Sea and Sky

[PhotoDon]

Please comment on this image - first reaction or whatever.
Thanks.

[LenDog]

PhotoDon,

First reaction - not much there too look at.

Second reaction - beautiful color.

Third reaction - your sensor glass needs cleaning! (black spots to lower right).

Fourth reaction - what's that "squiggely" thing in the ocean (answer: shadow).

This is a tough subject, there has to be something unusual about the sea or sky to make a shot like this eyecatching, but you did it about as good as it can be done!

Thanks for posting.

[navcom]

First reaction...welcome to the forum!

Second reaction...need EXIF data and a bit more specific question. (see critique forum rules)

Third reaction...A pretty sky does not a compelling picture make. No harshness intended here. Just a critique.

Believe me, I understand your motivation. The scene was gorgeous. Why not snap a picture. Unfortunately we've all seen pretty skies and they don't make very compelling subjects. You need something in the foreground to draw the viewer in.

Look at it this way. I was taught this analogy and it really does hit the nail on the head. Think of a pretty sky as frosting on a cake. Frosting adds tons to a cake. Most people love frosted cake! But most people will not eat the frosting all by itself. It adds to the "composition" but is not in and of itself the reason you eat the cake.

Pretty skies are like frosting. You need to find some cake to make it compelling.

Hope that helps!

[LenDog]

Navcom - great repsonse and I was remiss in forgetting the "welcome".

That said....I would eat the frosting all by itself..but only for a cake!

[PhotoDon]

Thanks for your thoughts. "No point of focus" was my first thought when I encountered the scene but the colors were so captivating that I had to capture image. Because I liked the soft pastels and random lines so much I wondered what others think when they see it. Don't know what the spots are. I don't think they are lens spots since other photos taken that day don't have them. The squiggly line was in the water, I could see it from my vantage point. Don't know what it was.

Forgot to include the EXIF data:
Device: Nikon D90
Lens: VR 18-105mm F/3.5-5.6G
Focal Length: 75mm
Focus Mode: AF-A
AF-Area Mode: Single
VR: ON
Aperture: F/22
Shutter Speed: 1/200s

[navcom]

Even without a subject, it's still a pretty picture. Just because it's not "compelling" doesn't make somehow "inferior". I have tons of photos of stuff that I find compelling but ultimately is a boring or subject-less image. But I keep them because they remind me of what I experienced first hand.

As for the dark line, I have only one thing to say.....Nessie.

[truffet]

I sort of disagree with those who say this isn't a "compelling" image simply because it's a sea and sky. I think this is an excellent composition because it approaches abstraction. A single raft or boat or something in the frame would possibly ruin it, even make it a cliche. I think the strength of this image is the simplicity--even the water is calm, and I like how the actual horizon is hard to make out because of the similarity in palette between sea and sky.

[PhotoDon]

Originally Posted by navcom

As for the dark line, I have only one thing to say.....Nessie.

Oh no! Not another Nessie picture

[LenDog]

Originally Posted by PhotoDon

Oh no! Not another Nessie picture

There you go, there is something there. It'll be on CNN!

[navcom]

I saw it first.