[Dean R Specker]

Yes, a person sitting on the rocks fishing would have made an entirely different (considerably better) story. One day I will have the nerve to ask a stranger to take their photo. 🙂

[Dean R Specker]

Graham,

Thank you for your comments. I am new to this site and was unaware of the Shark Tank forum until Rob politely mentioned it. I am now posting in the Shark Tank and am receiving valuable feedback.

Yes, I did put the foreground in by choice. I am really new to photography and realized I liked others’ photos with a foreground because of the depth it gave their photos. I am learning, though, a foreground is not always needed. As they say, rules are meant to be broken. I agree, the sky and reflection alone could have been enough.

As for the reds, I left quite a bit of the reds out of the photo. When I panned right the reds were very dominant and then the merging point was too far left. I enjoy a colorful sunset, but as the clouds moved in the way they did I chose to highlight the clouds opposed to the color. Maybe if I toned the reds down a little it may keep your eye from wandering to the right, but still give a bit of color.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

lol Robert,

It would have been tempting to do just that. For me, however, a good day of fishing is sitting on the bank with a line in the water and no bait on the hook.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Beth,

I rotated my camera left and right and shose this comp for the very reasons you pointed out. I’m glad it worked.

Dean

 

[Dean R Specker]

Beth,

The ISO was at 1000. This is a cropping from the original image. I believe the pattern you see is a combination of these two.

I enjoyed the morning. The cool foggy mist in the air was delight to shoot in.

 

Dean

 

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Tom

The removal of those two items could improve the photo. I will give it a try.

 

Dean

 

[Dean R Specker]

Hello Dan,

I really like the colors. Bringing up the clarity of the river helps.

I am curious about the location. Would you have been able to move to the left a few feet? If so, perhaps the point of the arrowhead shaped reflected background could have ended up on the right third thus putting the entire subject in frame. The foreground branch on the right blends into the background. The river bank and tree on the left could be the foreground interest if you could have moved to the left a little more.

I like how the left bank leads into the photo as it is so perhaps moving to the left would not have worked. Maybe even ducking down and leaving separation between the background and the right branch highlighted in the sky area could work.

I wasn’t there and do not know the lay of the scene, but I am left wanting to see the right end of the background where it meets the water. If it does meet the water.

Overall, though, a nice photo and a great spot to be.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Dahlia

It was a great morning to be out. There were moments I would liked to have been the one in the kayak.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Lynne,

Thank you. I remember that morning well. Serene is just the word for that particular morning and location.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Dahlia.

I had been waiting weeks for the fall fog to move in. It was worth getting up early on the weekends with coffee thermos and camera in hand.

 

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

 

Thank you Kent,

This happens to be the same cropping I did on another version. I am still torn between the two cropped versions. I feel the stones on the right help hold your attention in the photo, but the cropped version does as you said…allows the subject to be more prominent.

Thank you for noticing those two small items. I had not noticed them earlier. Add to my processing checklist…scan the whole photo.

 

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you John.

I enjoyed observing and photographing the evening.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Kent.

It was a beautiful evening and I am so glad I had my camera.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

Gerald,

Thank you for your comments. A pro photographer told me there are two rules to exposure when learning manual; Rule 1: Check your histogram Rule 2: Refer to rule 1. He was correct. I have my histogram displayed on my LCD screen all the time when shooting. As Rob pointed out, I still have a lot to learn when processing, but my RAW file histogram generally does not have anything clipped or crunched (unless that is what I am going for). I have room to work with the whole photo as I improve with processing.

From one newbie to another may I share three things I have learned.
1. Plan ahead and arrive early
2. Relax and be patient
3. Stop shooting and take in the scenery

After I had a mental grasp of the exposure triangle, depth of field, composition rules and proper focusing I was anxious to go in the field and try my hand in manual. During my first few shoots I had too many numbers going through my mind. This times two or this divided by two, the rule of thirds and to go from this f/stop to this f/stop I need to…

I found myself over thinking each shot and was starting to get frustrated with myself. A little reflection on my process and I changed how I do things. This photo is a good example of the three things mentioned above.

I researched the sight with Google maps and using the Photo Time app on my phone. One day the clouds to the west looked promising and I headed to the sight an hour before golden hour. I had ample time to walk around and find a place to set up. I was relaxed when setting my camera up and choosing my settings. There was plenty of time to enjoy the sight. I watched as the clouds formed in my favor, talked to a couple of local fishermen on the bank and felt the cool breeze coming off the water. I heard fish hitting the surface as they fed for the evening and birds calling in the evening air. I snapped a couple of photos as the sun dropped, but mostly to double check my histogram and composition as conditions changed. Then it happened. The pinks and red in the the sky started to appear. I took photos as the sky changed for about twenty minutes.

Perhaps I have over processed the colors in this photo. My skills in processing will improve. However, I do have this one printed and hanging on my wall. Every time I look at it I am reminded of the entire experience of the evening. The sun sets every night, but I know I captured a sunset that will never exist again and enjoyed the whole process. The reason I want to learn more about photography.

I realize this has been a long winded reply to your comment and I do not know where you are in the process of learning manual photography, but from one newbie to another relax and enjoy the journey.

Dean

[Dean R Specker]

The cropping does add balance to the photo. I appreciate the tips and edit.

This particular cloud will never exist again, but the tips will be very helpful with future shootings when composing my shots.

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Dahlia. This is actually the first of only three I have chosen to hang on my wall.

[Dean R Specker]

I did brighten the lightning bolt a little. It occurred just as I pushed the shutter button and I caught the last part of the lightning strike. Any more brightening and it would have been too obvious. Yes, it would be better with a little more sky on top to balance it vertically.

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Robert

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Kent. The pattern was actually due to the fog. I was standing right in the middle of it.

[Dean R Specker]

Thank you Rob for the tips on using the site and your input of my photo. Much appreciated.

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