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
One thing that always interests is how my photography affects the people that view it… So, How does this photo make you feel? Beyond that, on a technical level, is there anything that you think could improve it?
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 is an image I took around 5 years ago (time passes!) during a hike on Mt. Olympus. It was first time I hiked this route, and came across this scene. I still remember the calming effect it had on me, as had my hot coffee and sandwich there. A true refuge … that I should visit again soon. Got to love nature.
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:
I grew up in the desert at the base of a mountain that was about 2,000 meters higher at its peak, and this brings back good memories of hiking along some of the streams that ran in the canyons off the mountain.
I like the square crop, and the vignette does a nice job of highlighting the trickle of the stream. I could see increasing the saturation some, but that’s a personal taste.
Thank you @John_Williams for your feedback. I can understand the comment on the saturation, maybe it is relevant to temp / some extra warmth too.
I am generally trying to keep the ambience, if I can call it like that, of an image close to how it felt at the time it was captured …This one was taken on a cloudy noon, so it definitely had a de-saturated and cool tone to it. Of course, this is my preference, and I can see how more saturation would transform it. Plus, there’s the factor of monitor calibration so what I’m seeing is not necessarily what you do, and we are probably talking small variations here.
… All that being said, your comment has definitely given me the creative push to revisit this image and play around with the color / temp sliders. If i find i have another version that works, I’ll post it here. Feel free to do the same if you feel like it. In any case thank you for putting the time to comment on my work
At it’s core, this is why I appreciate NPN and others commenting on my images.
I am heavily invested, and therefore biased, in my images. I was there and saw what was out of the frame, I saw the actual colors and saturation, I heard the sounds and smelled the smells… All of that sort of thing effects how I feel and interpret the image.
Photographers on NPN view my photo in isolation. Sometimes they can be influenced by what I wrote about the picture, but they are overall viewing it with fresh eyes and without any bias. That allows them to assess the picture by itself, and what it says to them without all the trappings that I have as the photographer.
In the end, I think it’s important that “you be you.” Knowing how others see your work can be very insightful, but in the end the final decisions are yours and how you want your final image to be. And, this is how it should be.
As a final note, your image as posted is in the ProPhoto RGB colorspace, and some browsers may not display that correctly. It may be safer to convert it to sRGB prior to posting.
With that said, here is an option with more saturation.
While I do like @John_Williams version I’m drawn more to the original, less saturated one. John’s is certainly not over the top; quite natural looking, actually. But, the subdued colors and darker presentation of the original makes me feel like I want to just sit in that spot next to the creek, listening to the water trickle, feeling at complete peace for a moment. Truly a lovely image.
Hello again @John_Williams , thank you for taking the time to create your version and share here. Looks really nice, and I think this is how the scene would maybe look like, later in the day, lit by a warmer light.
In the end, I think it’s important that “you be you.” Knowing how others see your work can be very insightful, but in the end the final decisions are yours and how you want your final image to be. And, this is how it should be.
I agree with what you said, and in trying to be me, I need to learn to be me… And getting feedback from people here, who know what they are talking about, is an extremely valuable tool towards that path Kudos to NPN, these are really meaningful discussions which I always appreciate.
(..) makes me feel like I want to just sit in that spot next to the creek, listening to the water trickle, feeling at complete peace for a moment.
Hello @Bret_Edge .. thank you for your feedback, and for letting me know how this images feels to you … always thrilled to evoke feelings with my images
John’s is certainly not over the top; quite natural looking, actually
Hi Nikos,
This image has a subtle quiet beauty to it that I find very inviting. I can see why you were drawn to it. The viewer has to open the large version to really appreciate all the wonderful details and textures in the scene. Your low POV works perfectly as it emphasizes the reflection in the water as well as the details lying just under the surface. My only suggestion would be to remove or darken the light colored object sitting on top of the rock on the right side. Glad to see you posting again and I hope to see your comments on other photographer’s work as well..
My immediate response is; I want to sit there, dangle my toes in the cool water and drink the moment.
I quite like subdued landscapes and find myself drawn to quiet places that don’t scream. I like the image as posted, but could see another version like the one @John_Williams has posted.
There’s a couple of little things I might clone over that look a little out of place. A lighter object on the RHS and something that looks like a grey heron? on the left.
Hi @Ed_Lowe@Glenys_Passier .. Looking closer I guess that the edges of the composition do have some distractions that I did not notice until now so thank you !
Ed, to be honest I’m kind of surprised to see that my absence was noticed … Thank you, glad to be back!
