Salmon Migration

[Dennis_Plank]

Critique Style Requested: Standard

The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.

Description

My wife and I spent a few days on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula last week and at the advice of a fellow photographer visited a river with a cascade that the salmon were having trouble negotiating due to the water still being low from the dry summer (we had rain and there was more coming when we left so I think the problem is or will shortly be gone).

Specific Feedback

I was surprised at how small a falls presented a challenge on a small river without a large amount of water. I didn’t crop this because I wanted to keep a reasonable sense of scale between the fish and the falls. Does the scale work?

Technical Details

Sony A1, FE 200-600 @ 531 mm, tripod with ball head, f/9, 1/1000, iso 3200, manual exposure. For these shots I prefocused on the falls and shot as soon as I glimpsed a fish. Processed in LR & PS CC. Taken on October 11th at 9:34 AM.

[Egídio (Egídio Leitão)]

Dennis, the one feature that really grabbed my eyes was the 3D impression of the salmon jumping out of my screen. I attribute that to the angle you made the shot. I like the soft green in the water, too.

@Dennis_Plank

Does the scale work?

I cannot honestly say that I can ascertain the fall size. Surely, the salmon is a good size indicator as compared to the rocks in the fall. If you had not said it was a small fall, I could not have inferred that from the photo. Regardless of my perception, though, the mere fact that the salmon is jumping off the screen makes this a great photo.

[JRajput]

Love the ‘flying fish’ here, very nicely executed !
You really have good reflexes to be able to capture this action !

[Cay-Uwe_Kulzer]

I like the action and the framing and scaling works for me. Anyhow I find it a bit unfortunate that the one does not have eye contact to the fish, since it is facing away from the viewer.