Mt Sneffels at sunrise (view large)

I would like to hear opinions on this image, and specifically:

Is the unevenly-lit sky a big bother?

Are the colors too saturated?

Any cropping suggestions from top and bottom (I think I want to keep

the sides)?

 

Thanks for your input.

Sure, the colors are too saturated... Not realistic with pinky clouds; it seems like a painted landscape with oil on canvas...

The composition appears to be pretty good. The colors are somewhat over saturated, but the one thing I noticed most was the sky...it is not really blue...it is a shade of purple. I think a shot like this really needs to have that bright blue sky. The purple tinge indicate to me that the color tweaking was over done...Other than that, I think this could be a very beautiful image...just work on the colors some...

una maravilla de paisaje muy bien plasmado , un saludo

As for possible cropping suggestions. A tiny little bit should go off the left. Matter of few pixels. The reason, to me, is that one should not finish pictures with ridges or walls which lead outside the shot, if possible, and here you've a wall just at the edge. If you remove the wall, stopping at the peak, the eye will not be attracted out of the shot.

 

As for the top, I usually dislike in my shots large amount of sky above mountains, since this has the tendency to dwarf them. In this case, large space is necessary since there is the highest cloud which very nicely balances the soft alpenglow on the peak. Still, a bit off the top would be helpful, let's say half of the blue sky you have now.

 

This told, the colours are very pleasent to look at and the composition is well thought. In particular I like the way you have almost a "reflection" of the shape of the mountain in that V shape of the foreground ridges. Very well done!

I like your cropping suggestions, especially the one on the left (which I did not think about).

i agree with Salvatore's cropping suggestion - good catch.

i would also take a bit off the sky, not necessarily because a large amount of sky can't work, but here i think there is not enough going on in the top half of the frame to balance the lower half.

by taking off enough to preserve a 2:3 ratio (35mm), i think you would achieve a nice balance (see attachment). the clouds are also preserved.

the color in the sky and clouds is believable. i've been out enough to know that such colors are possible without much manipulation. i do think, though, the the mountains are a bit too "sharp". usually at this viewing distance, there is at least a bit of atmospheric haze, even on a clear day. it looks like you've boosted the contrast a fair amount. doesn't look bad, aesthetically, but looks like it has been manipulated...

 

-Anish

Thanks Anish for your suggestions. I do agree that the mountain is too sharp and contrasty, and will need to rework the RAW file. The reason I requested critique for this photo is to make changes based on people's opinion before I make a large print. Based on the cropping suggestions, I can print the photo at 20x30. Thank you for your time.