Gateway to the Nightby
dahvedComment by zagman: Hello from the Critique Club. Thank you for submitting your photo to the DPChallenge, Late Night.
Looks like a private view of the house across the street. The door is opened just enough to see the street and the house. The light on the tree looks well placed. It could be a street light. The same type of lighting is on the fence on your side as well. I suppose you can go through this doorway and steal into the night.
This is an interesting choice, but it has several factors for discussion. The viewer is not really engaged into the photo. There is no focal point, except the objects on the other side of the street. You can see sky, but its almost secondary. The shot is almost at an angle. It could be the unbalance look of the wooden door. There is a lot of grain in the sky making it distracting.
Technically, I see that you used a long exposure. 15 seconds on a aperture of f/3.2 and the camera was on automatic. Yeah, as you mentioned, you could have used different ISO settings to give the scene for interest. A higher ISO setting has to be matched with the correct light and shutter opening. If your camera has manual settings, this could also help find the correct exposure.
The light from your back yard patio, might work if you had experimented with different light and camera setting combinations.
You have met the challenge but your image does not engage your viewer. The color combinations are very interesting. The dark and light yellow colors make it a photo with potential.
Overall a good simple shot that some voters might like.
Good luck in your next DPChallenge.
Photographer found comment helpful.