Actually I like your composition on the first. With the lighter tonality of the closest dirt path it almost puts the image in 4ths. I think the cloud formation is nice and the water interesting. I think the image would definately go to the next level if shot at a longer shutter speed so as to soften the water (same with image #2). You might have stacked two circular polarizers and shot at your smallest ap. or maybe used a 9 stop ND filter.
The second one also is nice but needs a longer exposure too. as well as keeping your foreground rocks in focus.
Until you decide which DSLR to buy......if you are primarily interested in composition then I'd suggest sticking the IXUS on the Landscape Scene mode (usually found under the SCN setting and depicted with a small mountain icon). This will provide you with plenty of depth of field for good landscape photography and allow you to concentrate on composition. Also, figure out if the camera can 'bracket' images - i.e. shoot 3 images of the same scene at different exposures - this will allow you to shoot scenes which have a wide range of tones (bright sky, dark foreground) for later blending in photoshop - otherwise you may find that the IXUS limits the type of scene you can shoot to only those with a limited tonal range.
For inspiration on composition I'd suggest the following;
1. take a good look at the FM landscape posts that get high post counts - they are usually very high quality images that embody good composition.
2. Pick up a copy of Charlie Waite's 'The Making of Landscape Photographs' published by Collins & Brown - ISBN 1-781855 851498. Worth noting that many of Charlie's images in the book break the 'composition by thirds' rule.
3. Post more images for feedback here on FM
Cheers
I looked at some of the high response posts and yes, these are truly something to aspire to.
Looks like I need the following.
A nikon 12-24 lens or similar.
A camera to hang it off.
A tripod.
A mountain range with a lake.
A desert.
A few spectacular sunsets.
Places with visual interest do help, there is no way around that fact. What happened to me is I got into Landscape photography and then started to travel with the intention of ending up somewhere beautiful to see. You have gobs and gobs of beautiful landscapes where you live... I'd suggest picking up a few UK photo magazines and find one that shows lots of really well composed images and tells you where they are at !!
As to what camera to get, yes you get a lot more flexibility having a nice DSLR but honestly, I've seen some pretty nice shots with smaller Point and Shooters. However, it's when you start tying to add circular polarizers and gradual neutral density filters that you'll get totally stuck until you upgrade. Also if you want to print very large, the tiny tiny sensor of a P&S camera makes for pretty noisy photos past 8 - 12 inches on the widest side.
Good luck, keep in touch and make plans to visit Ireland or France !!
