Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
I was taking pictures of the large waves along the California Shore and looking to explore
the patterns in the waves. I converted it to B/W to bring out those patterns.
Nikon D5600 with Nikkor 50mm 1.2AIS
F16
1 second Exposure
ISO 400
Welcome to NPN and the world of Abstract, Mike. I like the textures and sense of motion in the waves and the relatively low contrast of the image. The brighter striations at the bottom tend to give it a warm and inviting feeling to me. For my taste, all the black at the bottom is just too much empty space and I think it would be more effective with just the narrowest band of black on the bottom.
Mike, welcome to NPN! I agree with Dennis about that dark band at the bottom. It interrupts the flow of the waves for me. You could crop down to either reduce it’s width. It may be possible to lighten that section away from the darker tonal range.
I like the motion you have captured. I know you presented this as low contrast but some dodging of those waves may be an interesting alternative. Thanks for posting.
I don’t disagree with your idea of limiting the black foreground but for some reason I like the texture of the sand and the contrast. I will try your suggestion though. Thank you for the feedback.
Very interesting!! The dark bottom feels heavy to me, too. Maybe a very slight crop and/or a little more dark detail pulled out, in a gradient, retaining the darkness at the bottom. I think a slight crop at the top would work, eliminating the more detailed waves at the very top. That simplification keeps my eye on the parts I like best. But a wonderful image in any case!
