The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
This is on the road to Oye, Norway which is where we stayed for the first three nights of our time there. The road goes through one of the narrowest valleys in the country and one of the few of those that is accessible by car. It’s an incredible landscape that features a few setra on both sides of the road. While most have just gone to ruin, the ones here are now historical landmarks and are actively preserved as you can see. Setra is (I believe) the name for these little huts that were used by young women as shelters while they herded and cared for the cattle that grazed on the mountain slopes. They would tend the cows and milk them, bringing that down to the roadside for sale. Even though it was clearly a summer job, it must have been a tough existence at times for these equally tough women. I believe they still did this into the 20th century since there are some photos around that show the women doing their work near roads that look modern.
Because the valley is so narrow and the mountains so steep, direct sun doesn’t hit evenly down here much and so I was happy to find the lower parts still in full shade which made things easier. I shot straight across the road from the side of a couple more setra and I really like how the huts and the landscape merge. You can see the ruins of some other buildings with the standing ones, and some in the foreground.
Specific Feedback
I can’t decide which is a stronger image or if I should tweak one more so that it doesn’t resemble the other quite as much. I also have a few more zoomed in and I shot from that green path over there as well. Feedback about processing is also welcome.
Technical Details
Handheld w/polarizer I think.
Lightroom for all processing including a lot of work with masks & color panel to improve tonalities for more depth and contour. This is a slight crop with a few distractions removed. Ran a denoise AI action and added a bit of sharpness & texture.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
I do like both images, Kris, but I much prefer the first because of the line of the road winding through the image. If you had a little more canvas on the right so the road didn’t quite touch the edge it might be even better. All that moss is just awesome. I hope your lodgings were slightly more modern, though I doubt you could ask for a neater setting than this.
Very interesting! And wonderful that some are being preserved. I love old buildings and usually go for closeups, but here the road is such a strong element that I prefer the first one. I love the way it curves back around the huts.
Sure doesn’t look like cow country. I can imagine it was a very hard life and makes me grateful for the possibilities today.
Thanks @Diane_Miller. @Dennis_Plank & @Ronald_Murphy - I had a feeling it would be a divided opinion on these and yeah, I wish I hadn’t cut off the edge of the path, but alas, I didn’t.
The road makes a really nice leading line in this one and there are still hints of it curving around behind the huts. I like all of these. I think you could change the mood with a little judicious luminosity and color adjustment to something bright and cheerful.
Of the first two, I prefer the first for the reasons stated. But your additional shot I find to be an even stronger composition (with the road and the brown BG); plus we get to see the buildings quite close. What beautiful countryside and I’m sure you’ll see some great plants and creatures!
Thanks @Dennis_Plank & @Mike_Friel - the last photo was one of the first I took at this location - I think together they tell a more complete story. Here is the view from far above -
The sun was just coming up and the light tough, but you can see the buildings in the lower part just to the left of center (the sod roofs make them hard to spot). There are two more on the other side of the road up the hill and near the car which is where the first two photos were taken from. It’s such a grand landscape that despite the difficult light, I had to get at least one shot.
