[blowup]

Two views of the lake, taken from shore at the village of San Marcos. It was overcast and cloudy the entire three days that I spent here. The top photo is a B&W, meant to display the clouds. The bottom is of an abandoned dock. All comments and critiques are welcome.

[NT73]

I like the second one. maybe needs a little zing. It is rather like a faded watercolour but PP will sort it out. I am afraid I cannot tell you how as I tend to use trial and error. (Everyone is a coconut. )

[blowup]

Thanks for your critique, NT. In fact, the second photo has had a lot of PP. First, it is an HDR. There was no way that the sky and the foreground could both be properly exposed in the same exposure. So, I combined three photos each taken (handheld) 1.3 EV apart. The result captured sky and foreground, but was too monotone. I next applied a Softlight Gradient Fill mask (in reverse - more masking at bottom than top). This brought out more contrast in the sky. I had tried adding a Softlight layer to the entire image, rather than as a gradient, but I felt the effect in the foreground was over the top. Maybe I was being too conservative. The light that day was such that "zing" wasn't on the menu!
Gary

[Pavel]

Gary, there is a lot to like about both of these photos, especially about the bottom one. I like the compsition ans the darker sky leads you to the bright sky and the dock leads your eyes to the sme spot. I agree with NT about the zing though. In this weather condition, I would expect more highlights and shadows. I suspect HDR is to blame. A common thread in your photos is flat lighting. I started photography in the days of B&W, where the stress was on capturing of light and shadows and emphasis on solid deep blacks. You like photos which are quite desaturated and that is fine, but than something else besides colurs must hold your attention, I think. I would think that in many cases, that role needs to be filled by light and shadow. There are times when moody, almost monochromatic and light tone situation work, but that works only in some situations (fog, snow etc.). I hope this helps Gary. pavel

[NT73]

I will come back to this. What made me look twice was the wooden jetty, which stands out in a sort of 3D. That is most probably due to HDR which I did not notice, because the overall effect is a grey/sepia photo with a tiny bit of faint greenery.
But I still think it just needs brightening and a little (10% ) more colour.

I also am spending a lot of time at the PC as the weather in the UK is very changeable at the moment.
Actually it is rather abominable for summer.

[blowup]

Thanks Pavel and NT for your critiques. These allow me to see my photos through new eyes and help me to figure out what works, what doesn't, and what else to try.

[aine-caitlin]

I really like that second shot, and I agree with what's already been said about it. I think it just needs a little tweaking, but it's a very nice composition.

[blowup]

Thanks Aine-Caitlin