# New season **URL:** \ **Category:** Image Critiques\ **Tags:** landscape\ **Created:** [May 26, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975 "2026-05-26T17:32:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ben\_van\_der\_Sande](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/ben_van_der_sande/32/5511_2.png) [@Ben\_van\_der\_Sande](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Ben_van_der_Sande)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/1 "2026-05-26T17:32:45Z")
![park26A.jpg](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/7/f/7fb764c2e8e871362a43e45d8dc77a9a34b8cc28.jpeg) > **Critique Style Requested:** _Standard_ > > The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image. ### Description Forest early light Awakening for the spring Winter has gone I am still here at NPN. No yosemite for me but my local park. And the few moments for me to go out and make images. ### Specific Feedback All comments are more than welcome ### Technical Details nikon z8, 24-120 at 120mm, F9, iso 160, 1/30 ---
**Author:** ![Lon\_Overacker](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/lon_overacker/32/10929_2.png) [@Lon\_Overacker](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Lon_Overacker)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 6:32pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/2 "2026-05-26T18:32:20Z")
Ben, Glad to see an image post from you! Hope you’re doing well. I’d say this is quite lovely and certainly has your signature! I’m loving the tunnel effect, pulling the eye deep in to the frame enjoying the woods and little canal along the way. The light is wonderful. So much to explore here. I don’t have any nits really, but perhaps some subjective technical suggestions. I think to enhance the depth and lead-in/tunnel effect, you could manually vignette a bit - mostly in the LLC and perhaps burning the left trunk. If anything to keep the eye in the frame. It’s all subjective of course! Maybe not Yosemite proper… but undoubtedly you create Yosemite-like images from your neck of the woods! Beautifully seen and captured. ---
**Author:** ![Igor\_Doncov](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/igor_doncov/32/579_2.png) [@Igor\_Doncov](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Igor_Doncov)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 8:05pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/3 "2026-05-26T20:05:44Z")
> [@Lon\_Overacker](#): > > I’d say this is quite lovely and certainly has your signature! I had a very different reaction. I could not believe that this was your image. Your visions of nature are always so romantic. Light streaming through branches and trees gracefully bent. But this is quite different. And I like it very much. I thought this would make a great b&w image. It just had so much detail that could be taken advantage of. So I made a quick conversion and decided I was right. It does look good in b&w. However, I’m not sure it’s better. It’s just different. There was one good lesson that came out of it. That stick in the gully that’s in the shade is an important element in this scene. I would raise the brights in it and also raise the bit of sunlight below it. I would also apply a shadow gradient to the lower left corner so that it’s darkest in the very corner itself but the white branch remains bright. ![park26A2](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/8/2/820ed37ab59dfebfaf25d370409ae570671d4cd7.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Peters](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/don_peters/32/87970_2.png) [@Don\_Peters](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Don_Peters)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 2:13am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/4 "2026-05-27T02:13:14Z")
It’s a very appealing shot, Ben. I’m glad you have such a park nearby. The bright patch of sky at the top tends to take me out of the image a little. I’d consider darkening it a bit if that’s consistent with your intent. ---
**Author:** ![Ed\_Lowe](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/e36b37/32.png) [@Ed\_Lowe](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Ed_Lowe)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 3:53pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/5 "2026-05-27T15:53:10Z")
Hey Ben, It is awesome to see a post from you again! I have missed viewing your lovely images as well as the accompanying haiku. The soft light in this scene is sublime and I love those delicate spring greens. I also like the way the gully draws me into the inviting woodland. My only suggestion would be a small crop of the top to get rid of that section of bright sky. Beautifully done. ---
**Author:** ![Diane\_Miller](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/diane_miller/32/27391_2.png) [@Diane\_Miller](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Diane_Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 4:10pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/new-season/50975/6 "2026-05-27T16:10:31Z")
Very beautiful, with such nice light and composition!! I like the idea of darkening that trunk on the left and the lighter area in the lower left corner, or even a slight crop from the left and bottom to reduce those areas. The small bright top area could be treated the same way – darken a bit or a slight crop. I love the B/W version that @Igor_Doncov presented, too. It brings out the lovely structure of the image – definitely a twofer here!