The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I must admit I did groan when I arrived at one of my favourite locations in Sutherland Scotland at the edge of Loch Hakel to ponder a clear twilight blue pre-dawn cloudless sky. I hope though I have managed to make some refreshing lemonade from the sour tasting lemons originally dished out. Staying resolutely positive I endeavoured to make the best of it. I took this just as the very first rays of sunlight struck the waterlined satelite rocky moraine turning them to burnished gold in an ocean of sapphire blue both above in the skyand below in the loch. I used a shutter speed and ISO to render the speed just fast enough to maintain the inegrity and definition of the bubbles but long enoug to soften the water surface ripples. I hope it works for you.
Specific Feedback
Please feel free to tell me your thoughts.
Technical Details
Fuji GFX50S, Fuji GF32-64mm zoom, 3 stop ND polariser at 30% strength to minimise uneven polarisation effect on blue sky. 0.6ND medium grad to balance sky and soft light on stones. f/20 at 0.4 seconds. ISO 400.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
I think you have done a very nice job catching the light at just the right time, producing an orange and blue color palette while hiding the loch bottom. The bubbles do provide added detail and interest and a certain dynamic that would otherwise be lacking if not present.
The warm side lighting and its low raking angle on the mountain is great. It also is wonderful on the rocks in the water. But I think what makes this sweet lemonade is the chosen shutter speed to soften the water. Had it had ripples I think it would have just been another snap shot. Good work.
I find the composition, the way the rocks are laid out, interesting and different. The light, of course, makes them beautiful. I wonder if a small gradient in the sky would make it more varied. But the main thing here is the foreground.
I love the soft light here, Ian. At first glance, I thought the loch was frozen over; nice illusion. One minor nit is that bit of vegetation on the bottom edge near the LRC grabs my eye. I really like the color of the water and its contrast with the early light.
Lemons? You mean the bluebird sky? I suppose if you were expecting and looking for drama in the sky, I can see how you were disappointed. But if there’s any time to make a bluebird sky work, it’s at the beginning - or end, of the day. So kudos for carrying on and creating this beautiful composition. Definitely works for me!
I’m like Preston in that I too thought the loch was frozen and the white around the rocks was ice - but apparently not. Regardless, frozen or not, this is still a very striking foreground. I also like and appreciate the 1/3 - 2/3’s composition giving emphasis to the rocks and water and letting the sky become a lovely balancing element. Oh, also agree with him on getting rid of that lone strand of grass or whatever intruding from the the bottom. minor.
Lovely blue tones and an intriguing foreground leading to that wonderful ridgeline.
I find bluebird skies fascinating. I have a strong bias against them in my photography, and yet I struggle to know why. When I am out in nature, I find them beautiful to experience. Yet, in my photography I find they just somehow seem less interesting.
This is very tasty lemonade, indeed. For me, the cloudless blue sky doesn’t detract at all. The stars are those golden stones and the silky, blue water. The composition is stellar. The way the stones are placed in the frame give this a wonderful rhythm.
Impressive decision making - you must have had only a very short time to make the photo before the light changed!
Beautiful. Love the contrasting warm and cool tones. I thought I was looking at ice.
I absolutely hate lemonade, but I’ll still use the term the way it’s commonly used. You’ve made some tasty lemonade.
