As with all waterfalls, the time of exposure is critical. Too long an exposure smooths everything out – this waterfall gave an impression of power and thunder, not peace and tranquillity. At the same time, I was trying to frame it to provide some contrast, which in this case was the placid little shrub.
All
All
Gaurav, this is a very unique looking waterfall image, and I congratulate you on having the creative vision to strive for a shutter speed to achieve this look. In my opinion this water looks much more dynamic than a traditional long exposure waterfall would. I also like your composition, you have a good ratio of water to land, and i like how you left dark shadow on the left and bottom to frame the falls.
My most significant suggestion for improvement is that the image is slightly underexposed. I brought this into Photoshop and added a levels adjustment layer, and there was a lot of empty space to the right of histogram, meaning you are not using the full tonal range of the image. I always do a histogram check on my “finished” images. I often find that i get so conservative on not blowing highlights, that i have too much space to the right of the histogram. I have done a rework of your image where i simply pulled the right triangle in levels to the left, but still avoiding clipping. This instantly made the image look better with more vitality in the whites. I then used TK Darks mask to burn the darker shadows to the left, for more contrast against the water. and i lightly dodged the land to the right for more detail. I think subtle dodging and burning like this can take this image up another notch, and really showcase the wonderful water that you have here.
This is great! One truly can see the water falling here with perfect texture and shutter speed. The columns of water are beautifully spaced and occupy a well balanced location within the frame. I just love that water!!!
The land component also provides good perspective and an anchor for resting the eye. Yet, (& this may be just me…) the plant about 2/3 of the way down is small and hard to resolve to my eye. Is it a living shrub, or a branch of something larger that fell in to this location? As a distinct element, it’s hard to reconcile for my eye. To that end, I really like how @Ed_McGuirk dodged the brighter textures of the land helping guide my eye throughout the land mass for more exploration, rather than hanging up a bit on the branch. Hope this helps! Thanks for sharing.
@Ed_McGuirk, I like your version much better. As @Jim_McGovern says, the dark spots were distracting from the already minor sprig. Thank you very much to both of you for your help and comments.
I love this, too. The slightly diagonal falling water adds so much dynamic to the image. I also like the little branch on the ledge. I can go either way with the editing but I have a slight preference to Ed’s processing.
Kudos for this one Gaurav. I believe this is one of the few conditions where the shutter speed selection comes closests to how the human eye views flowing water. At least for me, this is how I can sometimes follow the flow of dropping water and watch it fall, spread out and crash against the rocks, etc. Now, I’m a sucker for texture and soft flowing and even silky, ghosty water… but every thing has it’s place and this is captured just right!
Ed’s tweaks are subtle, but effective and on point. My main feedback is on the noise/softness. The water looks great in terms of texture, detail, but comes across as a little noisy. I really like the juxtaposition between the mossy rock and the falling water, but the mossy details are a little soft. You didn’t mention, but I imagine to get the shutter speed you wanted, zoomed in, probably had a fairly open aperture and higher iso? Just my guess.
Overall though, the impression and capture is fantastic.
Lon
You’ve captured the water beautifully. Perhaps it’s my monitor but I like the water in the original version as opposed to those bright whites. The right looks a bit ‘muddy’ to me. I added clarity to the image to create a contrast between the dreamy and reality. The orange thing catches the eye a bit. I would clone it out.
I love all the different images, and am a little chastened by how much better they are.
Don’t be chastened, this is the very point of NPN Critique, to see our images through the eyes of others, and to be open to new perspectives. You may not always agree with all the comments. But most of them force you to think harder about your image, which is a good thing.
@gaurav it is often helpful to post technical details (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focal length) with your image. Sometimes it helps to diagnose the cause of issues such as noise. Was your ISO too high, or was it post-processing that introduced noise, etc
Just a suggestion for future posts…
@Ed_McGuirk, agree, will add exif data going forward. And I enjoy the feedback and the conversation very much!
No reason to feel chastened, this is an awesome capture! Love, love, love the texture you retained in the water; this image would not have had nearly the impact if it was just a smooth sheet of water captured with the typical long exposure.
It’s hard to tell with the low resolution of what you uploaded but, if the image is a bit soft overall, embracing a painterly effect may be appropriate. I like what @Igor_Doncov did to add some detail and depth into the foreground but it does look quite crispy and noisy.
Lovely composition here, Guarav. Dettifoss (I think?) is soooo powerful, and I think you effectively isolated shapes that communicate that. Don’t worry about all of the suggestions for improvement. They are given in good faith, and in my experience, always help me improve.
ML
It’s Skogafoss, actually. I’m not discouraged by the other suggestions, of course, and welcome them all!
Wonderfully unique take on a waterfall. Yes, it’s a waterfall, but it’s more about the texture of the elements and lets me see the scene in a new way.
Mr. Shah. Congratulations on producing this grand photo. You show great potential. I look forward to seeing more of your art. Darkroom work (or whatever you call it these days) is meant to improve the original. That is why you liked them so much. You’ll find that much, if not most, of your best stuff is the result of polishing you did after the shoot…
