The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Fairly warm here last few days so I wandered around the Yakima River. The river through he canyon is well-known (at least around here) as an excellent place to fly fish for trout. A hatch was on and the dragonflies were enjoying it.
Specific Feedback
Any and all comments are welcome.
Technical Details
Canon 7DII; 100/400 @400; 1 640th; 9.0; -1/3; WB: auto. Some sharpening; lightened; removed some dark areas.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Excellent! Perfect plane of focus and detail - even the wings are sharp.
I like the small off-set from the twig, so you chose the perfect angle as well.
The BG still seems pretty bright, so you might experiment with dampening it a bit more.
Jim, this is a fine look at the DF, with wonderful details in just him, making it all about the subject. I too think maybe try to tame the brightness of the BG just a little may improve this already excellent image.
Sweet catch. Nice job lining up to get the focal plane aligned for the maximum sharpness all over. So pristine and perfect - must be a newly emerged adult. Not sure what species since my books are all for the Great Lakes region of the US. Looks to be a type of skimmer though. I’m of two minds about the bg - usually bright areas catch out attention first, but sharpness and detail is also something our visual acuity hits on immediately. So the brightness combined with the blur of the bg actually sets off the subject quite well - the contrast works for me.
Excellent work, Jim. The sharpness of the dragonfly holds my attention very well so I don’t mind the brightness of the background. There are a couple of brighter spots in it that pull my eye a little (a small yellowish one the the left of the dragonfly and a brighter spot about half way up along the right edge).
Large version is pretty nice. The bright BG does not bother me and makes the dragonfly stand out from the BG. You may want to tone down the highlights overall to give the exposure more balance regarding the lighting.
Jim, I think your high-key approach works very well here. Having the DF and it’s perch angle in adds a touch of motion. I’d be tempted to move the DF and it’s perch further to the left in the frame (maybe crop this to 4x5?)
Very cool!! Detail is superb. My first thought was to trim a little off the left. I agree the BG could be brought down a little – a favorite trick of mine with a tonally flat BG like this is a subtle touch of Darken-Lighten Center in Nik CEP.
