I really like this photo. it is one exposure, I like the foreground etc but in different contests it doesnt do well. When I show it to people in person they like it. I guess I just want to know why people don't really like it. I know there is some distortion in the corners but huh? Thoughts?
Color might be improved by using the wb pointer on a neutral color to make it more blue and change the yellow cast. I see where you are going with the landscape, the tree is nicely pointing to the MW but there is no detail in the foreground so you might crop it. The distortion may be fixed in lightroom by entering your lens choice, but sometimes it can't be fixed because some lenses do have distortion at the edges, I think its called croma (probably spelled that wrong). Good luck
Dillon Murphy You're emotionally attached to the photo because you took it. It is hard to seperate yourself from your own photo when rating it. When you're showing this photo to people in person, are they people you know? Do you think they are telling you the truth?
Since you're asking for help, I will start off saying that it comes off as rather boring to me. The color and detail is lacking in the sky and produces an overall dirty or messy look. The silhouette of the ground is perhaps more boring with too much black dead space.
What do the pictures look like you're submitting against in contests? By no means am i one of the world leaders of Milkyway landscape imaging, but if you're up against images found in my portfolio, then you will surely lose a lot of contests. I think you just need to keep working at it. Find images you really like and figure out how they were made. As with all photography, composition is king. It holds true for MW landscape photography too. Simply having a starry MW sky in your image is not going to cut it.
I think you have commented on my photos before, and I really appreciate it. You are right, your pictures are amazing, the place that recently caused me to ask was Gurushots, and I guess I really like this because it is one shot with almost no post processing. I see you live in SoCal and shoot at Jtree, maybe sometime we can shoot together.
I like to qualify the people who judge my photos. It's called an art form for a reason. It's purely subjective to each individual. When I show people some of my best photos I always put in 'Just Ok' shots to get their reaction. If they like my 'Just Ok' shots, then I disregard any reaction to the portfolio and search for someone else. If someone says to me, that my photos suck, They've become my best critics and I'll search out for them again. I don't look towards friends judgments as sometimes they can be biased.
Why doesn't your photo do well in a contest? Because it's boring. It's doesn't have any pop to it. You might try to cropping out the lower half of the foreground. I just scrolled up the page which cropped the bottom of the photo and it already looks better. I would remove the yellow cast. It's distracting me from the MW. I might bring down the blacks as they are a bit washed out which could make the stars stand out more. Some of the distortion in the upper corners can be removed by selecting your lens profile in your software i.e. Lightroom, Capture One. If it doesn't improve don't worry about it as I didn't see it until you pointed it out. When adjusting your images, do a side by side (original and edited) as you edit so you do over shop the images. It needs more pop, color, less foreground.
Done is better than perfect. So fix it and be done with this photo and go out and shoot some more. Try new things. Even the crazy ideas. Sometimes I put my thumb in the shot. It's a bad photo, but it makes me look at the photo in a new way. Anything that will push your talent to do better. I have photos that I think suck, but other people enjoy. Just keep taking photos and sharing them. :-)
Autumn Milky way it's a bit Boring it self.
You need to take much more details of it and pop them out to get it a little more interesting. Perhaps some Lightpollution Filter will help you that or a Modified Camera or Stack more images. (I'm just talking about the Autumn Milkyway).
-Now, you landscape is too Dark, I think you need more Exposure or Faster lens, or a bit of defused light.
Something extra ot luck could be a Shooting Star (it's Leonids time now), or You or a friend with some Light stand somewhere near by in the Capture.
Guess it is just a boring picture. I will try experimenting more because i liked the idea of the totally dark foreground. Maybe when i get a chance ill get a tracker so i can get more detail with less noise.