The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Six Mile Cypress Slough, Ft Meyers
This area was full of little alligators, and the locals said they were all offspring of this huge female.
The swamps and sloughs of south florida just facinate me - all kinds of critters there
Specific Feedback
all comments welcome
Technical Details
Sony A1
200-600mm @ 600mm
1/1600 sec, f/6.3
Mode: Manual
Metering: Average
ISO: 5000
White balance: Auto
Flash: Off
Critique Template
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I really like how you got her reflection, and her entire body, not just her head coming out of the water that you see a lot. To be honest, I was looking at this and struggling on what I could suggest that might be helpful. The only thing I can think of is all the foliage she is in distracts from her a bit. I tried removing what I could of the foliage to make her stand out more. I also added a bit of contrast and put a radial filter on her and increased the exposure on her a tiny bit. I’m not sure it is an improvement though, see what you think. I just did it quickly, a more careful job would be needed. I think I changed the greens a little but not intentionally.
Hi , Elizabeth - thank you for the time and interest to re-work this! Quite a nice result, and much appreciated.
I tend to do a lot of environmental shots, though, and my personal preference is not to do a lot of cloning and removing stuff unless it’s really critical. I prefer to keep the environment pretty much as it was, even if messy, for a natural and accurate image. The swamps in Florida are full of stuff, and -to me - that is their charm.
I figured that might be the case - but it was the only thing I could think of, so I tried it. I noticed you had not gotten any replies on it. I was hoping putting in some comment would put it back on the active list.
Hi Sandy. This is a beautiful capture, in every sense of the word. One of the main reasons I live in Florida is because I LOVE the REAL Florida. The terrain, even when there’s no actual terra firma, is the prettiest in the world to me. This shot exemplifies that perfectly. A beautiful creature in a beautiful setting. Even though I shoot mainly landscapes, I have so many landscapes where gators play an important element of the landscape. I love how the badly degraded log adds so much character to the image also. You captured a wonderful “paradise” image here IMHO. The only idea I have for improvement is just a very slight crop from the top to remove the “shaggyness” of the small bush on the extreme right (see edit below). If you ever find yourself in NW Florida (Pensacola to Tallahassee), please holler and we can get together for a shoot.
With tiny crop to remove shaggy bush in extreme top right
Bill, Thanks for the suggestions, and the kind offer too ! Not sure when we will be in Florida next . I love Florida, (having visited for a few weeks every spring and fall while my parents lived there for the last 20 years of their lives) but my husband prefers Hawaii for our Oregon-winter escape. His turn is next!
