I’ve been going through the archives and found this one from 2018. The color of the light was an amazing pink to lavender shade, as this was right before sunset, but converting to b&w made for a more moody scene.
Any comments welcome. I’m thinking the lightest area in the center is maybe too bright. It’s not blown, but maybe it needs to be taken down a bit.
Is this a composite: No
a7, 36mm, f/13, 4s, ISO 100.
Nice b/w Bonnie. Great tonal range and I agree on taking down the center just a bit. THe sprinkling of the pebbles adds a lot to the image as well.
Bonnie, this is lovely. All the patterns in the sand are nicely emphasized in this B&W. I particularly like the lower left quarter for the textures and tones.
I could see taking the brightest areas down just a bit. Also, there’s a tiny white speck on the bottom edge in the center that I would clone out.
A very lovely find and the graphic qualities and silver light on the sand are well suited to B/W. I think a slight reduction of the central area would be nice, but the brightness is not a nit to me.
The movement of the BG water, due to the slow ss, somehow doesn’t quite fir for me – it almost looks like clouds. I wonder about lightening that area so the texture isn’t quite so obvious.
The specular light and silvery tones are wonderful here Bonnie. I agree with you on bringing the center brightness down some but overall a lovely scene.
This is an excellent image in my mind. It’s not particularly beautiful but it’s full of emotion. I actually like the brightness and I think it’s part of what makes this image. So, yes, I would try to bring it down but would be very careful to no ruin the quality it brings to the image. Basically, the answer is - I don’t know. It needs experimentation.
But yes, the appeal is not obvious. The arrangement of the rocks and the light and dark areas. Then there is the super sharp edges and the upper blurry part. All of this sets the mind to wondering and searching. The left side is stronger than the right. Should you crop a bit off the right or does that space add to the image (those small pebbles coming in from the right). As I look at this further you clearly wanted to include those two intrusions of pebbles on the right. It makes the statement less concise but they do add a still another element to the composition.
If you look at this image it doesn’t meet AA’s rules of a good b&w. The darks are too dark and the lights are too light. Yet, as a whole it packs quite a lot of feeling.
There is also a barely noticeable circular flow to this composition. The large rocks arc to the left and the smaller left ones arc down to the right. Together they give the image structure and also some energy (like a vortex).
But it’s the four big black rocks that are the most intriguing. What do they mean?
Thanks, @Mario_Cornacchione, @Craig_Moreau, @Diane_Miller, @Eva_McDermott, and @Igor_Doncov for your thoughts.
Diane, I see what you mean about the water. It should be more similar in tone to the light sand, I think.
Igor, I’m not sure what this should mean - I was intrigued by the light and didn’t have an ulterior motive. As far as the composition, it feels ok to me. That is usually how I judge comp - does it feel ok? If so, I don’t think about rules.
I wasn’t referring to rules either. When you say you shoot by ‘how it feels’ it means having an intuitive understanding. I shoot that way as well. But in order to grow as a photographer it needs to be understood later at a rational level. Otherwise one keeps doing the same thing. You stop growing. That’s been my experience.
I feel that you may be selling yourself short on this image. It’s actually better than last years picture of the year. It’s more nuanced.
@Igor_Doncov, that’s a good point about being able to deconstruct what’s good (or bad) about a photograph so we don’t get ourselves into a rut.
I do appreciate your appreciation of this photo. 
