North Rim

[mudskipper1]

New to photography:

Camera Nikon D3000
Exposure 0.167 sec (1/6)
Aperture f/9.0
Focal Length 20 mm
ISO Speed 200

Taken with Polarizing filter, on tripod, at sunset

Is the composition attractive, does it show the enormous depth of the scene effectively?
I played with the curves a little in PP, is the effect pleasing?

SOOC image:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/62737938@N03/6018121333/

How could I improve it if I make it back there?
Thanks in advance!

[EOBeav]

I'm not sure the polarizer helped you out much here. In fact, I think it worked against you in this case.

I love my polarizer and use it as often as possible, but you need to know when it works and when it doesn't. Use it to remove reflections in water, to enrich fall colors, or to get good detail and separation in a blue sky on a sunny day. They work best in bright light, not as good at sunset. Here, your sky seems to be quite uneven, as a result of your polarizer. And your darkest areas are way too dark, you seem to have lost a lot of detail in the shadows. You don't happen to have a shot from here from the same time taken without the filter, do you? It would be good to see it for comparison.

You do get extra points for shooting at this time of the day, though. When you make it back, I'd love to see what you bring back. Thanks for posting, and keep shooting!

[crockny]

Nice shot - my only critique is the timing for the light -- the foreground trees are lit but a lot of canyon is dark -- is there another time of morning or evening when it would be the reverse at that site?

[BK553]

Nice shot, I agree that some light IN the canyon would have helped show the depth much better, but overall nice composition.

And for those that have been there, photos will just never capture the feel of the massive scale you get standing on the rim.