Sunset Reflection

[raindrop]

Hi,
I love the way the sun reflects on the boat and I shot it kind of close but I'm not sure it works as a composition i.e. is the reflection enough as a point of interest? How could I have made this better? I took another shot from further away but the reflection didn't have the same impact.



Shot with a Sony Alpha 330
1/125
ISO 100
F16
18-55 mm lens

[Nicole]

I think that the reflection works and adds interest. I'm not sure that it's the subject per se, but it does add interest. The reason I don't think that the reflection is the subject is because it's just not as clear as the boat is. If it were very still water and the reflection were clearer that might change my opinion.

There are several other things that also stand out to me in this shot though. First, the horizon is tilted. In a shot like this it really stands out. I'd fix that first by leveling it out based on the waterline in the background. Next, the colour seem a bit washed out to me so it seems like it's lacking a bit of contrast. I had a bit of a play to see how it would look with more contrast and it really helped. Finally, the sky is blown out. That's more difficult to fix because you either need a new shot or to replace the sky in an editing program.

Overall, the composition works for me (bearing in mind those other comments). And I think that the shot has potential even if it's just with a few edits.

Oh, and welcome to the forums!

[raindrop]

Originally Posted by Nicole

I think that the reflection works and adds interest. I'm not sure that it's the subject per se, but it does add interest. The reason I don't think that the reflection is the subject is because it's just not as clear as the boat is. If it were very still water and the reflection were clearer that might change my opinion.

There are several other things that also stand out to me in this shot though. First, the horizon is tilted. In a shot like this it really stands out. I'd fix that first by leveling it out based on the waterline in the background. Next, the colour seem a bit washed out to me so it seems like it's lacking a bit of contrast. I had a bit of a play to see how it would look with more contrast and it really helped. Finally, the sky is blown out. That's more difficult to fix because you either need a new shot or to replace the sky in an editing program.

Overall, the composition works for me (bearing in mind those other comments). And I think that the shot has potential even if it's just with a few edits.

Oh, and welcome to the forums!

Thanks Nicole, all very helpful.

[raindrop]

I couldn't do much about the sky but I straightened and sharpened using picnic on Flickr, thanks again for the help Nicole!