I made this picture in Canyonlands last fall. I really like the picture but I am undecided as to how the shadows affect the overall composition. Any comments would be welcome. After all of the help and suggestions this is what I think may be my final edit on this picture. Hope that you enjoy it. Thanks again for all of you who took the time to comment
What if you had moved over a little, to try to get some less shadows? Or, that little bush in the foreground, go down there and use that as a subject maybe?
Not only are your eyes drawn to the Bright spot of an image if there isn't a bright spot then your eyes are drawn to the Dark spot.
The partial shrub bottom center is also a distraction.
It's difficult sometimes to remember to look around the edges of your image to see "Is this really what I want?" This is especially true when you are in such a great location for photography.
I was also wondering about the horizon...it appears to be a little off, but it could just be due to the striations at different distances giving that illusion.
I agree. What I was saying was the little shrub that is like a distraction, what if that was part of the composition? Such as if you used it as a bit of foreground, then used the valley as sort of a leading line? Also, my eye jumps all over the image, I am not exactly sure where to look.
Perhaps some of the shadows could be brought out in post-processing (if available).?
That might be possible. Yeah, if you did a few filters you could do that. But that still doesn't really solve the problem of no clear subject. Maybe a few crops?
Yeah...always the problem with harsh lighting conditions.
For sure. If he had some foreground intrest and focused on the large peak, that would make the compostition better
Hi John! The soft shadow creeping in from the right is like an intruder. While it adds some visual weight, balancing the composition a bit, its blurred edges don't quite sit with the overall crispness. More importantly, the image is in somewhat "flat" light, making the rock masses at left blend into one another visually too much. So, the image could do with more oblique light revealing the rocks' form more.
Subjectively, the image looks rotated clockwise, although the distant mountains look about right. The sedimentary formations may actually be tilted. You were there, I wasn't.
Hi there! Gorgeous rock formations. Good for you for taking the shot. My first impressions are:
1) Looks slightly tilted, high on left.
2) Could use a slight re-composition. I need a place for my eye to enter and follow through. Could you use the negative space (if you too the shot from the left) from the canyon to lead the eye between the cliffs in the distance?
3) Perhaps could use a little clarity or sharpness on the details to highlight the wonderful rock formations.
4) The shadow feels distracting to me.
Keep it up, your instincts are good. The area has tremendous potential. Good for you for asking for feedback, that's how we all get better. Cheers, Kevin
Agree with all.
Thanks all for the comments. I understand what you are saying about the tree that is in the foreground. Possibly I could do a content aware fill and take it out. The tilt that everyone is taking about could be straightened. I think that it is probably due to the way that the bands of color move across the screen, Not really sure that I would change that although I will look at it and see what i think after the straightening. I will do some processing and repost my results. thanks again
so I have made the changes to the image as were suggested. I think that I now have a totally different image. I have uploaded it here for you to see
This is a significant improvement, John.
As the original poster, you can edit this page, and add (or delete) images on the left. I suggest you post this there as well, under your original, so we can toggle directly between them. Remember that earlier comments may not make sense after you do this, so you may want to edit the main text as well.
thanks, I didnt know that I could do that
It's a beautiful photo. What about approaching it from a pano perspective? A little wider and not so square might emphasize the formations and draw attention away from the duller rock in the foreground. A bit more color saturation would bring out the red color in the rocks more.
thanks for the comments Steve. I probably did crop some from the sides, what I am afraid of is that if I stretched it, the rock formations would look strange and if I cropped it to be longer I would crowd the top to much. I like the idea of doing a pano from this location. Maybe I will just have to go back.
I understand. You would either have to crop from the bottom up, or just do the pic as a narrow but effective pano. I think it would look great if the red rock outcrop was at the bottom of the pic and the boulders in the foreground were left out. However, those are just some off the cuff thoughts. Everybody has their own opinions. Still, it's a great shot!
i will give it a try and thanks for the input