I was out near Tacoma this evening as the sun was setting. I snapped a few sunset photos, but liked this log / lighthouse photo as well. Shot at 1/100, f/3.5.
Hi D. love the details and textures of the log. The DOF is well chosen but the positioning of the light house doesn't work for me as it covered by the log. Second, the picture is out of balance because of the two heavy object on one side. If you can re shoot, try to place the light house left of the middle of the picture, keeping other parameters constant as in this shot.
alright, here goes:
the main question the viewer (me) has is: what is it you're trying to take here? what is it you're trying to show me?
Ask yourself these questions before you press the shutter button next time:
what is your main subject here?
what photographic interest does the log help in defining your main subject (supposing your main subject is the lighthouse)?
can I position myself better so as to portray my main subject better?
are there ways I can use foreground elements or other elements in the picture to help compose my main subject better?
how should I use selective depth of field to isolate my subject? again, am I wanting to draw the viewer's attention to the log, or the lighthouse? or both? why did I choose f/3.5?
If you have an explanation of why you took the picture in this particular way, you might want to say it out in words too. Sometimes the viewer (who is not present at the same location as you are when you are taking the picture) cannot comprehend the entire significance of the image just by looking at the elements in the picture alone, so a short description or caption might be useful in helping the viewer's interpretation.
Thanks all for the comments! Your criticisms are spot on.
Dieter - Thanks for the suggestions! I did a poor job of framing the log, looking again I agree I should have shot the log slightly right so that the lighthouse was not covered. The weight of the image was intentional, as the water / beach was to my left, and I was trying to lead the image in that direction. Definitely appreciate your suggestions though, I liked the beach and will try a few more from that location.
Mudlake - Thanks! I couldn't decide. The sharpness difference is likely artificial; I usually run a slight unsharp mask after resizing in PS CS...I probably forgot to do this on the color version (e.g. straight out of the camera, just resized).
Nutek - Very complete comments, thank you! You have my nailed here, I really liked the look of the log and how the lighthouse stood in the background...I chose the DOF as I did as it created a mystery behind (I have a couple shots with a wide DOF and I didn't enjoy those as much). That said, my intended subject was the log. I think the trouble I got in was that I tried to take more notice on my background, and in this image you're correct there isn't a clear story being told.
Again, thanks so much for the comments! Definitely still learning this camera and will work on improving my focus -- what I'm trying to share.
