CApe St Mary- Gannet Sunset

[Steve Bein]

This is full frame. I know it can be cropped to panoramic ratios, or just shave 5 or 10% to make the foreground gannet strongly into the power point, but this is full frame with negative spaces for text if wanted, etc. This is not the final , but what it is as came out of the pixel gatherer. I played with the exposure on manual to make underexpose the brightest areas and also make the flying birds stronger. I started out looking through the finder, but quickly got smart and used live view to block the sun from my eyes. though I took many, this was my favorite of the bunch. It was not easy to hit the right time for the gannet positioning. While I was working on the position in the upper left, it was serendipity that the two gannets on the right bracketed the light house.
1D MK IV
100-400mm @ 100mm
Subject dist: 18.1m
1/2000 sec, f/22
ISO: 800

[Jerry van Dijk]

This is very nice, Steve! Your handling of the exposure did the trick in getting the effect you wanted and I like it! I have no problems with the negative space, I like how it balances the composition which is all about silhouttes. Although the two gannets bracket the lighthouse, I would be inclined to clone it out. It distracts me from the birds. At the very least I would get rid of the masts to the right of the lighthouse and the fence on the left alsmost intersecting with one of the gannets.

[Jay Gould]

While I wouldn't make it into a pano because the area to the left of the hill at the bottom would be too empty, I would remove the two gannets and the poles to the right of the lighthouse.

If I were to make a pano out of the image, I would crop just above the dot on the LLHS.

I would also straighten the image.

[Arthur Morris]

Good job on the EXP. I would lose the middle gannet and crop from the bottom to a pano. And lose at least the two poles if not the lighthouse itself. (Who put that there anyway???)

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Steve,
Good options to explore above. I am leaning with Artie's recommendation.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Steve, In this case I agree with the crop from the bottom,losing the middle bird and structures. That will give a stronger play to the sun,birds and silhouette. I also like to think simpler..

[Rachel Hollander]

Steve - nice job on the exp and I like the sun. Some good alternatives above to explore comp and crop. It's nice to have choices.

TFS,
Rachel

[Roger Clark]

Steve,

Very nice image. The main things that bugs me is the horizon is not straight. I think this would work very nicely are a vertical, cropping off the right half of the image.
The crop would focus on the sun and bird. A vertical crop also enhances our perception of the size of the cliff.

Roger