The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
This is an image taken by my friend, Jim Bigham, from Ohio. He goes annually to Alaska to visit his grandsons and family. He loves Alaska, so much that he overcame -30 F night to capture the aurora borealis. This image was taken from a boat some distnace from the glacier, mid day. We have been photo friends since 2018. I asked him several months ago if I could have a copy of the image and he quickly sent it to me.
I’ve been telling him about NPN for some time, told him what a great place it is for honing your skills. I indicated I would post his image and my quick edit so he and I can get some feed back.
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:
Very simple but effective image. Composition works for me and the processing looks quite good. I’d be tempted to add a little bit of drama into the clouds by darkening the darker clouds and dodging the lighter ones, a technique I’ve heard referred to as “cloud sculpting.” I hope Jim will join us at NPN some day. The community gets better with every new member willing to share their experience and critiques with the rest of us!
Nice composition and good color. I like the lighter edited image, but I agree with @Bret_Edge regarding working on the tones in the clouds, especially the cloud bank up top.
By all means, ask your friend to join NPN. As Bret indicated, the strength of NPN is in its membership sharing ideas and experiences.
-P
I really like the slight pano format that you’ve both chosen. The clouds add immensely to this image by shrouding the mountains, while a thin layer of fog/clouds draws you into the middle of the image where the snow and glacier are as well as the mountain peak. The very thin line of fog right on top of the distant water and tree line is also nice. The whole cloud formation is almost like a natural vignette. The colors are a little bit blue for me particularly in Jim’s original edit but hey, that’s just me. I think your edit is better at handling the blues and it brings out the green colored hills. I prefer Jim’s edit on the clouds and the drama they create. Really, on this image that has been framed terrifically and includes a dramatic sky and a glacier slide with Alaskan mountain peaks, it’s hard to go wrong with either image or processing.
As both @Bret_Edge and @Preston_Birdwell have said, it would be terrific to try and bring your friend on board. With this post of yours, he can view first hand what it would be like to have one of his images critiqued. It’s not intimidating at all. We’re here to help each other out, make lasting friendships and share our experiences among like minded people.
Thanks for taking the time to post Jim’s image from Alaska. I just returned from Alaska and this image sure brings back terrific memories. Thanks for that Gary!
Hi Gary,
The pano format works quite well for this lovely scene and I think your rework with darkening the clouds bumped this up another notch. I hope your friend Jim decides to join us and become part of the NPN community. There are a great group of welcoming photographers here who are willing to share their expertise. We all only get better with each member posting images and commenting on other photogs work.
Gary: Wonderful scene superbly captured and rendered. Brings back memories of our trip to Alaska in 2017. Our first foray was on a boat out of Seward headed for the Kenai Fjords. We had reserved and paid for the tour months in advance but when we arrived the operators stated that the seas were forecast to be pretty rough and if we didn’t want to take the risk we could have a full refund. Since we didn’t know if we would ever be back that way again and because my wife and I are pretty tolerant of motion sickness we decided to dare it. We had scopolamine patches but wanted to save them for a week long cruise on a small ship slated for the end of our trip. I should have used the patch. I got really sick and can’t say I enjoyed the experience but my wife was OK. I think we got as far as Bear Glacier before we headed back to port but I’m not sure. I hope one day to get back there and tolerate the voyage a little better but thanks to you and Jim I know what’s possible. Very well done and I hope Jim joins us soon. >=))>
