Moorland Sheep

This sheep was standing perfectly still on the windswept uplands of Dartmoor in a brief lull in

the driving rain. She seemed quite a heroic figure to me (soon to return to my warm car)

enduring the cold and wet as she does throughout the year.

 

I deliberately chose an "against the rules" centred design to emphasise the stationary scene -

I am interested in how this comes across. Thank you for your comments / crits.

Moody! I really like it but I'm wondering about a crop from the right...

It's a pastoral! This is great; I love sheep. ( : Nice colors. I have to agree that I find the arrangement of the sheep, tree, and hill a little awkward compositionally. But I also know how hard it can be to photograph sheep; they move fast if they see you coming.

Thank you for your comments. Vrindavan, I agree that for a normal scene this would be too much grey sky but in this particular place, high up on the moors, you feel very much surrounded by the sky so it becomes an important part of the landscape. Jenny, I deliberately clustered the main features together to try to emphasise the surrounding space, especially on the right (if I included too much of it the sheep etc. would be too small.

 

Best wishes, Jonathan

I don't have a problem with the sheep dead center, so much as the combination of the sheep dead center with the hightpoint of the hill in the same position. Move that peak over to the right a bit, and I'd say right on. As to the sky, I agree that it is integral to the mood and is perfect as is. I agree with the person who thought it looked biblical. That was my first visceral reation.

Thank you for you thoughtful comment. I think you have a good point about the peak position. I shall look into how I could recompose it - moving it, as you say, slightly to the right.

 

Best wishes, Jonathan

This is fantastic composition.

 

The position of the peak of the mountain sets a visual anchor that is deftly balanced by the tree (sloping upward right to left) on the left and the faint (sloping upward left to right) hills on the right. The main object (the Moorland sheep) looks placed in just the right spot to keep a balance. From front to back it balances with the peak and enough of it is to the right to offset the visual weight difference the tree adds to the left side.

 

The light on the Moorland Sheep pops.

 

When I looked at the thumbnail I said 'Oh, so that's how you shoot those.' It must have been a fantastic sight. 'Those' being shots in that type of environment.

 

Excellent.

Thank you. Yes, the light was quite charactistic of the moorland - some watery sunlight breaking through a gap in the rain clouds, the whole scene feeling a bit like being underwater. I shall post some others taken there and at Hound Tor.

 

Best wishes, Jonathan.