed in the original post. It showed just enough of the bridge to know it was there, but to me seeing less of the bridge created a bit of a sense of mystery about where did the bridge lead to. A subjective opinion on my part, I’ll admit.
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Lovely light, as always, Ben! I really like the second image – the bridge felt too cut off in the first. I think I could enjoy the second image with the heavy tree back on the left, if the original frame is that wide.
When I want to make a suggestion to my husband, I sometimes find it’s best to suggest the opposite of what I want…