The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
There was a lot of haze on the morning I took this. I had to wait quite a while for the haze to lift enough so that I got some detail in the mountains. But it was a very pleasant place to wait.
Specific Feedback
All comments will be appreciated.
Technical Details
ISO 100, 35mm, f/20, 1/5 sec.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
An enchanting view, but somehow the photo is … I don’t know … unengaging? I don’t know exactly how to put it. The light is pretty harsh and the subject is so perfectly centered and mirrored that it feels a bit remote. I don’t feel connected. Not probably what you wanted to hear considering the waiting and effort you put in. Not sure if this is something that you could work in monochrome, but a biggish crop and some intense black and white treatment could be interesting.
Don, the 50:50 split and the low contrast make this a nicely restful and calm. In the larger view the trees look soft…was this hand held? Part of me wonders if the softness matters, since the entire view is so gentle.
Thanks, Mark. I was using a tripod. The sharpness is about par for this lens, which isn’t my sharpest.
“Calm” is the right word here. It was utterly silent. My wife commented that it felt like we were in a church or a library and needed to keep our voices down.
Haze like this is becoming increasingly familiar – very thin smoke mixed with fog?? That is a prime mix for the thermal turbulence that gives soft images. The f/20 could also be causing some diffraction softening. I wonder if that much was needed to keep a good DOF?
No idea of your software but Dehaze in LR can help a lot with scenes like this – balanced with the other tonal sliders. I often add a bit more punch to flat scenes with some gradient work top and bottom.
Probably not. I was trying to increase the exposure time to make sure the water was smooth. In hindsight, I don’t think the small aperture accomplished much in that regard.
I used dehaze on some of the shots I took of this lake but not on this one. The hazy look of the mountains seemed right to me here.
