Lacks drama..any ideas?

[Pete W]

Pure luck, took this shot today looking down from a bridge as the fisherman landed a very large chub (he was very excited, the fish was less than amused). It was a dramatic moment but the shot doesn't really convey that...any suggestions gratefully received.

Pete

[Clactonian]

I don't think that the landscape mode helps here. A much tighter portrait crop may well help a bit with maybe some unsharp mask dialled in to increase the contrast, particularly around the net.
Taken the liberty of posting this rough and ready thumb, which still needs some work. I would get rid of the dark reflection top right for instance, but hopefully this may give you some ideas. Mike

[Pete W]

Thanks Mike,
good ideas, I've had a punt at it but probably overcooked....I'm using Aperture 2 which does not have many of the subtleties (especially in my hands) of photoshop but will have to do for now..
Pete

[Donald]

Pete

I agree with Mike's comment and commend you for the re-work subsequently posted.

This really focuses in on the action. Everything else was (in the nicest possible way) a waste. It is all about the fisherman and his landing of the fish. There's a sense of movement and energy in your re-post that was lacking in the original.

[Rhoads238]

The repost looks great. Cropping definitely helped bring the photo together. i really like the angle of the shot resulting from the crop.

[Clactonian]

Looks good to me Peter. I keep expecting that arm to move. It's a great angle.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Pete,

With what you've posted here, my thoughts were very similar to Mike's and he's done an excellent crop.

UPDATE: ah I see you've had another go while I was writing, yes that's much better.

The question is; have you got anything else?
The key for "unfolding moments" like this is just keep shooting - as fast as the camera will go, then there might be one with more splash from 'not amused'.

Cheers,

[Pete W]

Hi Dave,

Unfortunately "not amused" was out of splash by the time it was landed...floundering rather than fighting so no other action shots.

Cheers

Pete

[Dave Humphries]

Unfortunately "not amused" was out of splash by the time it was landed...floundering rather than fighting so no other action shots.

That's a shame

[Alis]

Nice shot, Peter!

My two cents: although there is nothing you can do as a result of my suggestion here, but I think what is missing here and in my opinion could have helped a lot is the facial expression of the fisherman. If he was really excited at the moment, probably that could have conveyed your sense of excitement at the time you shot this picture to us.

I think if you could take this shot from an angle (side and a little bit higher that ground level to show the fish at the same time), it would have helped a lot, provided the guy himself was very excited about this.

And as I said, shots like this does not happen that often unless you follow this guy for hours and therefore, this suggestion is not going to be as helpful as the cropping that you can do after the fact

[Peter Ryan]

Thanks Mike,
good ideas, I've had a punt at it but probably overcooked....I'm using Aperture 2 which does not have many of the subtleties (especially in my hands) of photoshop but will have to do for now..
Pete

I agree with Mike and I can see you have cropped out the reflection at the top but I think this has made it almost a square crop. I am not sure this is the strongest composition either. I think if you followed Mike's original crop and just cloned out the reflection you will have an elongated image the reflects the the lenght of the rod and net and captures that nice swirl in the water where the fish is fighting. To me this is part of the action as well.

[Shadowman]

I can sense the fisherman straining but the angle of the shot does not convey it. A side angle shot with the bowing of the rod would have given you a more energy. I still like the shot, how often do you get this view without getting a barb in the eye.