Winter branch

[EOBeav]

The second of some pictures I caught on a snowy day at the park the other day. Just looking for some general constructive criticism. I have some thoughts of my own, but I'd like to hear what others have to say. Thanks in advance for your comments. Just trying to pick up some pointers and learn as I go here.

EXIF data:
Image Type: jpeg (The JPEG image format)
Width: 640 pixels
Height: 427 pixels
Camera Brand: Canon
Camera Model: Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Date Taken: 2008:12:16 14:56:46
Exposure Time: 1/999 sec.
Aperture Value: 4.97 EV (f/5.6)
ISO Speed Rating: 200
Flash Fired: Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode.
Metering Mode: Pattern
Exposure Program: Shutter priority
Focal Length: 46.0 mm

[AnnetteJ]

The branch is interesting and seems to be in focus, but it gets lost in the background. Next time try ducking down and using the sky as a background, or just trying to find a less busy backdrop. The black blob on the right is the worst part - a crop might save the shot somewhat. The main problem is that the background is too similar in colour and form, so the branch just doesn't stand out from it.

[candleman]

hmm.

looking at the exif it doesnt stack up.

usung shutterspeed priority is probably not the best for macro.

I would have used Aperture priority and opened the aperture wide, which would probably have been f/3.5 @ 45mm ?
your exif is showing f/5.6

what is the widest your lens can go?

if you open the aperture up more, the background will blur out and your subject will "pop".
this its hard to tell where the branch ends and the background begins.
but the white snow could be adding to your woes here.

also if you pay more attention to distracting backgrounds your pictures will get dramatically better.
in this case you could have possibly gotten higher and shot down, that way it could have been possible to have more "plain" snow and less sticks in the background.
anything of high contrast or sharp lines in a background is very distracting and detracts allot from the picture.

also, last one.
the stick would have been better if it had the sun on it with a shady background.
the eye is attracted to brigt patches, in this the subject is dark and the background has full, bright sunshine.
keep trying!

[EOBeav]

Thanks both of you for your helpful comments. My thought was that the lighter part was very distracting. I hadn't thought about the background blending in too much, but that's exactly what is wrong with this photo. This was an experimental shoot of sorts, and I was using different settings, both aperture priority as well as shutter priority. I'm finding that aperture priority is probably more useful in many instances than shutter.

Also, I'm wondering about some of the blue-ish tint I'm getting in some of the snow shots. I'm going out again later today, and we've had more snow since these pics were taken, so I'm going to see what I can do. I'm going to try with some different white balance settings.

Thanks again for taking the time to critique my shots.