Critiques

Photo Critique Series: Light and Drama at Tunnel View

Yosemite Valley View by Srinivasa Punnamraju

Yosemite Valley View by Srinivasa Punnamraju

The Photo Critique Series is not dead! It just took a long vacation. 🙂 This time we’ll look at a photograph by Srinivasa Punnamraju from Tunnel View in Yosemite.

Light and Weather

Srinivasa was lucky to catch some dramatic weather at Yosemite’s most iconic location, Tunnel View. There were plenty of interesting clouds overhead, and some nice mottled patterns of light and dark on the cliffs – especially the striped bands on El Capitan to the left.

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Photo Critique Series: A Spectacular Cloud Formation in the Yosemite High Country

Lenticular Clouds, Tioga Pass, Yosemite, by David Silva

Lenticular Clouds, Tioga Pass, Yosemite, by David Silva

It’s been awhile, but I thought it was time to post another photo critique. This time I’ll look at an image by David Silva from Yosemite’s high country.

Light and Weather

David found some amazing lenticular clouds flowing over Yosemite’s high peaks just before sunset. (Where was I that day?) David told me that he and his wife were driving over Tioga Pass to the eastern Sierra when he noticed some interesting clouds forming. He considered stopping earlier, but decided to push on to Olmsted Point, and was able to make it there in time to catch the light on the clouds and peaks before the sun set.

This was perfect timing. There’s a nice orange glow on the highest peaks, creating a warm-cool color contrast. The last light highlights Mt. Conness in the distance, creating a small-but-important focal point. The clouds fit into the gap between the peaks is perfectly. There’s a beautiful, dramatic, late-day mood to the scene.

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Photo Critique Series: Visual Flow in a Photograph of Half Dome

"Winter Mist Rising Beneath Half Dome," by Vaibhav Tripathi

“Winter Mist Rising Beneath Half Dome,” by Vaibhav Tripathi


Here’s another long-awaited installment in my photo critique series. This time we’ll look at a photograph by Vaibhav Tripathi called “Winter Mist Rising Beneath Half Dome,” from my home territory, Yosemite National Park. It’s an interesting study in composition, and directing the viewer’s eye.

Light and Weather

The light is soft — no direct sunlight anywhere. Soft light is great for intimate scenes, but big, sweeping landscapes like this usually need sunlight to create contrast and keep the photograph from looking flat. Yet there’s actually a beautiful quality to the light here. This was made at dusk, and there’s a hint of alpenglow illuminating Half Dome, some blue in the sky, and of course the mist in the middle ground. The upper half of the photograph in particular has a luminous quality, and there’s a quiet, misty, mystical mood to the image. I also like the subtle hues and the warm-cool color contrast.

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Photo Critique Series: Space and Separation in a Mt. Shasta Photograph

Mt. Shasta and Lake Siskiyou by Kyle Jones

Mt. Shasta and Lake Siskiyou by Kyle Jones


I know it’s been awhile since the last critique; it’s been hard to find the time lately. But many of you have told me how much you like the critiques, and I really appreciate that, and I’m happy to have the opportunity to do another one. I’m writing this critique, rather than doing it by video, because, well, it’s just easier. But I may still do video critiques again in the future.

The subject of this critique is a photo by Kyle Jones called “Mount Shasta and Lake Siskiyou,” from the far northern reaches of California. I think this image has some interesting things to teach us about space and separation in a composition, and shutter speeds for water.

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Photo Critique Series: Re-Processing a Misty Forest Scene

Photo Critique Series: “Mist” by David Eaton, Part 1 (direct link to YouTube)

Photo Critique Series: “Mist” by David Eaton, Part 2: Processing (direct link to YouTube)

Yes, the critiques are back—finally! This critique features a beautiful forest image called “Mist,” by David Eaton. The photograph was made in an area called The Chase near Birmingham, England.

This is my second video critique, and I’ve broken it into two parts. The first video discusses the processing (briefly), light, composition, exposure, and sharpness. In the second video I demonstrate how I re-processed the image in Lightroom.

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Rejects From the Critique Pool

I continue to get lots of great submissions for my photo critique series. Thanks to all of you who have submitted work!

When selecting images to critique I usually pick photos that are good, but could be improved in some way. That gives me something to talk about, and I think these good-but-not-perfect photos are usually very instructive.

But that means many great images don’t get picked, and lie in obscurity in the Flickr critique pool. So for this post I thought I’d do something different and showcase some beautiful photos that I haven’t critiqued because I can’t figure out how to improve them. There are many more, and I wish I could show them all, but for now here are eleven rejects from the critique pool—rejected because they’re just too good:

"San Francisco" by Neal Pritchard

"San Francisco" by Neal Pritchard


I love the layers of hills leading to the barely-visible but still recognizable San Francisco skyline. You can see more of Neal’s work on his web site and Flickr stream.

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