wind powered cowsby
disassociationComment by FrankRobinson: Hi Leigh, welcome to the Critique Zone!
This is an interesting shot but I have to be honest and say straight up that it doesn't grab me as it is. The subject has potential but that is not enough on its own. What don't I go for?
Technical: It's ok - not as sharp as I would have liked but not dramatically out. The settings seem a little odd though. By the time you get to f18 on that lens, I would expect to have some diffraction creeping in (affecting sharpness) - you only need about f7.1 to achieve the DoF you need here. ISO 800 also seems high for such a nice day - which will also hit the sharpness.
PP: Two things that I would pick up on are the b/w conversion and sharpening. For the latter, I always sharpen post down-sizing. The re-size often detracts from the image that way. For the conversion, this looks like a straight de-sat, which leaves the image rather flat. Have you tried using other methods? Channel mixer is my favourite, really allows you to get some contrast in there. There are some more ideas
here
Artistically: This is completely subjective of course but... the perspective here is exactly the same as average joe would see walking past. I find myself more grabbed by shots showing an unusual perspective, perhaps from the ground, past a massive cow to a wind turbine or some such. Secondly, the subject cows are completely central, with the secondary windmills to the right. My eye almost feels dragged from right to left, which is not natural in the western world - we like to view from left to right. I don't know how you fix this.
As I sai, it's an interesting idea, but having scouted through your portfolio, it is definitely less than you are capable of (loved your minimalist landscape outtake!)
Happy hunting,
Frank.
Photographer found comment helpful.
