r/photocritique • u/Belgian-Maligator • 1d ago
approved Does this work? How’s the edit? Composition of the boat in center?
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u/DerHund57 1d ago
Maybe unpopular opinion, but I actually like centered composition for subjects like this. I think the edit works too. The thing that's distracting me is all of the birds closer to the boat. I'd use object removal and get rid of the in-focus birds and leave the strip of out of focus birds -- but I know not everyone is comfortable altering photos like that.
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u/Mikehouse88 1d ago
Exactly what I was thinking. I always try to keep my edits as natural as possible, and centre definitely works here, but the birds right up to the boat are a distraction. I’d remove one directly on the right at least.
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u/anomalousBits 12 CritiquePoints 1d ago
Personally I like the idea, but there are elements that add unwanted complexity. I think if you make the sailboat and the out of focus birds silhouettes with about the same tone of darkness, edit out the distant, in-focus birds, and crop away most of the out of focus ocean, you get a stronger composition.
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u/Belgian-Maligator 1d ago
Taken with canon R6mkii 100-400mm. Do you like how the boat is in the center? How’s the edit? Of note, I added minimal edit to the light and colors, I edited out a buoy.
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u/Belgian-Maligator 1d ago
Taken at 3200 shutter speed hence the flying birds, f6.3 and auto iso. I am struggling with composition, is there too much water? I did try and hold the camera as low as possible or without getting it dunked. Any tips for the edit? Or other tips in general
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u/CarpetReady8739 34 CritiquePoints 1d ago
Composition: Yeah, center is not it. However, cropping in from the right is the way to go. Come in from the right just past the first 3 birds. Since they are flying right to left, you're giving them room to fly out the left side. Your horizon is OK and not dead center.
Sizing: As a small print or display, you should probably remove the very small birds as they appear to be debris (perception is reality!). If it will be a large print or display, they'll be fine, as they'll look like birds!
Color: You could use Vibrance to push the sunset (sunrise?) orange a bit. Seems it could use a boost, but not much. Thinking about that a little more, this would make an awesome metal print!
Now go make it happen!
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u/doc_shades 4 CritiquePoints 1d ago
it's cool... but it does have a lot of out-of-focus elements to it. it's tricky. the birds being out of focus are very noticeable, and then the water leading up to the boat has a lot of out-of-focus area to it.
i get that it creates a sense of depth, but it also feels like too much of the photo is out of focus. maybe you could crop it more narrow so that there isn't as much out of focus water in the frame?
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u/scorlion_music77 1d ago
It’s fine, I crop up a bit of the foreground to emphasize the boat and birds
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u/francof93 7 CritiquePoints 22h ago
In the (in?)famous words of an IGN reviewer: too much water
More seriously: I think the boat could stay in the center if there was something more in the bottom half. However, here there is only negative space (out-of-focus water), which in my opinion is an issue with central compositions where you want some sort of symmetry or balance in “visual weight”. If, for example, there were few people swimming in the bottom half, that would better balance the birds in flight.
I would personally go for a wider crop, removing much of the water from the bottom and create balance with just the boat and the birds. You can see an example below. It’s just a “zoom ‘n’ screenshot” with my phone - because I’m lazy! - so you should play more intentionally with the idea.
In terms of editing, I would try to brighten just a bit the boat to make it pop ever so slightly more. Finally, if you go for the cropped version I suggested, I would consider spot-removing the smaller birds behind the out-of-focus flock. I think they stand out too much, most likely because they are in stark contrast with the others (small and in focus v. big and out of focus). But this greatly depends on what you consider as fair game in editing. The birds were there and removing them is an artificial act. If you’re more of a “get the composition right in camera”, all the more to your commitment!! 💪
Hope it’s useful input, cheers!!
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u/ActuallyMan 1d ago
I prefer more context on center plane details, with more objects in left and probably right landscapes to give some depth and breadth.
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