The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
This is at the top of offersoykammen. it’s right near Leknes in Lofoten. We went there in late July, and I photographed this around 11:30pm.
The colors of the sunset were some of the most vibrant I have ever seen after a rain.
Specific Feedback
I’m struggling with color on this picture. I’m trying to convey the sharp contrast between the sunset glow and the rest of the photo. I masked the sunset using a linear gradient, and took the highlights down a bit, among other edits. I then inverted the mask to lighten the rest of the image.
Technical Details
Nikon Z6 w/ 24-70 f/4 + 6 Stop filter
shot at 24mm at f/16
30s shutter
100 ISO
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Hi Zach. I think you have the makings of a really nice photo here. What I see with the color is that the orange sun glow seems so separate and localized in the photo. At the top middle there is a linear line between the orange-black to the white-grey of the cloud. I’m not sure how to advise on how to clean the color separateness up or back it down from where you are. I might be able to give advice on how I would go forward with the color from the start if you had the original file posted here also.
Zach, it’s a dramatic landscape, with those rocky peninsulas jutting into the water. The sunset colors contrast well with the cool tones in the land. I see the hard line in the clouds at the top. I’d suggest using a longer transition and tilting that mask. I do think the blues and greens in the right half are oversaturated. Being able to see the ocean bottom is a fine extra bit.
This is a beautiful scene Zach; must have been something to see in person. As we’ve discussed, I think it’s a real quality landscape and I’m glad you posted it. Overall I think it’s fantastic, but @James_Bartek and @Mark_Seaver make some good points.
Seeing the raw is really helpful here. What’s interesting is that the odd transition at the top is also in the raw. I’m not sure what caused it, but in this day and age where we all look for obvious processing artifacts, it doesn’t hurt to soften it if you want other photographers to not notice it so much.
I really like that island, but am not sold on the land at the bottom right. For me, I’d sacrifice the island to remove that foreground corner. I also think there is a very slight counter-clockwise tilt.
IMHO, the two things that look a little unnatural are the high contrast and the saturation level of the shadows/cool colors. Here’s a version where I tried to play with softening both of those, striving for what looks more natural to my eye. I wasn’t there though, so obviously your mileage may vary.
The transition in the sky from colorful sunset to blue clouds is fantastic. From a compositional standpoint, I prefer John’s version as the foreground in the original version keeps pulling my eye away from the rest of this lovely scene. I think I like the colors in his version better, too. All in all, I’d be thrilled to have this image in my library.
