You need not fret Nathan, this is easily up there with the best Dungeness images I've seen. Great atmosphere and the birds add something extra. It looks a little underexposed, which would easily be fixed in post, I just bring your white point up a little and I think it would make it even punchier without losing that brooding atmosphere. Great shot either way though

Great lighting, if I were to make any criticism it would be to dodge out the slight light on the floor to make it even more graphic, and maybe boost the highlights a just little on the shin/foot. But they are minor quibbles and it works really well without them anyway

Hi, just read your profile and see you are asking advice to improve your work. The road and hills on this picture are exposed really well so the light looks great, but the sky was probably darker in real life than it looks on the shot?

For a shot like this you either need to use a Neutral Density Graduated Filter to balance the light and dark areas when you shoot, (that basically means it lets less light into the bright areas). The other option is to take two shots, one where you expose for the sky (so the sky looks right and the boittom half would be too dark) and one for the land (where the sky is a bit burnt out like your current shot), then merge the two in photoshop or other editing program.

Great first upload though, look forward to seeing more. You're composition is great and the colours are good which are the key things, you obviously have a natural eye for good pictures, so its just getting to know the technical side of your camera a bit which will help you improve. It takes a while and we're all still learning!

Apologies if you already know all this, but it can make a big difference to your shots if not.

regards
Lee

The idea and expressions are brilliant. The sense of expectation is palpable and as a viewer you almost want whatever it is he's thrown up to come down again.

Technically speaking, theres room for improvement, the focus would have been much better on the entertainer, with the 3 characters behind a little more blurred, and then the background blurrier. As its stands the background is the sharpest point so ineveitbalty draws the eye too much. I imagine this is down to autofocus and needing to shoot quickly. I personally usually keep my autofocus on the central point in this kind of situation so I have a bit more control over what will be the sharp point in an instant, rather than relying on the camera getting it right.

I like the panoramish (Im sure thats not a word but it should be) crop, but without seeing what you've cut out hard to say if that could be improved further.

Overall I think its a really warm, humorous and compelling image, its a shame about the focus as that would have made it a really great shot.

regards
Lee