I have to say that this image is probably in my favorite top ten images that I have ever captured. It was after sunset and the sky was heavy with these gorgeous blue toned clouds that bathed the scene before me in these wonderful cool hues. The beach was devoid of people so I had it all to myself to enjoy and savor the peace and solitude. It was so quiet that I could listen to the water as it lapped the sandy beach; very soothing sounds if I do say so.
Specific Feedback and Self-Critique
All C&C is welcome and always appreciated. I hope you can feel the peaceful vibe of this image.
Technical Details
Nikon D700, Nikon 80-200 @ 80mm, f 16 @ 13 sec, ISO 400, cable release and tripod.
Hi Ed,
wow, that looks beautiful. I love the simplicity and the calm mood. Usually I don’t like the water blurred like that because of the long exposure. But this seems to be an exception. It simplifies the image even more.
The color contrast is great between the cool blues and the warm light of the lighthouse with a nice subtle aperture star.
I’m not sure about the color of the lower part of the image. The top part is nice and blue. But the bottom part is somehow cyan. Maybe it was deliberate.
In my opinion, however, the image would beneifit from matching the lower part to the upper part in terms of color (that would add to the simplicity even more).
I just added a selective color adjustment layer in PS:
Then I added a black layer mask and painted with a white brush over the lower part of the image.
Again, a great shot even without any further adjustments.
Sometimes it’s worth staying a little after the sun goes down. Well done!
Ed, the peace glows from this scene like the lighthouse light. That light is a special addition. You’ve got good details along the surf and enough in the clouds to keep all the blue interesting. Easy to see why this is an all time favorite.
Wow!! That is simply gorgeous, and that “sunstar” is, well, stunning! Something did sort of pull my attention to the bottom of the frame and @Jens_Ober may have nailed it. Or maybe it would be interesting to see a very subtle darker gradient at the bottom? But I hate to even suggest anything, as this is just SO cool!!
Many thanks everyone @Jens_Ober, @Mark_Seaver and @Diane_Miller for your thoughts on this image; always appreciated. It was a fantastic evening for sure.
@Jens_Ober : I like the subtle change on the lower half of the image; I will give that a try.
Congrats on the EP Ed. This has always been a favorite of mine also. Brilliant in it’s simplicity. Not a criticism but the web compression is not doing the image any favors. I see a bunch of funky compression artifacts especially in the sky and sand.
