Here’s a recent shot from the Oregon Coast, at a beach called Smelt Sands near Yachats. I was there with the family and my oldest son wanted to go shooting and work on water motion. I spent more time focused on him, but managed to take a few frames for myself. Not one of my best from this area, but I liked it enough to share.
Specific Feedback Requested
I’m open to all feedback. Curious about general reactions to the image.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Fujifilm GFX50s, GF32-64mm
f/13
1.4 sec
Beautiful shot John, I really like the tones and textures in the water. I do feel the composition does feel a little off balanced. IMHO it feels more balanced to put the bright spot in the middle of the image in these types of shots unless it’s balanced by something opposite in the foreground.
Hi Blake, thanks for the kind words and feedback! I agree its not as balanced as it could be. I was limited by the rocks and trying to get at least a little bit of balance in the foreground. Some could say that a bit off balance could add some tension to the shot, to go along with tension in the water. Not sure I can subscribe to that though. Not an ideal location or conditions, but it worked good for teaching my son some stuff.
I appreciate you taking the time to give feedback!
Glad it was a good session even if it didn’t produce the your best work. Another thing that always gets me with scenes like this is how the rocks in the midground almost intersect with the level of the far horizon. In the field I’ve been able to notice this sometimes and if I can’t get them separated, I give up. When I don’t notice it then, I always notice it in processing and give myself a dope slap. Maybe I’m the only one it bugs, but it is one of my peeves in my own images.
But the color and the movement here are really nice. Speaks to constant change with the ocean which is basically changeless for us as humans.
This is a beautiful calming scene and I really like the soft colour and the wonderful movement in the water. It’s a matter of taste but if this image were mine, I would be inclined to increase the luminosity of the whites in the water a little bit to make them stand out more. I also agree with Kristen about that rock that is merging with the horizon line.
Nice one, John. I’ll have to check Smelt Sands out next time I’m down there. This one works for me because of the soft light…I see what @Tom_Nevesely suggests about raising the whites some to increase the sense of depth. But I wonder if it would also take away from the soft feel. Great image.
Thank you Kristen. I agree with you about the rock intersecting the horizon line. I prefer that this doesn’t happen, strongly prefer. For me I’ll also accept it to a certain degree. In this image, not for my portfolio so I am OK I guess with that infraction. Normally, like you, it bugs the heck out of me.
Thanks Tom. I’ll give that suggestion a look. I don’t exactly remember my thought processes while processing, but I think I wanted to keep the water a bit in balance with the sky, from a luminosity perspective. I did do some dodge on the water to pop a few of the flows, but left a lot of it un-touched. Great feedback, thanks!
John, love how you captured the water motion in this image, sky a bonus.
I will be going to that part of Oregon coast including Yachats end of may. Looking forward to the exploration, never been there.
Hey Mario. Thanks for the kind words. That’s great you’re going there. My fav part of the coast! I’ll be there in the middle of May running a workshop. What dates you going to be there? If you need any information, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Wonderful mood and I am enjoying the wave action you captured, John. The soft pastels in the sky work beautifully and lend a nice softness to this scene. My only suggestion would be to bring up the waves a little bit as they look a little dark; at least to me. I hope you don’t mind, but here is a rework with what I was thinking. It sounds as though you and your son had some quality time which is always a great thing.
Hi Ed. Thank you so much for your thoughtful comments. And, effort to enhance the image some. I think that looks great! Between you and the other commenters, I think the vote is unanimous that the water needs to be lighter. I’ll go back and work on the original file and see what I can do.
That’s a great question Igor…is that bright spot relevant to the image. I’m torn on it. On one hand it signifies the sun and the sunset and setting sun, etc…on the other hand, it is a highlight that does draw attention away from the main part of the image, so partly distracting. I don’t know the final answer. I really appreciate you raising that question. that’s a good one.
