The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Backlighting is my catnip - it either delights and I have a wonderful little giddy moment, or it overwhelms me and I can’t get off the floor (so to speak). I think I hit it right with this one both in the field and in processing. I was in the kayak with two bodies and lenses and shot several frames from different perspectives, but this one spoke the loudest in the group. It was done from a fair distance off with the long lens and the compression helps focus the eye I think. The separation the dark and light gives the isolation I felt when I first saw that big boulder. Paddling right up to it doesn’t have the same vibe at all.
Specific Feedback
Well it was a bit of a struggle getting the tonalities right - our pupils dilate and contract so constantly, that sometimes its hard to realize just how deep shade can be and I will often just concentrate my focus on the light bits and study the shadows in my peripheral vision. That’s what I was going for with the edit - that and keeping the blue in the shadows to a reasonable level. Thoughts? Suggestions? Impressions?
Technical Details
Handheld in the kayak with minimal winds thankfully. Might have had a CPL on, but I can’t remember.
Lr for all work including a bit of a crop, enhance for NR and a bit of sharpening, and a lot of work with different masks to balance color and dynamic range. The dehaze slider helped quite a bit with this. Also added some vibrance & texture. Adjusted wb to suit and made a few distractions disappear.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
I really like how you managed the tones and colors. I like that you kept the brilliance of the leaf colors as the focal point, with the rock to anchor it all. The blue in the shadows invites a sense of mystery, and not overdone at all, IMHO. And getting this from a kayak? yeah. Kudos Kristen
Kris, the big rock and the trees above it stand out well here. Because of how they dominate the scene, I could see this as a vertical or cropped to 4x5 leaving off the scattered bright bits on the left. The reflections in the water add to a peaceful view.
Thanks @Connie_McClaran & @Mark_Seaver - a couple of new shots in the OP for consideration. I kind of dig the vertical so thanks for that Mark.
I shoot from a kayak a lot, Connie. I’ve been doing it since 2013 and it’s an absolute joy to be on the water. My favorite thing to do and I’m sad the season is closing so fast. With practice, the right boat and camera settings and of course picking a non-windy day, you can get really great photos in many genres from wildlife to landscape. The only one that’s really hard is macro from a boat.
Yes! Photos from a kayak! We just returned from sea kayaking adventures off the coast of British Columbia and Vancouver Island. It was our first time, although we’ve run whitewater rivers for decades (VERY hard to photograph from a whitewater cataraft, let alone kayak ;<), and we are crazy about it. What camera settings do you find typically work? And where do you kayak? And what are your tricks for protecting your camera? Hope you don’t mind me picking your brain on the subject…
No problem at all. I’ve never done big water kayaking at all so I’m in awe of your expertise! Neither have I done whitewater anything although I think the world championships are still held less than an hour from my house. Happy to share & hope it doesn’t bore everyone else -
I live in Northern Wisconsin which is kind of a more accessible version of the Boundary Waters in Northern Minnesota. We have about 15,000 lakes in the state and the majority are up this way. Although most of them are developed, there are some that aren’t or lightly so. I’m a quiet water paddler and so keep to that. My favorite places are corners and crannies of flowages which is what we call a man-made reservoir and slow-moving rivers. It’s the “what’s around the next bend” aspect of the experience I love so much. 99% of the time I’m by myself and it’s heaven.
In terms of keeping things dry, I have a duffel drybag with a camera insert made by Lowe Pro, and I keep both cameras in that, but loaded lens down with the top open so that I can get to them quickly. Since it’s calm water, getting them wet isn’t a problem and both are weather resistant so can get splashed without me worrying. If the wind kicks up and I have to paddle hard, I close it completely.
I use two custom modes for kayak photography - Aperture Priority with a shutter speed limit to about 1/50th of a second and auto ISO, and Shutter Priority with Animal Detection set for focus. With two bodies, I can be ready for landscapes or critters pretty quickly. With the image stabilization in both my Lumix G9s, it’s not often I miss a shot because of that and keeping in mind the conditions and shutter speeds.
I have a couple of blog posts about kayak photography (again, still water stuff) that might help -
Goodness Kristen! I feel like I have found a gold mine in your writings and photos! I have y our website open in my browser, and plan to keep it that way until I have perused all of its jewels. Thank you for responding to me with such helpful content.
