Critique Style Requested: Initial Reaction
Please share your immediate response to the image before reading the photographer’s intent (obscured text below) or other comments. The photographer seeks a genuinely unbiased first impression.
Questions to guide your feedback
Composition is dominant in my image making process, having a balance and strong graphical elements are important image making elements for me. A sense of natural beauty and wilderness are also important factors to complete the image. Does the image achieve achieve this?
Other Information
Please leave your feedback before viewing the blurred information below, once you have replied, click to reveal the text and see if your assessment aligns with the photographer. Remember, this if for their benefit to learn what your unbiased reaction is.
Image Description
This image is part of a series that is in development at the moment, with a focus on a particular mountain/alpine environment. The series will be a ‘journey through the seasons’. I have been photographing there on occasion over the last couple of years and I am (slowly) building the portfolio of images. Each image should stand alone in its own right, I do not want to use one ‘successful’ image to prop up weaker images. That is why I am here, to ensure I am on the right path, or so I can steer onto it! Thank you for your time…
Technical Details
High res scan of 4x5 transparency
ISO 100
Incident meter reading
90mm f8 at f22
Back tilt applied to camera
1/2 sec exposure
Specific Feedback
Is the image conceptually and emotionally successful? Does it convey a sense of beauty in the wilderness? For me the scene gave me a sense of vast slow moving geological time, a cold past and the existence of such a scene that stretches for thousands of years before us & thousands of years behind us, unmoved and unaffected by our presence. I feel privileged to explore places that inspire this wonder and mystery, did I bring some wonder and mystery home with me?
Technically is the composition balanced, does the sky distract and should I have cropped more of it out? Does the colour balance work for this scene, alongside the graphical elements?
Charles,
There most certainly is a sense of wildness, even remoteness, desolation and simply rugged wilderness. I do think you’ve achieved compositional balance and for sure the presence of the foregroud rock create an excellent graphical foreground element.
Beyond the very strong foregound (love the lichen btw), I’m not quite sure if it’s foggy, hazy, smokey or what. Not that it matters because the misty/hazy background helps create mood and atmosphere. I’m torn though if the blank, bright gray sky adds to the scene. We just don’t know what’s causing the haziness, so that leaves me trying to figure out if I like the background or not.
Of course the trouble is, I wasn’t there. I can imagine that’s a cold, coastal fog and I can feel the chill in the air… but that may not have been the experience.
I really prefer 4x5 format in the vertical; it just seems compositionally comfortable. But I’m wondering about the sky and perhaps cropping some of it(like half?) But that really changes the ratio in a negative way - at least for me, Unless you’re willing to cut in to either or both sides to retain the 4x5 ratio… I think cropping some of the sky, and retaining the ratio actually increases the prominence of the foreground elements.
Not sure about the sky, but otherwise this certainly captures a rugged wilderness. Looking forward to seeing more from your ongoing project.
Lon
Speaking of sides, the only realy nitpick I have is the corner of the rock just breaching the left edge. I would like to either see some canvas added, OR just go ahead and crop in to that corner - so the viewer knows it was on purpose.
Thanks Lon, I appreciate your thoughts and I agree that the vertical aspect is what I tend to lean towards for most of my shots for the very reason you give. I agree that the rock touching the border of the frame is a bit off-putting and I do have a little room on the transparency to shift the frame across a little. I don’t think that will fix my sky issue though as
I think the sky is too much. If I crop it then there will be a fairly dramatic change to the composition a re-shoot is in order! As I do go there with some regularity, I think I could grab a frame if the conditions are right. It is not uncommon for the mist/low cloud in that alpine region so the chances are pretty good for having similar conditions at some point. I prefer not to shoot multiple shots of one scene, but I think it could be a worthwhile exercise.
Cheers Lon!
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