Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by JuliBoc:
Okay, Jeb, here is my comment. First of all, I think you had a very acceptable score and ranking. I think it would have been even higher if the goose/duck in the foreground had been in good focus. The mood of the scene is excellent, the landscape is excellent, but the wildlife in the foreground is out of focus. This is the first place the eye goes when viewing the shot -- it is the lower right power point (intersection of the 1/3 divisions). I think even if you had put this in Free Study, the focus would have been a problem. A very long DOF with the foreground in focus would, in my opinion, make this a lovely, high-scoring shot.

One other thing that I think may detract from the overall quality of the composition is the very hard and sharp edges of the surface where the goose is standing. It is in harsh contrast to the soft, misty feel of the rest of the image.

Finally, the house in the distance seems to be off kilter. The whole image needs to be rotated slightly clockwise.

I'm no expert, but that's the way I see it. I hope this helps.

Black and White
by NikonJeb

Comment by jaysonmc:
I voted on the image, but never really commented on it. In reality you were very very orignal with this shot. It is a shot that breaks the grain yet works because it still fits the challenge. I love the idea!

However, being honest here I dislike it as a portrait. Even if the portrait was in black and white I still wouldn't vote it high. It's just not a good portrait, at least to me. Harsh light, awkward/downward pose, skin too shiny, and it is hard to see the eyes. The model almost seems to be squinting/moving away from the sun. Did you use a fill flash? I think some added lighting would have helped. Don't get me wrong, the subject has strong interest just the setup is wrong to me. I do like the background color choice, good use of depth and focus. I am being a little harsh here, I know... Of course take this lightly, I am horrible at taking portraits.

What I am saying, if this would have been the same colorized idea but setup as a traditional portrait it would be an easy and rare 10 from myself. As it stands it is just average even though the idea was awesome.

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by jaysonmc:
I think overall the mood is great. It is a very artisticly done shot. I don't mind the depth choice used here, I think having the front duck slightly out of focus works great. There are just a few compositional elements I would change, and really this is mostly beyond your control. The ducks in the pond, I wish they were more to the left, or at least the two to the furthest to the right. They distract just a bit from the front ducks form. It would just be a small element that would make a better line and get more involement in that middle section. Lastly just a slight adjustment in the angle, maybe just a bit higher, so you could get the foreground duck's head in the water rather than covering up some elements in the background. Granted of course that you can still maintain the same general perspective

However, I'm just picking on very small details here. It's the type of thing that makes a great wildlife picture extrodinary. Sometimes a little luck has to come into play. Wildlife I think is the hardest, because in the purest sense you have the lease amount of control of your subjects. This is really a tremendous photo you have here!

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by mist:
I think for this I would have had to go one way or the other with the depth of field. Either drop down and attempt to bring the duck in to focus, or push the focus further away. As it is my eyes are drawn back and forward in an awkward manner. The general composition though is outstanding.

Blue Glass Cornucopia
by NikonJeb

Comment by Candi20:
Would have been better if the glass object was more in focus.

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by saintaugust:
this fits the challenge and beyond, nice moodiness and atmosphere for the subjects.

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by whiterook:
I like the highlite of the water todraw the eyes to the small ducks.
What isthe object just from the the small duck to the right. It looks like a griant duck. Definitly a 10.

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by noraneko:
Jeb, I know you are bummed because you barely missed that 6, but this is a really interesting shot, one of the most artistic of the challenge - a shot of which you should be proud! The mist is lovely and the intentional lack of focus on the foreground duck adds a lot of depth. Great job.

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by xianart:
very very pleasing shot, jeb. the compostion is great, and i agree with deb, the foreground duck out of focus works well. i'm not mad on the green border, though. my eye keeps being drawn to that, rather than to the beautiful image it contains.

o, and now i have 'dust in the wind' stuck in my head...

Ducks in the Mists
by NikonJeb

Comment by Melethia:
Very nearly a 6 and a nice shot, too! Very peaceful - mist works well and the house adds a lovely element to show that wildlife does indeed coexist quite nicely with man. Seems the majority of the commenters wanted to see the foreground duck a bit sharper. It does work this way, though it requires the viewer to linger a bit longer to appreciate. The "scene" is the house with the ducks in the water. The "sentinel" is the single duck in the foreground, keeping an eye on things but not wishing to be the focal point.