28mm, ƒ/20.0 , ISO 200
I love scenes like this because they often get overlooked when they’re next to mountains or milky ways. You have done a great job with the vision and balance of the composition, and taking good photos in harsh light isn’t easy, so well done. Two things I would consider: 1. There is a tiny shrub/plant in the bottom left of the frame that catches my eye and distracts me a little just because it’s significantly different than the rest of the grasslands. I might try to clone that out. 2. The tree on the left might be slightly too close to the left side of the frame. It doesn’t allow my eye to venture too far into that part of the scene and create tension there. Maybe try adding more room on the edges for slightly more negative space for the eye to wander. Love the shot!
Great advice! That shrub at the bottom left of the image does distract and I agree that more space to the left of the tree would facilitate greater perspective. I was pleased with the cloud capture on that it was the first time a employed a CPL which was tricky due to the variance of light i.e., bright sun to overcast skies.
Thank you again for your critique and kind comments!
Hi Gary,
Welcome to NPN! Great to have you here and a terrific first post!
I can see what attracted you to this scene - you’ve got a great sky of clouds and I think you did well to frame the scene with the trees and the summer grass. The lower perspective works well here - it appears like you’re either crouched down, OR shooting towards an upward slope. But that’s neither here nor there, I like the perspective.
I’m with David on the comment of the left tree being pretty tight in the frame. I do like the tension or framing of the two trees, but the one of the left is just a little tight. My thought since you either go back (not always possible or logical) add more canvas (you can but not much and be realistic) or possibly try a crop that mitigates this.
My thought, and I can post example if you like, would be to drop slightly from the top and right. This actually makes the tree on the right tighter to the edge which sort of evens things out - heck, if they’re both tight to the frame… then it must be intentional, right? 
Cropping from the top, say just below the large cloud along the upper right edge, I think further emphasizes the framing and tension between the two trees, while retaining the feature of those nice clouds. Just a thought.
I didn’t notice the bush in the LLC (lower left corner) right away. And so while it is a little distracting, it’s not the first thing that gets notices and so is not too detrimental; at least for me.
Welcome aboard! Look forward to more images and your comments and participation.
Lon
Hi Lon,
Thank you for the welcome and the feedback. I need to hone my skills relative to post processing in that I’m in the experimental stages but loving every minute and learning a lot! Also, when I’m in the field I need to be more patient (probably why the tree to the left is a little tight) and not fall under a trance when viewing gorgeous clouds.
You and David certainly have me thinking both creatively and critically which is why I value being part of the NPN community.
Best,
Gary
Hi, Gary. I’m glad to see scenes such as what you presented. I often find myself shooting in the middle of the day when I get to scenes such as this. It is also fascinating what our eyes see and sometimes get distracted by. The tiny shrub that @David_Johnston referred to did not distract me as much as the greener tree on the right edge of the image. To my eyes, it threw out the balance of the two trees. So, maybe a tighter crop could eliminate that distraction and provide a more balanced image. Of course that might still require some cloning, so it may not be worth an effort. On the other hand, it would increase the tension between both trees being on the edge of the frame. I love your image because of its strength in the sky and daylight.
Hi Gary, and welcome! This is a great place to hang out and learn!
This is a simple but very pleasing scene with very nice image quality. I don’t mind the small trees on the right, but would crop from the top just enough to remove the large cloud just above the bigger tree. I would also prefer a little more room on the left. I try to shoot with a slightly wider field of view than I think I’ll want, so I have leeway to level horizons and decide on the final crop. I wonder if that bush in the LL corner might have been included more completely in the composition? If you had moved a little left it would not be right under the smaller tree. In any case, I would clone out the daisies in front of it, which would make it a little less noticeable.
I try to bracket compositions as much as possible, since “film” is so cheap these days.
Hi Diane,
Thank you for taking the time to critique my image. Excellent advice and greatly appreciated.
Best,
Gary
Hi Gary and welcome to NPN. This is a great community for learning by comments given by others but also by commenting on other members images. This is a great image showing an ordinary part of the nature in a very pleasing and inviting way. Well done! I just would have wished a little bit more space to the left …
Welcome aboard, Gary. I really like what you’ve presented here. There is such vitality to this scene. I think it’s due to the strong colors and the formation of those clouds. You have received some good suggestions but for me the most important is how close that left tree is to the frame. I would add even just a bit of canvas to the left of the tree.
Thanks Igor for generous and supportive comments! I agree that the suggestions I received have been excellent and compelling in that I am looking at my images in a very different and more qualitative way. That tree to the left us definitely an issue and your suggestion off adding canvas is a good starting point.
Thank you Ola for your kind and generous comments. That space ,or lack of, to the left is an issue and one I’ll be conscious of when shooting in the field. Diane Miller@Diane_Miller made an excellent suggestion to shoot from a wider field off view so as to better crop.
As @David_Johnston mentioned I think the tree on the left needs more breathing room OR you could crop off part of the right (not sure if that will work).
I also feel like the shadows in the front tree are a bit subdued and could be opened up a bit.
The bush LLC is distracting as already mentioned…
One question worth asking - what did you want to convey with this photo?
First off, Welcome Gary. It’s great to have you here. Terrific first post. I can certainly see what drew you to this little scene. Those clouds overhead are spectacular and you’ve tamed the brightest whites really well and the blue sky looks very natural to my eye.
Rather than reiterating what has already been brought up I will simply add a couple of suggestions:
