Funny story this. I used a couple of apps that told me that I was going to experience a majestic sunset this evening. Around 4pm the sky did not lie. I could see a lot of high clouds and excitement got the better of me. I drove down to the upper falls within the state park and waited. The sunset was supposed to be around 7.00pm.
By 6.30pm nearly every single cloud in the sky VANISHED! Not a single one. Dismayed, I kept waiting just wondering what to do next. Soon after the sunset a dark cloud started passing by the top of the waterfalls. At the same time, the horizon filled up with a pinkish hue.
While the grand sunset I was promised did not materialize I was very happy with this visual scene.
What technical feedback would you like if any?
Does the small cloud above the main cloud add to or distract the overall mood?
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
Any other feedback is welcome
Pertinent technical details or techniques: Taken on a Nikon D850 20mm Prime at 4.0 seconds.
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
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The color of the sky is indeed very beautiful. I’m not sure about the format of this image. The lower half wants a vertical or square and the upper half a horizontal. You’ve got horizontal layers up high and the lower half has strong vertical lines. So, I think the composition could be stronger if the design was more consistent. Perhaps if the cloud didn’t go from edge to edge.
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Honestly, Amith, I think this is a case where you got trapped in your own expectations. You didn’t get a great sunset. Sometimes the best laid plans and all that. What I think I would have liked would have been if, despite your expectations, you’d shifted your camera downward. As it is, fully half the frame is devoted to the sky. And I don’t think that sky warrants it - it’s just not that interesting especially compared to what is going on below. The gorge, with the light on the water and the green still visible in the trees is awesome. Sometimes, we have to adapt when the picture we planned and hoped for just doesn’t show up. And I think that was the case here.
I’m going to add a PS: I might suggest a crop to just below the cloud. The purple in the sky and the greens in the trees are beautiful together but by cropping out the cloud my eye follows the leading line of the river without leaving the frame.
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I agree with the comment from Kerry about the sky. Too me this appears to be two separate photos. One for the sky and one for the foreground. The sky is pretty but but not that interesting. I love the lower color of the sky below the cloud and would include that in a square crop. The foreground is more interesting and there is too much negative space in the sky to include all of it in my opinion.
Sometimes we anticipate and visualize the shot we want before we get it and even if it’s not what we were expecting we include everything because that’s what we previsualized. It happens to me all the time.
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Thank you @Igor_Doncov @Kerry_Gordon @David_Haynes. I am able to clearly relate to your feedback as during post-processing whenever I used to zoom in to the foreground, overall the image felt better.
I guess I was in denial that the final image needs to have the full sky based on my original vision.