Greetings from the Critique Club!
First Impression:
Interesting colours on the water, pity the ducks aren't centred more, feels too red.
Composition:
I'm not quite sure which lines you're trying to imply here: the line of the ducks/beaks or the lines on the water behind them... but given the title, I think it's safe to assume the former. The most obvious thing is that the ducks are all partly out of frame - it might have been better to have gone for a wider shot, which gives you more control over the framing. On the other hand, did you try cropping a bit tighter on the ducks' heads? This might have emphasised the line of beaks more.
Background:
The water in the background makes for a good contrast with the ducks' bodies, but I can't help feeling that the ripples are slightly distracting. Of course, this isn't something you can control easily! Perhaps a slightly shallower DoF would have helped blur the background more.
Camera Work:
As you mention in your photo details, this was a last minute shot, and it conveys the feeling of being more of a snapshot rather than a carefully composed shot, since the focus (and sharpening) look a bit ropey. It'd be interesting to know which lens you used to take this shot, along with the shutter/etc settings...
Post Processing:
Since you've not listed what you did in post, I can only make suggestions - did you try playing with the levels, possibly bringing out the white/highlight more? This would probably help make the white ducks stand out against the background more. Also, the image feels a bit too red, mostly from the reflections on the water, so I'd recommend playing with the hue/sat controls on the red channel a bit. Finally, the sharpening (to correct for the probably blurry original) feels a bit off, as pointed out by some of the comments. One final suggestion - did you try desaturating the image to B&W? Or even selectively desaturating everything bar orange, thus making the beaks really jump out?
My Opinion:
Given the fact that ducks are uncontrollable creatures, your line of beaks is a good moment captured. However, the setup of the shot could have been better. This image meets the challenge, but technical flaws let it down.
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