The photographer is looking for thoughtful feedback on the image as a whole, especially around the areas noted below.
Feedback Focus: Artistic / Expressive
About This Image
While walking out of work a few weeks ago, I saw some really neat storm clouds and a little rain around me. I had to make a decision: Go to the pool and workout or cross the street to the field of sunflowers. I decided to cross the street. When I did the shot at first, it was in color. But when I went to black and white, the light greens of the flowers when nicely white to give more contrast than the color did.
Feedback Requested
I really needed to burn down the clouds to get the mood, but I’m always worried about how much is too much. And if it’s crossing the line into a distraction. Any other ideas on how to help add to the downcast mood? Do you think more DOF would have helped? Thanks.
Technical Details
Camera: Canon EOS R
Focal length: 26mm
Shutter speed: 1/256s
Aperture: f/9.1
ISO: 1000
Sunflowers have great textures and a forlorn droop - and they DO really benefit from an atmospheric sky. There is oodles of atmosphere and I think you have really processed your image really well to suit your vision.
I love the image.
The dark Hedge of trees behind the sunflowers competes with the darkness of the skies - I wonder what it would look like dodged up a step or two in the tonal scale, with the skies slightly burned a bit more?
Patrick, the stormy skies fit very well with the downturned sunflowers. It’s almost like the sunflowers are hiding from the storm. The brightness of the sepals and stems looks good. I don’t think you want to dodge the trees at the back. Their darkness is needed to separate the sunflowers and the sky. I do wonder about pushing for some more contrast in the sky at the horizon on the left. It looks like there is cloud texture there.
Kind of a unique shot. Quite unusual in fact, but very appealing. B&W seems a smart move. Color might be too distracting. I like how the flowers seem to be cowering before the oncoming storm.
Who doesn’t love drooping flowers? Especially under an ominous dark sky.
One think that catches my eye is the high-contrast lines between the dark and the light clouds and the dark background vegetation and light clouds. I don’t think you took the dark clouds too far, but I was thinking that equalizing the tonalities in the background (veg and sky) would bring more emphasis to the sunflowers. I gave it a whirl using selective masks to lighten the vegetation and darken the lightest clouds to bring that area more in line tonally with the dark clouds. I then re-darkened the whole background and brought out a bit more contrast in the foreground.
This is so COOL !!! I think all three version work really nice. Great in B&W… My favorite is the third one. The clouds and FG flowers are really nice … The TONE !!!
How lucky are you to be able to walk across the street to this view!
I love how you’ve captured the flowers past their peak and perhaps it wont be long before they’re harvested. Most sunflower images have that happy yellow feel.
I know what you mean about going too far with the clouds. The heros are the sunflowers in this image although the clouds tell part of the “downcast mood” . I think you also have a very nice DOF.
You have some good suggesgtions above. I realise the sunflowers maybe on an incline, but feel there could be another version of this with the background trees levelled. I’ve also added a Linear Gradient from the bottom edge and one from the top edge.
I might also be very tempted to remove that one high sunflower with the tree hat.
It’s a wonderful image and there will be many versions!
Oh, wow everyone, thanks for all the great ideas. I think one of the solutions to things people like @Huw_Thomas, @Mark_Seaver@Glenys_Passier brought up about the background trees would have been to lower down just a bit more and get a little closer to the sunflowers. But working with what I have, I’m going to play with the different suggestions. And @Bonnie_Lampley , oh my, that version really stands out. I think you proved to me I didn’t need to worry about going too dark in the sky or making the sunflowers too light. They really pop in your version. There are flowers in there I didn’t notice before. Thanks @Michael_Lowe, @Gill_Vanderlip and @Igor_Doncov as well. Igor, your crop does make me wish I would have tried some verticals.
