Findhorn Pebbles - A fine array of stones on Findhorn Beach exposed at low tide on an overcast day. I scanned this beach the day before taking a photography workshop with Ian Cameron. There were so many beach features to photograph at low tide. My husband Joe wanted to know why I went all the way to Scotland to photograph rocks. …But that is what I like to do - capture intimate small landscapes. It has been a while since I posted something here but hope to change that.
Type of Critique Requested
Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.
Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image.
Emotional: Feedback on the emotional impact and artistic value of the image.
Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality.
Specific Feedback and Self-Critique
I love scenes like this so very much interested in your feed back.
Technical Details
Pentax 67II
Velvia 50
(Did not record the exposure details)
Scanned with an Epson 700 scanner
Processed in LR minor tweeks in PS
The light is so gorgeous that I feel like I’m touching them with my eyes. By that I mean that I’m there holding them. This could be a busy scene but there is a sense as though all the stones are radiating from the center, and that gives the image structure. I guess I feel there is a subtle X that crosses through the center. I suppose the feel of the image has to do with the quality due to the large negative the camera uses. Even after all these years of digital photography I know owners who still miss that Pentax.
@Igor_Doncov I am looking at this image (16"X20" Kodak metallic print) hanging on my wall in the living room right now. I think the light yellow stone in the upper center and blue stone in lower center help create the X effect you describe. Thanks Igor.
What a great image! The colors are great and the soft light is just perfect. It could be hard to find the exact framing/composition photographing a stone beach but you have just nailed it. The image feels very pleasing with the heap of somewhat larger rocks in the centre but anyhow having one bright rock standing out just enough from the rest.
Hey Eva! Great photo! It reminds me of when I told my wife that I was going all the way to Death Valley to photograph mud. She was obviously confused but gave me the green light nonetheless. LOL.
I think this is a great intimate scene of nature. The pastel colors work really well together. It has a very calming mood to it. Not too sure what your style is, but I might even try to pull more dark tones out of the shadows. I use luminosity masking in Photoshop for that, but you can also do so in Lightroom with sliders. That’s my only advice but even if you didn’t take it, it’s still a killer photo!
Eva, wonderful to see you posting…and a mighty fine image it is too. I’ve tried these kinds of images for years and have never been successful. I always end up tossing them. But I still keep trying.
This is so peaceful to me. I can see myself sitting on the rocky beach nestled among these wonderful, colorful, stones.
You have such wonderful, soft light in this image, Eva. Combine that soft light with the soft, pastel colors in the rocks and you certainly have a calming and please image that makes it easy to just stare at and discover. I love the one shell in the ULC also. Well seen and photographed, Eva! Great to see you posting.
So great to see an image post from you! And what a wonderful comeback!
I’m loving the soft pastels and the broad range of colors. As others have mentioned, this just has a calming effect - like some visual sort of meditation.
This hasn’t been mentioned, but one of the first things I noticed was the odd-ball in the bunch. Looks like there’s a shell - a sea snail shell maybe among the sea of rounded stones. The shell is neither a distraction or a terribly important element… but just one of those little rewards when you explore an intimate scene like this.
Reminds me of my very first “photo trip” to Glacier NP - on a family vacation. I was 12 and had the trusty Kodak Instamatic. After returning home and getting the prints, my father asked why did I take so many pictures of the mountains? All I remember is saying, “because they’re pretty.”
Hi Eva. Lovely to see a picture from you again. It is odd how such a generic subject, pebbles, which lets face it are pretty much anywhere, immediately sparked a recognition of their exact location which was subsequently confirmed by your image title during a casual flick through of recently uploaded images on NPN. Glad you printed it I had something very similar printed on my walls of the exact same beach.
