General Nature Shot - C&C Please

[FlyingSquirrel]

General nature shot. First is framed as shot, second is cropped.

What I like about this photo is the composition of shapes and angles, as well as the varied textures, and then the color as well. I like the "wild and untamed" feeling as well. I actually like both framings.

Would greatly appreciate some C&C as I am always looking to improve as much as possible and hear what people like or don't like. Thank you.

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[Donald]

Like you, Matt, what I like are the tones and textures. It just oozes 'nature'.

I prefer the cropped version. Why? Because I think the image, overall, doesn't have a key focal point; i.e. a point that the eye alights upon as the main centre of interest. My gaze tends to wander all around the frame looking for something to alight upon. The cropped version closes up the options and doesn't have so many 'bits' competing for that attention. So, there is less work for the eye to do with the cropped version and, in this case, I think that's a good thing because there is a lot of detail to take in.

So, for me, the lesson in this is that when you don't have a main point of interest, then get close in so that you force attention onto a more defined area. In this case I think that's the bark of the tree. We don't need, I suggest, all that grass and foliage at top left and bottom right in the uncropped version.

[FrankMi]

Hi Matt. One of the things that will help this would be to simplify the elements in the image. As Donald points out, cropping really helps in this case as there are a lot of extraneous grasses, leaves, and the natural debris found in woodlands.

You may want to go even further in zooming in. With both images, we are kind of in between a scene of a tree trunk and a sort of abstract scene of moss on the bark.

There are a number of possibilities to explore here.

One could be to go closer in and get just the diagonal line where the moss meets the bark. In this case you could look for a really interesting pattern in the bark to highlight. With just the green and brown, the simplification of the subject should add impact to the scene.

Another option would be to re-shoot and pull the vines and grasses in the foreground out of the image but leave the debris on the trunk as interesting details that don't overwhelm the view. Perhaps even back out to show more of the trunk where the vines don't impact the scene quite as much (or remove them from in front of the trunk to reduce clutter).

Yet another possibility might be to go really close-up or even macro as you have a multitude of potential scenes within this image you could zero in on.

In short, you likely have many options to explore that can be discovered by taking the time to quietly examine the scene while asking yourself 'what-if' questions about the lighting, shooting angle, cropping, etc.

Hope this helps!

[FlyingSquirrel]

Thank you Donald and Frank, your input is appreciated and helpful. I had a feeling that the amount of "information" in the photo would be too much for most viewers.

Based on your feedback, I just played around with some various crops (thank goodness for Lightroom virtual copies!) Please do note that the quality is very bad because these are hard crops; what I am really looking for is comments on the actual crop, as opposed to image quality.

I agree with your feedback and found it useful, and also find merit in some of these more focused crop versions. I'd also like to say, however, that sometimes I feel like it's ok to include more in the image (for example, in my original post, the 2nd image). It may just be my own preference, but I think it isn't always necessary to narrow a photo down to one or two key focal subjects; what I saw in the original shot was a natural "scene" and in particular I like the overall combination of elements and juxtaposition. I guess I was trying to capture the whole scene of the trunk, moss, and the colorful shrubbery, to bring the viewer to that intimate area, if you will. Again, I really like some of these newer crops that bring the focus in tighter, but at the same time I also like the cropped shot from my original post. I will definitely think more in the future about the subject and experiment with wide and close shots to capture an array of possible images.

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[FrankMi]

Now that you have expanded your vision, which image do you like best? That will be the best one for you!

[ScoutR]

Hi Matt, I really like where you're going with #3 and 4. When shooting though, try and get you subject on intersecting thirds in the frame. For instance if the orange leaf was just a bit lower and a bit to the right (on screen) I think this would be a really nice shot. Also seeing as you have lightroom it's very easy to emphasize that leaf to make it stand out even more by adjusting the brightness and playing with the tone curve, and adjusting luminance settings on the various colours in the shot. In this one I would probably increase luminace on the reds and oranges and decrease on the greens.

I also like the abstract look of 5 & 6 but perhaps experiment with not having the diagonal right so close to the middle. Generally I would say you got some great advice here and definitley put it to good use. Happy shooting, look forward to seeing more shots in the future.

Wendy

[FlyingSquirrel]

Thank you Frank and Wendy. Your advice helps a lot, and I'm enjoying playing with new possibilities for composition and cropping- the best part is that the more I do this, the more it will help me in the field.

The following is a crop which I like, where I moved the leaf down as Wendy suggested (I did not adjust the colors or luminance, though I probably would if this was not cropped so much and was actually a viable photo). Then below that is one of the original crops from my initial post. Interestingly, the wider original crop is still one of my favorites. I think these two are my favorites. Thanks again.

[ScoutR]

and I'm enjoying playing with new possibilities for composition and cropping- the best part is that the more I do this, the more it will help me in the field.

Yup, you are definitley on the right track. the more you play around and analyze what you and others have done the better your shots will get. I'm only recently getting to the point where I come back with shots where I am happy with the composition and find that setting up a shot is starting to come more naturally to me. It's still a struggle though, there are so many variables, and of course there is always something getting in the way.

Wendy