Help with composition.

[BRuhling]

I took this picture this morning with my D600. I was using a tripod, shot it with my 50mm f/1.8D lens at ISO 200, f/8.0, 3.0 Sec., 0 EV, no flash. I did a bit of clean up in post processing, mostly to emphasize the detail inside the tunnel... I'm still learning, so I'd love some thoughts from some of you who know what you're doing (unlike me)...


Here is the shot:

]

 

[djh]

Firstly Bill, let me compliment you on what is a great shot. If you are not satisfied with it, you will need to think about what you were trying to portray when you took the photo. There is obviously a sense of mystery there with the darkness and the limited amount of the tunnel being visible. It is well-lit, so it does not appear to be sinister although some people would suggest that any tunnel would give them that feeling.

Just one note: even though it is most comfortable to shoot from your tripod at shoulder height, that is not always the best place from which to take a photo.

 

[BRuhling]

David,

Thank you for the compliment and the comments. It's not so much that I'm unsatisfied with the picture, I actually like it quite a bit. But, I know that there are many, like yourself, with a lot more photography experience and comments like not always shooting from shoulder height on the tripod are very helpful. I actually took a few other shots of this same scene from the tripod at its lowest setting. I'll go back and play with one of those to see if I like the angle any better...

 

[MrDentini]

It looks like you do know what you're doing!
I like this shot, it leads the viewer's gaze towards something mysterious. Also the tones as good.

I don't know how, but the tunnel inside looks too crisp, like if you did a heavy sharpening in post. What are you using?
I like how Topaz and PixelGenius Photoshop plugins do behave with sharpening. But consider it is hard to judge a photo from a small image on video. If you print it, you'll see more things maybe.

As for the composition, I think there's maybe too much space down the entrance and too little at the top. But I don't know the options you had, maybe there was something ugly at the top you wanted to hide? I'm posting a faked version just to show you what I mean. I've also unsharpened it a little

 

[rajagra]

Heh, the way the foliage hangs in the light makes it look almost like a chandelier!
While I don't normally pay attention to the rule of thirds (naughty me), sometimes it helps. The tunnel looks very centralised (horizontally), maybe shifting it to one side would make the photo feel less staged. Try cropping the right out, there isn't too much of interest there. I think the drain on the left should be kept as a feature. Cropping this way would also give the impression of the tunnel leading out of the photo.

E.g.:

 

[BRuhling]

It looks like you do know what you're doing!
I like this shot, it leads the viewer's gaze towards something mysterious. Also the tones as good.

I don't know how, but the tunnel inside looks too crisp, like if you did a heavy sharpening in post. What are you using?
I like how Topaz and PixelGenius Photoshop plugins do behave with sharpening. But consider it is hard to judge a photo from a small image on video. If you print it, you'll see more things maybe.

As for the composition, I think there's maybe too much space down the entrance and too little at the top. But I don't know the options you had, maybe there was something ugly at the top you wanted to hide? I'm posting a faked version just to show you what I mean. I've also unsharpened it a little


View attachment 275610

I used NIK Software for the post processing. As for the top, there is really nothing there. It was just black as a result of it being predawn, plus, it's just a hill with nothing visible of any interest at all. I like the faked foliage, but sadly it wasn't available...

Heh, the way the foliage hangs in the light makes it look almost like a chandelier!
While I don't normally pay attention to the rule of thirds (naughty me), sometimes it helps. The tunnel looks very centralised (horizontally), maybe shifting it to one side would make the photo feel less staged. Try cropping the right out, there isn't too much of interest there. I think the drain on the left should be kept as a feature. Cropping this way would also give the impression of the tunnel leading out of the photo.

E.g.: View attachment 275618

I followed the rule of thirds in the way I did my crop, but just a different focus. I have the path inside the tunnel intersecting the bottom right cross-point... But I like your perspective too. Thank you for the thoughts.

These kinds of critique are exactly why I wanted to hear feedback on a picture I already liked. I feel like the pictures I don't like, I can instantly see tons of flaws. But the ones I like, I think additional eyes/brains helps me develop a better sense of how I can improve.