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Beautiful old tree Frank! This image has a real nice flow to it. Nicely composed.

All the best,
Neil

could be a paint, very nice

It's an image full of detail and interest, and that tree certainly has character!

Frank:  Wow. This tree is a find, a real find. It resembles the old pine on top of Sentinel Done in Yosemite that Ansel Adams used to photograph (it died a few years ago). Although this image is nice, I would suggest returning, particularly early morning/late evening with a thermos of coffee and plan on many takes. There is much potential here.

I guess its a HDR, but enough natural feeling to be really enjoyable. The repeated forms are nice, well composed.

Overall, I am not pleased with this  image, especially the more I view it; particularly in the left background, cropping to edge of rock just left of tree would not compromise image; there is too much sky; I was sloppy with shadow toning along the mountains. and i forgot to check critique only box.

Thank you niki and PJ.  a little glamor glow and texture could turn this into a respecable faux painting of this ancient, gnarled and twisted creature looking out from a place so high where few survive (this is just above the tree line)

Mark I intend to get the early morning shot this weekend; late afternoons here are oftentimes known for lightning specticles and cold rain and hail.  Yeah, Ansel Adams, I keep working on it -- my favorite is Rose on Driftwood. 

Neil and Carsten, I'm glad you bothfind the composition pleasing. My focus of attention was getting a good exposure on the old tree's needles from the center to the right to minimize post processing of shadows, and to take advantage of the scene's  natural flow and repeated forms.  No HDR, Carsten -- CS5 Extended (try it -- content aware fill, rule of 3rds cropping -- really helps me, ACR lens profiling and perspective adjustment, create 3D planar to add depth and relief to 2D -- not used here, and a lot more stuff I have not used yet)