3 views of a sunset: taken in Sandy Hook NJ this summer. Always interested in comments and critiques.

GeorgeK Loc: NNJ

taken in Sandy Hook NJ this summer. Always interested in comments and critiques.

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L-Fox

GeorgeK wrote:

taken in Sandy Hook NJ this summer. Always interested in comments and critiques.

UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

Very nice work, George!

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Rare to see a sunset converted to black and white. Eye-catching!

I could envision a few nips and tucks if you were interested in simplifying the forms and tones a bit.

GeorgeK Loc: NNJ

Thank you for the comments above. Linda, please feel free to post your edits.

Rathyatra Loc: Southport, United Kingdom

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

GeorgeK wrote:

Linda, please feel free to post your edits.

Thanks for the opportunity, George!

I simplified the composition by cropping, softened the upper clouds and attempted to bring more attention to the sailboat and water with a bit of dodge/burn and sharpen.

As I mentioned, I don't recall seeing many sunsets in b&w, and this one fascinated me. Thanks again!

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ORIGINAL
ORIGINAL...

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

In my humble opinion and as per my taste the first shot is your best. I am not entirely happy with it, I would have used more of the scene but I was not there and it is difficult for me to make a judgement just based on what I see here.
First thing, I would clone the bird in the foreground leaving only the bird in the sky. I would use noise reduction, low setting. To enhance the color, like I usually do I go to Color Balance and work with the red and yellow slides. More with the red slide than yellow.
I would slightly add some brightness and I said SLIGHTLY, a sunset is supposed to be dark. Adding a High Pass filter at low setting will enhance sharpness.

GeorgeK Loc: NNJ

Linda From Maine wrote:

Thanks for the opportunity, George!

I simplified the composition by cropping, softened the upper clouds and attempted to bring more attention to the sailboat and water with a bit of dodge/burn and sharpen.

As I mentioned, I don't recall seeing many sunsets in b&w, and this one fascinated me. Thanks again!

I like your composition.

GeorgeK Loc: NNJ

camerapapi wrote:

In my humble opinion and as per my taste the first... (show quote)

Thanks for the comments. Happy to see what you have in mind if you care to post an edit.

Bultaco Loc: Aiken, SC

I prefer your first image, with just a little PP TLC.

lnl Loc: SWFL

I like the colors in the first one. To me, a sunset is an explosion of color so I can’t appreciate B&W for sunsets. Maybe that’s because I like colorful things in general though.

Curmudgeon Loc: SE Arizona

Bright red flashy sunsets are a dime a dozen but your B&W rendition is a pleasure to behold. You have created a soft, mellow feeling rather than a jarring, in your face impact of bright colors. After looking at your original and Linda's edits I think I like yours better but I can't tell you why. Personal taste I guess.

GeorgeK Loc: NNJ

Curmudgeon wrote:

Bright red flashy sunsets are a dime a dozen but your B&W rendition is a pleasure to behold. You have created a soft, mellow feeling rather than a jarring, in your face impact of bright colors. After looking at your original and Linda's edits I think I like yours better but I can't tell you why. Personal taste I guess.

Appreciate your comments. I like the original because it captured quite a dramatic sky but Linda’s crop favored simplicity and is also appealing to me.

captivecookie Loc: Washington state

I like the first one as well, and I agree with the opinion that the forgone bird can be cloned out with no loss.