Happy Birthday Langdon! I got you a ray of light. It's not worth much but it's pretty :-)by
TJinGuyComment by dr rick: Greetings from the Critique Club!
Langdon seems to like it, and why not? Photographers always appreciate nice light, and this really is pretty! The color really draws you in to the photo and provides a wonderful backdrop for the subject: the light ray.
I find your choice of a landscape orientation interesting. I would have probably opted for a portrait format to focus attention more squarely on the subject and give the photo a more exciting feel. The dark foreground formations seem unnecessary, and I would have cropped them out, leaving only a bit for contrast and framing. Yet the way you have it does work very well. The foreground is dark enough not to detract from the subject, and gives a more relaxing feel that contrasts nicely with the light ray.
I have two suggestions for postprocessing. Both are based on personal preference, so may or may not suit your taste, but give them a try.
First, bump up the midtone contrast a bit to make the subject stand out more. Curves is the tool of choice for this, but I don't know if PSE5 has that. Alternatively, use the Midtone Contrast slider in the Shadows/Highlights tool.
Second, use a touch of Unsharp Mask. It will bring out the textures in the canyon walls, but you mostly want to add definition to the edges of the light ray.
Overall, this is a beautiful photo. Nice work.
