The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Again a smartphone picture, because the walk with a friend was not intended as a shoot. Still, the heron caught my eye amid the reflexion of the middle of the day sun reflexions on the mud. This is an arm of the Scheld river in Belgium and is subjected to tides. At low tide, vast expanses of mud are laid bare. Only herons can walk there…
Specific Feedback
This is a very minimal picture. Is it too heavy to bear on the heron’s shoulders? Or is it fun to look for the bird among all the rest there is to see? Don’t hesitate to tell me your unsweetened opinion.
Technical Details
HUAWEI LYA-L29
ƒ/2,4
1/2000
7,48 mm
50 ISO
2024 July 11 @ 14h25
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Nice environmental image Xavier. Yes, I had to hunt to see the heron but I think that’s fine in an image like this. We see the vastness of the mud flats that make up the heron’s habitat. Nice sky too.
I was wondering what lowering highlights would do for the image as the glare is pretty strong from the midday sun. I took a very quick stab at it just lowering highlights in Photoshop. See below:
Thank you for this evident improvement. I am often surprised how simple it is to improve a picture and yet how I did not see it myself. Probably the improved picture does not completely match my perception of the scene when I took the original photograph. So, really thank you very much.
This is pretty cool, Xavier. I really like the expanse of mudflats with the tiny heron to give perspective. The highlights don’t bother me and I don’t Think I’d mess with them personally. I would be tempted to crop up from the bottom to eliminate the scraggly weeds as they don’t seem to add much to the feel of the image. It does put the heron quite low in the frame when I do that, but I think it works that way as well.
Hi Xavier
I hope you don’t think ganging up on you, like Dennis I think cleaning up the lower edge o f the frame may be interesting . What do you think?
The open view of the mud flats is very nice.
Peter
Unfortunately, I am not only a hobby nature photographer, and thus I do not come here every day…
Thank you all for your practical suggestions and for working them out. The picture indeed is much nicer now.
