Lucy in the Sky with Diamondsby
fernandacapibaribeComment by ursula: Fernanda, hello from the Critique Club:
I imagine you probably were disappointed with your results. I hope nevertheless continue to enter challenges - it's a great way to learn.
First impression: A very peaceful image with a beautiful clear blue sky.
Focus is good, if you flip the image (back to normal). As it is (upside down) it looks as if it were out of focus (because the reflection is not as sharp as the actual buildings.
Aperture/Shutter Speed F5.6 seems like too large an aperture for a landscape image. IMO, you could have used F8 to F11 for this image, although it probably would not have made much of a difference. The trees have no detail, they look like dark masses; it is difficult to capture detail when there is this much contrast between sky and land. The traditional method is to use a gradated filter. In digital you could use contrast masking to increase detail in selected areas. Contrast masking is allowed in advanced editing. If you wish to find out more about it, there is a lot of info on it in the thread about landscape photography.
Composition: It usually is not such a good idea to place the horizon line right in the middle of the image, dividing it into two equal parts; it makes for a static image, without much life. The horizon line does not look straight (it is slightly tilted), and that's quite distracting in this kind of an image. Flipping the image is interesting, but it tends to draw attention to the weaker parts of the image and diminish its stronger points. The large dark tree masses to the left and right are a bit much compared to the buildings - they don't really do anything there.
Meeting the challenge: Without the title, there is no way that there would be a connection to the challenge, and even with the title the connection is somewhat weak. There is no recognizeable "Lucy", or diamonds. There is a lot of sky. It's not a strong enough connection to sell the image for the challenge.
Overall: This is a peaceful image with a beautiful blue that brings out the warm tones of the buildings. I think the location has a lot of potential to create some beatiful, interesting images.
I do hope the critique helps in a small way. I hope to see more of entries from you.
Take care,
~Ursula
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