The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I added the second image and am curious if, from a compositional standpoint, you all prefer it or the first one. I wish the light in the second was a little more intense but alas, it isn’t. Maybe next time…
This afternoon I went out to photograph a waterfall near town. Upon arrival I discovered that the falls were bone dry, so I jumped to plan B. I headed down the highway to Wilson Arch, which I’ve photographed less than half a dozen times. It’s been several years since I even made an attempt. But, conditions looked promising so I gave it a shot…and I’m glad I did! The light was extraordinary, and it just kept getting better. This image was made about a half hour or so before sunset when the sun finally poked through a thin layer of clouds on the horizon. I had to wait for a young couple striking every damn pose in the book in the arch, and actually began to worry that I might lose the light before they ran out of material for their IG. Luckily, they vacated the arch and I had a couple of minutes to make this image before the next couple arrived in the arch.
Specific Feedback
I enjoy the rim light on the arch, and the warm light on the juniper tree and some of the foreground slickrock. At sunrise, the front of the arch would be lit and there would be more light on the sandstone slopes below the arch. I’ll go back at some point to shoot sunrise, but I’m curious if the light in this one is working for you.
Technical Details
Sony A7IV
Sigma 14-24mm lens at 14mm
ISO 100
f/14 @ 1/8s
Induro tripod & Acratech ballhead
Processed in LR Classic and Nik Color Efex Pro
Starbucks Chai tea (in the truck)
Bret, this is a really interesting location and I like your composition very much. My gut reaction is that I’m dying to see more detail in the juniper tree.
and the juniper tree would have better light on it at sunrise too, right? If this location is close enough for a return trip, I think it would be well worth it. I’d love to see what this composition would look like with the juniper as the star of the show and the arch as a secondary element.
Thank you, Ron. Yes, I think the juniper would have more light on it at sunrise. It’s only 25 minutes from my house and I do plan to head back for sunrise at some point. Appreciate your comment!
Amazing composition and wonderful light!! (Don’t we all love the New Normal of nonstop selfies!) I wonder if the branches in the UL corner could be minimized with some careful burning – the detail there is a bit jarring compared to the lovely tones elsewhere.
Excellent Brett! Love the light here and is amazing because the light striking the scene doesn’t take up all the space, but it certainly is the star of the show for me; even the bit of light striking at the bottom of the image, the rim of the arch. I don’t mind the juniper branches on the left being in shadow. I think this is all balanced nicely. Processing spot on as well.
The only wish, and I’m not sure what to suggest, would be my eye is slightly pulled to the patch of sky in the ULC. I doesn’t kill the image for me, but enough for me to comment. Darkening it doesn’t seem to be an option because then the sky in the arch woudn’t be consistent. To much to clone (and in this case probably not appropriate) and cropping isn’t option. ok, maybe a slight vigette? Not a biggie actually.
Well done - and kudos for hanging out and being patient. I’d be willing to bet you have an image or two with the selfie tourists? That would be curious…
Lon
@Diane_Miller Oh yes, the selfie crowd. Always a good time. I appreciate your comment on the image. The original file was quite dark in the upper left, and I recovered some of the detail as I felt the big black blob was a distraction. I might have taken it too far, though. Will have a look at it and experiment a bit.
@Lon_Overacker Appreciate your thoughtful comment. I uploaded another version of this scene shot a few minutes earlier, when the light hadn’t quite peeked fully out from under the clouds. I’m curious if you think you’d prefer the second composition over the first, if it had similar light. Also, yes…I did get a few photos with the tourists. I deleted them.
That would be my vote Bret. I love the light spilling into the original, but the way the composition opens up for the arch looks better in the second image for my tastes. The original shows the window well, but it cuts off the top of the arch a bit too much and loses the “feel.”
I’m a big fan of the second comp, Bret. The grain in the juniper really stands out in this version and I agree with @John_Williams comments about the arch. I also like the additional sky and clouds compared to the first comp. Maybe tone down the sky a touch in the UL corner? Beautiful!
Thanks, Ron. The more I study these two compositions, the more I too prefer the second one. I need to return and re-shoot it with better light on the tree and arch, or it’s going to drive me nuts.
I appreciate your comment on the image. The original file was quite dark in the upper left, and I recovered some of the detail as I felt the big black blob was a distraction. I might have taken it too far, though. Will have a look at it and experiment a bit.
