The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Glen Strathfarrar, Highland, Scotland.
I confess I’m rather pleased with this. On the face of it I got a totally typical torrential autumnal Scottish soaking. Yet the light was phenomenal, even if that light didn’t last for much longer that the shutter speed I chose to capture it with. Backlit rain and Scots Pine intermingled with golden Birch on a shadowed hillside. 1/60 second turned the rain into glittering hair like strands. I reckon I could feel those hair like strands standing bolt upright on the back of my neck, I was that thrilled.
Specific Feedback
I suspect this is probably a chalk or cheese image. Interested to hear your views.
Technical Details
Fuji GFX50S, Fuji GF100-200 zoom, circular polariser to tune the veiling effect of the rain to my personal taste, f/11 , 1/60 sec, ISO 160.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Vision and Purpose:
Conceptual:
Emotional Impact and Mood:
Composition:
Balance and Visual Weight:
Depth and Dimension:
Color:
Lighting:
Processing:
Technical:
Very nice, Ian. The backlight is wonderful and sets off the trees perfectly while the heavy rain softens the entire background. The composition and color are both excellent.
You should be. This is a wonderful picture of a special moment. I’ve long wanted to capture rain and wind as a frozen image. The task, as I see it, is to capture movement, or to show movement that isn’t really in the image itself (because it’s frozen in time). I think the streaking of water and that its diagonal slant suggests movement very well. On top of that you can almost feel the wetness of the moment. And of course the smell of rain. So I think this is a very evocative capture of a very special time.
The bush at the very bottom may be a bit bright from a composition point of view but I wouldn’t worry about it as much as some might. It all depends on your value system.
I do have one qualm. My eye is drawn to the bright tones and colors in the foreground which, except for the tree, is the least interesting part of the image. I’d consider reducing the saturation in that area or even cropping out some of the foreground. That’s just my reaction and maybe as Igor says it’s a matter of taste.
No words, Ian. But, since this is a critique forum I suppose I should say something. I absolutely freakin’ love this! Extremely unique. Others have mentioned the bright bush at the bottom and it does draw my attention, but not in a bad way. It’s like it catches my eye, and then I start to explore the image, and then my eye darts back to it and then goes back to exploring the image. I’ve stared at the image for a while and at no point did I find myself getting stuck on the busy. I would love to see a very large print of this one. Bravo!
Very cool, Ian. To me the rain coming down at that angle and so consistently across the scene creates an interesting texture. It’s almost like a tapestry, which is so indoor and outdoor all at once. I can imagine a s tiny crop off the bottom, perhaps, as the foreground doesn’t add much, but it does help establish the context.
Beautiful. I have been looking at this and knowing that today we were going to get a deep soaking heavy rain and hoped for some incredible backlighting like that in this photo but of course it did not happen, so I will just revel in yours.
You’ve captured a special moment in time. I’ve always been fascinated by events like this, where it’s sideways raining and the sun illuminating the landscape.
Ian, this shows how hard the rain is falling very well. The relatively brighter slope, tree and vegetation set off the distance nicely. I also like the semi-abstract feeling that all the rain creates as it partially obscures the distant slopes. Definitely very pleasing.
I don’t think I’ve seen such a photo of rain that captures it quite like you have. It is very painterly and impressionistic and the muted color palette suits the subject. I had to look up “chalk and cheese”, meaning, I think, that one either likes the image or not. I do; and I also like cheese.
Ian, This is sensational. I could just look at this image for hours. Having torrential rain and bright sunlight in the same scene is just pure magic.
This is so painterly like this is a painting on rough canvas. That lone tree is catching some great backlight and showing its form off really well. I have to say that I’m not that bothered by the bright foreground yellows. It’s Fall and the colors are surely popping and I love the separation between the foreground and the background and I feel like if you mute the colors in the foreground you will lose that separation. You should be very proud of this one, Ian. Just amazing!!!
Thank you very much everybody I have been in the middle of Torridon, a remote part of Scotland with very little in the way of internet communication. Many thanks for the Editors pick and all the kind words. Looks like it’s mostly Cheese not Chalk.
Wonderful. I almost get soaked looking at it. There must have been a small hole in the clouds to allow the sun to spotlight this scene. This would be a very nice image without rain, with the light, the colours, the pine tree and the slope. But the rain transforms it into something extraordinary.
I hope that you had good rain gear and that your camera is still working
Thank you Han. It was quite something to watch. Fortunately I brought a big umbrella with me as it had done something similar most of the morning. Glad I did. It only lasted about a minute or so then it was sunshine and the trees literally glittered like diamonds. I did mull the idea of including a glittery version too, but this one with falling rain did more for me than I thought was even possible.
Wonderful. I almost get soaked looking at it. There must have been a small hole in the clouds to allow the sun to spotlight this scene. This would be a very nice image without rain, with the light, the colours, the pine tree and the slope. But the rain transforms it into something extraordinary.
I hope that you had good rain gear and that your camera is still working
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