Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.
Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality.
Specific Feedback and Self-Critique
I saw this dead tree on the water line and knew it would be a good backdrop for a photo of the mallard ducks who were swimming on the pond. Patience paid off, and this beauty swam right in front of the tree. I know I can clean up the water more, but first I would like feedback on the photo.
I can see why this image was worth waiting for, the lighting is really very nice!
And the colors and details are great, especially with the iridescence on it’s head.
I did an edit to express what I felt might make it even better, but it’s just my personal thoughts for improvement. No changes, just a few things to bring more emphasis to the mallard
I dimmed the limbs of the tree at the top and dimmed the reflections even more to give the viewer a little more of an idea that the reflections are in fact, reflections.
I also dimmed the reflection of the mallard as well to better emphasize the sense of water, the water is certainly there and implied as well but a darker reflection in my opinion helps in that regard.
Of course you can ignore this idea completely or do something in between if you like, it is your image and what a fine image it is
I love the lighting and the feel of this image, it almost glows (in a nice, positive way)!
Nice work!
Oh yeah, the edit was done kind of quick so I didn’t really pay too much attention to tones, it was just to convey the general idea.
Very nice image, Jennifer. I really like the reflections you achieved of both the mallard and the wood which is framing him. I like the overall processing including the crop, but the whites in the mallard seem a bit bright to me. I see no details in the feathers. His head looks great. Overall, a fine photo.
Beautiful Photo, Jennifer. The mallard came out very well with great details and color. I agree with what Terry is saying about the whites. I love the environment of the photo image as well.
Jennifer, welcome back. And what a return too! This is a sensational image, more so since you described how you waited for the right moment. Awesome.
I think the others have some good advice for the image. Normally, reflections are about 1 stop darker than the subject, so darkening the water makes it more realistic.
I think you captured the moment perfectly. This is one of those images that would work nicely as a framed print. Congratulations.
Great image. The tree and reflection nicely frame the duck. It looks as if there’s a cave next to him. Good job on seeing the possibilities and waiting for the right moment. Agree with darkening the reflection as it helps place more emphasis on the duck itself.
The background is what drew me to the image. Well spotted!
I suppose one could quibble about the placement of the duck in relation to the lighter background tones, but frankly, I like the sort of random placement of subject and background in relation to each other. It gives the scene an even greater abstract quality that draws our attention more effectively.
