Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I took this image last March while cross country skiing. It was a snowy day with very low visibility, which is a type of day I love being outside in. There’s something about being immersed in conditions like this that feels like a world apart. I was hoping to capture something of that feeling in this image.
Specific Feedback
I took several pictures of this scene, and this one was originally taken as a horizontal image. There were several other small treetops poking through the snow near this one, but I decided I preferred having just one tree as the subject, so I cropped out quite a bit of the image. The snow and sky nearly blend together in the unedited version, but I felt I needed some more contrast between them, so I used a mask to darken the sky. I like the starkness of the image, but I wonder if it might be a little too barren. I’d appreciate any feedback on that, as well as any suggestions for tonal adjustments to the snow and sky.
Technical Details
49 mm, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/400 sec.
1 Like
I love images like this. Very zen, or minimulistic. I like the horizon line as well. Nicely done.
John, I am fascinated by what you have done here. Looking at the small image, I could not tell what the dark shape was until I read your description. It frustrated me that I could not make sense of any of it from just the picture. When I blew it up, I appreciated the texture and snow on the tree. I would enjoy a much tighter crop that allowed the tree to be more definable without taking away the starkness of it. But that is just a thought as to how I see the picture. @Judi_Hastings mentions the horizon line. I agree with her.
@Judi_Hastings and @Barbara_Djordjevic - Thank you for your comments. I like the horizon line as well, so I’m glad you both noted that.
Barbara, I appreciate your suggestions about trying a tighter crop. I experimented with that a bit and am posting a re-edited version for comparison. I think it is effective. I was initially concerned that I would lose the sense of emptiness I was hoping to achieve, but I don’t think that’s the case. It’s not a drastically different image, but I think the tree is more recognizable now. Thank you for the feedback and suggestion!
Thanks, John; what a difference the crop has made. Now it reads like emptiness with one lone tree. The message is obvious to me. I find myself wanting to linger and think about it. Powerful, indeed.
