Waiting for Night (+revised)

Image Critiques
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1

Revised Version

Revision 1 (latest)

Revision 1 - TN2026-_MG_8177-Edit- NPN V2.jpg
Revision 1 - TN2026-_MG_8177-Edit- NPN V2.jpg1500×2102 538 KB

What changed: I lightened the foreground in this image.

Added after receiving feedback from the community.

Original Version

Original - TN2026-_MG_8177-Edit- NPN copy.jpg
Original - TN2026-_MG_8177-Edit- NPN copy.jpg1500×2102 498 KB

Critique Style: Standard

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

Over the past year or so, I’ve been feeling pretty burnt out when it comes to photography, and as a result, I haven’t been taking many pictures. In fact, so far this year I’ve only been out twice and have taken just 160 frames in total. And that includes a bunch of non-artistic documentary shots around the house. I know… it’s sad.

That said, I just got back from a weeklong road trip down to the Beartooth Mountains in Montana to do a bit of camping and hiking. I didn’t take very many images on the trip, but this is one of the few I did.

Originally, I had planned to continue on to Grand Teton National Park and shoot a sunrise at Schwabacher Landing. In the end, though, the thought of driving all that way to make essentially the same image as the million other photographs already taken there didn’t really appeal to me, so I crossed it off the list.

All hope isn’t lost, though. I’m planning to head out again this Sunday to a spot I’ve been meaning to photograph for a few years now. I’m actually pretty excited about this one, and I’m hoping it turns out the way I’ve envisioned it.

Feedback Requested

Honestly, I don’t know what I think if this image. I do think it has some merit but I don’t know if it is strong enough to catch anyone’s attention. In terms of the composition I do wish that the moon was a bit more on the left to help balance out (diagonally) that mountain peak.

Technical Details

Camera: Canon EOS RP
Lens: TAMRON 100-400mm F/4.5-6.3 Di VC USD A035
Focal length: 227mm
Shutter speed: 1/8s
Aperture: f/11
ISO: 100

Two shot blend to bring out a bit of detail in the mountain while keeping the sky and the moon “properly” exposed.

2

Tom, good to see you shooting again! You may have gotten burned out, but we haven’t!! This is lovely, with excellent light and detail in the moon and a hint of ghostly light on the landscape. Very natural sky color, too, with a lovely gradient. The moon position works for me. We all know that it takes a lot of moving the camera to change its position relative to the landscape.

The histogram shows the darks are not crushed but they do rise very steeply, so basically the same result. I wonder if there is a bit more leeway to bring out subtle detail in the darks, with the Shadows slider in the raw converter?

Can’t wait to see your upcoming image!!!

3

Tom, you’ve got excellent detail in the crescent moon. It’s also well positioned in the frame. I would like to see a bit more detail in the land. That’s an interesting formation with its little rise and abrupt drop.

4

The urge to photograph will come back when you stop wanting to photograph. That’s how it works for me at least. I’m sure it will come back to you also.

1 Like
5

The original poster added a revised version of their image.

6

Thank you for your feedback @Diane_Miller , @Mark_Seaver and @Igor_Doncov . I really means a lot to me!

I’ve uploaded a revised image with the foreground lightened up a bit. I didn’t want to over do it so it’s subtle. Unfortunately I’m at my work computer right now which has a notoriously bad, dark monitor so even I have a hard time judging now whether it’s an improvement or not.

7

It looks excellent to me! One tiny nit is that there is a small halo above the horizon. The fix would be shrinking the selection just a bit.

8

A lovely image Tom. Your selection of foreground for this was inspired. I really like the position of the moon and the very slight boost to the shadows in the foreground brought out just enough detail for my taste.

I’m glad to see you posting again and looking forward to seeing what comes from your upcoming trip.

9

Hi Tom,

It’s great to see a post from you again! I think most of us have experienced that burned out feeling before so I know what you mean. I have found that camping and hiking; or just being out in nature; has helped rejuvenate that passion for me. It sounds as though that is what you are doing. I quite like the image so I feel that it does have merit. The subtle change in the shadows in your rework works nicely for my tastes and I am loving the details in the moon. Very nicely done and good luck with your trip Sunday.

1 Like
10

Regarding Revision 1:

Tom,

Welcome back! Glad to see you post an image. I’m with ya - I’ve gone thru several photo slumps (and thus absent from NPN) and for me, it’s sometimes challenging to contribute here when you’re not actively photographing. I do hope you get back in the saddle!

I think the image definitely has merit. I think it’s simple in it’s comp, capture and presentation, but somehow I see a relationship that the moon brings to the landscape. Hard to explain.

Even though it’s subtle, I do think the slight increase in luminosity makes a pretty big difference.

Good luck on your outing tomorrow! Hope you can capture some magic.

1 Like
11

Thanks @Dennis_Plank, @Ed_Lowe , @Lon_Overacker and thank you again @Diane_Miller!

So I did go on my short trip yesterday and I really enjoyed it. I haven’t had time to look at the pictures I took yet but it was really nice being outside as the sun was coming up watching the beautiful light fill the landscape. I have some time off from work next week and I’m already planning my next outing.

Diane - thanks for pointing out the halo - I totally missed that.

12

Your revision works very well! How about a cooler sky temp - not the moon!