This picture was taken at sunrise on the coast of Madeira. While my buddies were shooting the whole scene with the dramatic clouds, these structures somehow caught my attention.
So I kept switching to the telephoto lens.
The wind was pretty strong that morning, so even my buddy’s camera backpack was blown away.
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
Any feedback is welcome.
I struggled a little bit with the colors and the contrast
I really love this image. It’s actually very artistic. Perhaps much of my attraction has to do with what I read this morning. Art took a leap in the 19th century when form superseded content. Although content is important in this image it’s the image as forms that I find appealing. Check out AA’s Frozen Lake and Cliffs and you’ll see what I mean.
Welcome to NPN! What an excellent first post! Love this image. Kudos for seeing and seeking the more intimate details of the grander scene; and ironically, this is no “small” scene either! Scale here is nicely displayed here with the sea waves and rocks/splashes in the water. Making the cliffs rise with great scale. And it is that one rock with the water running over it that anchors the entire scene for me.
Love @Igor_Doncov 's AA reference image - amazing how similar in concept and design the images are. And agree, the shape and form provided by the cliff almost surpass the scale represented.
Colors, processing look great to my eye. Of course I wasn’t there, but this is presented as quite believable to what I would imagine the scene would be like if I were there. The color in the water/waves is another clue you’ve got this nailed in processing. I have no other nitpicks and no suggestions.
Jens, this is wonderful. I love intimate scenes like this. I actually prefer them to the wide open grand scenics. In this one, your composition is very strong, the light is striking, and the patterns in the cliff are so interesting. I think you’ve done an excellent job of processing. The colors are great, the whites on the water are perfect. I do think you could take a look at the levels tool and move the shadows side to get a touch darker shadows in the scene. Minor thing though.
After @Igor_Doncov posted AA’s black and white, I wanted to download your image to see what it might look like in B&W. (sorry, I just love B&W)…anyway, thought I’d post it here to give you an idea. Your color image is very strong and I wouldn’t change it (other than that shadow darkening). The B&W is simply a different interpretation of an outstanding image. Of course, you may not like it…no worries either way.
The color contrasts here are striking. I’m also very fond of the amazing light on the cliffs behind the waves. This is a truly exceptional piece of art.
Hi David,
thank you very much for your feedback.
I like the idea of the B&W conversion. I hardly ever create black-and-white images myself.
But when I see your result, I wonder why I don’t do it.
What a beautiful and powerful image Jens! I love the interplay of light and dark on that cliff as well as the unique colours of the rocky cliff itself. The water, with it’s colour and motion really compliments the image as well. Really nicely done!
The subtle variation in tone on the cliff wall, the contrast between the understated warmth of the wall and the coolness of the water, and the overall texture of the scene are all excellent, Jens.
This image has such evocative power, it is nothing short of marvellous.
For me, it immediately and vividly evokes the grand scene of the great, big, wild ocean beating on the walls of the green island for millions of years. Even though it is an intimate scene, it conveys the feel of the grand scale in the imagination and I love that!
The colour and lighting on the cliff face are absolutely gorgeous. My first impression yesterday was also to make the cliff face a tad more contrasty by darkening the darks. However, looking again today, the not-so-strong shadows reveal the texture of the rocks on the cliff face which are very reminiscent of cooling embers or lava, thus adding a wonderful and fascinating volcanic dimension to the image.
I also love the colour contrast, warm/cool and the crispness of the water. It is all extremely pleasing. Very nice work!
