minniev Loc: MIssissippi

A Pano of 4 shots. All comments, suggestions, edits appreciated. Also - Don't know if the piece of the bird blind and dead tree on the right should stay or go.

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Anvil Loc: Loveland, CO

I love the dramatic sky set against the calm waters. I think what make the scene work for me is the distinct regions -- sky, trees, water, grass. I keep looking for views like that.

I might be in the minority when I say that I like parts of trees poking into the sides and top of a picture. Yes, they may seem disconnected, they may also serve as a natural frame, though an implicit one. In this case, I'd crop out the piece of the bird blind, but leave the tree limb. Since there is a portion of tree on the left side, leaving the one on the right seems to provide balance. The trees would act as bookends, a sort of implied frame.

NJFrank Loc: New Jersey

In my opinion I think if you flip the shot the eye would follow the flow of the water since most of us are used to looking left to right. The bird blind and and tree were the first thing to catch my eye. I had to "fight to look to the left to take in the rest of the picture. I hope this makes sense to you.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

I know you welcome edits, so rather than trying to explain I thought I'd just post. The pano process left the horizon a bit curved, so I used the lens distortion tool to straighten it (still not perfect). I also gave it a vertical stretch and cropped some off of the foreground (who needs stepladders ). And the bird blind kept catching my eye, so it's gone...

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Uuglypher Loc: South Dakota (East River)

Hi, min,
nicely done pano.
Re: leaving in the tree and blind? I'd wager that the wildlife photographers amongst us would keep 'em,...others not.

As for the "we read left-to-right- so-flip-it" idea? it has been an idea promulgated for many years, but there is far less there than meets the eye, and for many it makes no sense. Very few spend more time reading than visually perceiving and interacting with their surroundings every waking moment. Composition of the scenes we observe determine the paths our eyes follow in appreciating them, and in most cases, foreground details attract us first. In an image of linear perspective we watch parallel lines converge...we don't latch onto the vanishing point and then watch the lines of perspective spread apart as they approach us. Composition isn't just something with which we imbue an image. Composition is all around us to appreciate and incorporate into our sense of reality of the images we make.

Just a perspective not only on perspective, but upon all other compositional aspects of our personal neighborhoods of the cosmos.
Look around...or...y'can just read about it when not engaged otherwise ( as we usually are...)

The Colorado River flows trending South West...so...should we flip images of its Grand Canyon from its South rim because we read left-to-right?....or value images of the Ohio river made only from its North bank?

Yeah...those last two questions are rhetorical.

Dave

NJFrank Loc: New Jersey

Ah taking out the bird blind did it for me. I am no longer "locked" into the right side and my view of the entire scene for me flows much easier. The little crop changed everything for me.

Uuglypher Loc: South Dakota (East River)

Hi, Min,
I agree with Frank that R.G.'s crop and vertical stretch and straightening the horizon all conspire to put the final touches to a wonderful image!

Dave

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Uuglypher made eloquent points, but I still like a flip on this one

This is R.G.'s edit, which I found to be quite beautiful. Very lovely scene, Minnie. Like it a lot!

St3v3M Loc: 35,000 feet

I thought it would be interesting to see them together. S-

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

Thanks, and I agree about the bookends, which was why I kept what I did. The bird blind was a whim, unsure about it.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

Hadn't even thought of that. I tend to just accept landscapes as they are, when I'm familiar with them.But flipping is an easy trick. Thanks!

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

I like those adjustments RG.I didn't even notice the curve till you mentioned it. The vertical stretch is a good tool for panos. I don't do them enough to have a set of strategies. Thanks!

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

Thank you for bringing up some really interesting discussion points about composition that would bear further exploration and perhaps even a thread of its own with images to share and discuss. Are you up for starting something like that? I'd be glad to help!

Because I shoot both landscape and other stuff, I can say I do approach the landscape ones differently. I think nothing of flipping a pelican around to face the other way, but with most landscapes I'm familiar with, whether by experience or by seeing images of an iconic location, I can say I seldom think of flipping them because I can't see them properly in another way than they actually exist. It isn't so much a photo-ethics issue as an issue of orientation. Part of looking at a landscape is feeling yourself IN the scene. If things aren't where I expect them to be, I have trouble enjoying the image for trying to figure out where everything is, and why.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

He convinced me too!

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

It looks good that way, thanks Linda. I explained in my response to Dave that I so rarely even think of flipping a landscape shot. I don't object to it philosophically, I just have some trouble looking at them that way and really evaluating them. It's an interesting question.