derekhansen

Just caught up with this one. I like it very much indeed NIck. A slight crop up from the bottom might increase the impact of that mirror like reflection even more.
Derek

Very well done Ann. The lighting particularly on the lime looks very good although as I think you have already said the unlit side of the limes reflection could be a little lighter.
The composition is also good although if I had taken the shot I would probably have made the space top and bottom absolutely equal, but thats more personal taste more than criticism.
I have really enjoyed looking at your images during 2012 and look forward to what you come up with in 2013. Have a Happy New Year.
Derek

I like both V1 and V2 although V2 edges it ( I particularly like the rim light on the womans red hair)
Have you tried cropping down to say just above the sign? I think that reducing the area of white ' blown' pixels will help to direct the viewers eye on to the subject matter much better.
Derek

Hi Ian,

This is a very nice image which many photographers would be happy with, but knowing the quality of your work I understand why you are not 100% satisfied. As others have suggested what prevents a very good image being outstanding here is the balance between the land and sky. More sky would be the answer as per focusman and banehawi's mods but I suspect looking at your image that there was little interest in the sky higher up, further confirmed by the lack of cloud reflection in the water. So you made the right decision IMO and you cropped it out.
In conclusion I dont think you could improve this much. Sure you could re-process and play around with the crop etc but sometimes nature dictates that not all the elements before us come together quite as we would like. Look at it another way. Had the cloud reflecting the sun gone up higher you would no doubt have included them and as a bonus you would have had their reflection in the water. Not your fault. Blame nature!

Derek

Hi Alan
Really nice composition in V1 but for me the exposure balance between the sky and the foreground dosn't look quite right. If you used an ND grad on the sky perhaps it was a bit strong.
I have uploaded a mod that equalizes the exposure balance a bit more. I have also added a little more sharpening and reduced the vignette.
Derek

I realise I am coming to this party rather late but hopefully you will spot this.
I really like the image and its beautifully conceived, modeled and lit but there are some elements that dont fit in with what I consider to be the Noir style.
1. The subject and background are still too evenly lit particularly the face. Noir shots tended to have strong sidelight with dark shadows which gave that air of mystery and seduction. The transition from highlight to shadow was often quite smooth but the shadows tended to be very dark.
2. Your shot is quite grainy which I am sure is what you intended. Noir images on the whole tend to be very high res with no sign of grain.
3. The strong vignette harks back to earlier photography than Noir IMO
Hope you find my thoughts constructive.
Derek

Hi Glenn.
this is a very good shot and I can see why you thought this had so much potential. The light is beautiful, the texturea perfectly captured and the stone farm buildings really draw the eye. However in my opinion it could be even better with just a few adjustments in photoshop or whatever processing software you have.
Firstly I would crop the sky out completely. there is really not enough of it to make any impact and the real interest is in the fields. In this image the sky is just not adding anything to the overall image.
Secondly there are a couple of things cutting in to the bottom of the frame, A small grass hump and part of...something i cant identify. They are a little distracting. Rather than crop them out i would clone them out as I think losing any more off the bottom of the frame would lower the farm building in the image and its probably lower than ideal now.
If you want to play around further try cropping in from the top and RH side until the higher farm building is positioned approximately 1/3rd down and from the right in the frame. This is quite a big crop but hopefully your file size will take it.
I hope thats of some interest.
Derek

Nice shot. Works for me because the light under the cloud on the left balances so well with the strong light on the cliff.
Derek

I really like this shot jools I just think that if the models right arm had been extended supporting her she would look a little less awkward. Otherwise a very good shot.
Derek

I think mono works best for this image jools. Its a really good shot and works well with high contrast . Only one thing jars and that is the branch in the middle at a 45 degree angle. For me this conflicts with the vertical composition. Otherwise great though.

Derek

This is particularly good Andy. Beautiful tones and colour. I think the composition is fine as it is ( sorry Phil ). Had the camera moved left and taken in more of the pier this would have placed the largest Groyne post in the centre or to the right of centre. In my view weakening the image.
Derek

Very close to being superb. The very dark foreground is not helping you achieve the images full potential though. Depending on what detail you have to play with in the foreground ( It is so dark I cannot see ) this needs bringing out. Some adjustment in Photoshop levels or curves would do this. If the detail in the foreground is uninteresting or does not improve things I would suggest cropping a lot of it out.