The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
The ship’s stern was a relatively quiet place and I had been pondering how to photograph the wake. I had taken a few photographs at various times, nothing of note, till Mother Nature helped. This photo is in the pilot channel sailing South from Melbourne into Bass strait, hence the other vessels further astern.
Specific Feedback
I would like feedback on the photo composition. I have difficulty in distinguishing between a good composition and a pleasurable memory of the moment.
Technical Details
Sunset and the wake of a turning point. Cropped, Small S curve applied, Brightness increased by nearly 1 stop, noise reduction applied. No saturation changes. Removed an orange streak, mid rhs. Either a light or a port hand mark, ditto rhs. Both near the horizon.
Canon 90D, 17mm, 8 sec at F/13, ISO 100
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Rob: I would have had no clue that this was the wake of a ship until you revealed it. The color of the water is a real misdirection but the overall color palette is marvelous. The ships in the distance are a nice scaling element. The pano crop also works well. Nicely seen, captured and presented.>=))>
I like it. The soft pastel colours are great. It’s the sort of shot best appreciated large me thinks. Maybe a small crop on the RHS to bring the wake into the centre of the image.
Thank for your comments, gentlemen. Re best appreciated large - I have it printed at 540mm on the long side. Re the RHS crop. I pondered this too. The problem in my mind was that the white area on the wake was not actually center - perhaps one engine was working harder than the other. The actual center was the rhs white edge where the white meets the purple. This does not say I cannot crop it to center. I put the center in the middle of the wake on the horizon.
Hi Rob,
This is quite nice. The pastel colors are lovely and I love the ephemeral mood created with the eight second exposure. This has an air of mystery to it that makes me want to investigate a little further. My first impression was that I was viewing a roadway that faded into the distance. I am usually not a big fan of centered compositions, but in this case IMHO I think a crop from right; to more or less center the white line; is the way to go. I would say you have both a good composition and a pleasureable memory. BTW, good call on making this a pano.
Had I not read your description I’d have no clue what I was looking at, but I don’t mean that in a negative sense. I love the mystery of it. The colors, while subtle, are still poppy enough. I see just a tinge of blue in some of the brightest highlights in the water and I think I might be tempted to bring that out just a wee bit more. I would definitely clone out the lights on the horizon. This is such a neat image, Rob. Love it!
Bret, I am not sure what you mean by “lights on the horizon” If it is the white dot, central, on the horizon, they are three following ships in the pilot channel.
Diane, I have posted the uncropped and unedited original so people can see the extra water - perhaps there are other crops I had not considered.
Rob, this is very dreamy. Removing the trailing ships would make it even more dreamy, but they do add a touch of suprise, which has it’s own benefit. I like the long lead-in of the full frame, but it does reduce the dreamy feeling quite a bit.
Creative Rob! At first glance I thought this was an ICM of a road running through a field of vegetation. I really like how the story snaps into focus once you realize what you are looking at.
Thanks for your submission. Like everyone else I had to read the caption to grasp what I was looking at – my initial thought was a long exposure driving along a road. I think these kinds of images often divide opinion (the marmite of photography along with IR) and some people will undoubtedly find it a little too ‘abstract’. Personally I do like a good natural abstract – particularly when its been achieved in camera with a single exposure and this one is suitably thought provoking – quite literally portraying a journey.
With regards processing I don’t think there’s much more you can do with it from a technical perspective. You could remove the boats to make it even more abstract, or leave them in to give the image some context – there’s arguments both ways. For that panoramic crop you could try taking a little off the sky to place the horizon dead centre, that might add to the abstract nature. Though for letterbox style crops like that you do need to view them on a large display.
I think the original you posted later in the comments also works well as a composition.
A creative image that’s very different, well done.
As almost everyone has noted, I too had absolutely no idea what this was an image of until I read your description. I never ever would have guessed that this is a ship sailing through a channel. This is a wonderful abstract image for sure. To me this looks like a wheat field with a road going through it with some distant bluffs. Your long exposure sure created something very unique. The colors work well together here unifying the image. As a side note, I very much like the Full frame version you posted here as well. What a super interesting image that a person can just get lost in trying to figure out what it is.
