Fire over Snowdonia

AndyCole · #1 (**permalink**) 03-07-2008, 10:10

Photographers Comments
This photo was taken just before sunrise June 2008 on Pen y Chain beach, Wales. The mountain range in the distance is Snowdonia.
Landscape photography is my main passion and I think that my skill is up to the standard where I may be able to sell some images. This shot is fairly typical of what I like to do, good lighting, and attractive scenery. I will probably approach local galleries to see if they will take any of my work. Please critique this image as hard as you like and especially, tell me if this is good enough to be on sale at a gallery.
Thanks
Andy

Serious Critique Required: The photographer has requested he/she would like a more serious level of critique for this image to obtain more constructive critiscism from other members. Please make sure the comments you leave are indeed constructive and aim to help the photographer see the image from a different perspective and/or provide help and guidance to how the image can be improved.

**Dennyboy** · #2 (**permalink**) 03-07-2008, 11:41

Nice lead in lines with the stumps, lovely sky, very unusual cloud formations (the mountains at bottom and high cloud). Not sure if better if horizon dead straight (looks different small i know).Only distracting thing for me is the breakwater far left. But not a show stopper, love it all round nice one! Nice you have made more of the sky than the foreground

Zoë · #3 (**permalink**) 03-07-2008, 12:03

Really nice shot. The cloud colours are amazing and very unusually shaped as Denny said, and love the reflections in the foreground. Good work

**f18** · #4 (**permalink**) 03-07-2008, 14:33

My kinda image Andy.

Good positioning of the horizon & good lead-in with the posts and water. All in all a very capable shot that suggests quietness / peacefulness / stillness. As to improvements … the only thing I’d say is that the darkness of the sand beyond the posts on the right is fine (in fact it would take a bit away from the posts if there was brightness there) but what I’d give for a little more illumination on that lumpy sand foreground left. Just to bring out the textures those little ground level shadows etc. Of course that was not within your control.

Cheers, Dave B.

AndyCole · #5 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 13:21

Thanks for the critiques.
The horizon is a tricky one. The sea to the right is my only indication of truly level. If I level that, the whole image looks wonky, because the majority of the 'horizon' is sloping down to the right. That's the way it was but it just looks wrong if I leave it that way.
I didn't think much about the breakwater on the left. I guess that looking for things to leave out of the frame is one of the skills I haven't honed properly yet.
As for the foreground detail, I probably could bring more back as I increased shadows quite a bit to get the look I was after.

Nobody answered the burning question, is this good enough to sell in a gallery?

**Mello** · #6 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 16:44

I'll answer it for you mate,personally i don't feel the image is strong enough for a gallery,for me theres a lot of redundant space.
But of course that's just my opinion which doesn't mean to say that someone else won't look at it and think "cool!!! i want one of them".

I would have been tempted to shoot it portrait using the right hand side of your image,getting much lower down and having 2 thirds land/1 third sky,but again that's just me...

AndyCole · #7 (**permalink**) 07-07-2008, 07:55

Thanks, Steve.
I know what you're saying. I guess that as photographers, we're extremely critical of our own work and that of others. But then, people who buy art from galleries probably aren't photographers

I've a colleague who's standard is quite a bit below mine and who tells me he's been selling quite a few prints at his local gallery. I guess I've got nothing to lose by trying.

I took quite a few different shots, so I'll probably have one like you mentioned. If I do, I'll post it.

Andy.