First Attempts at Sunset - C&C Welcome

[adversus]

Taken this past weekend on the northern Oregon coast. It's my very first attempt at trying to capture a sunset, so was taking as many pictures as I could using various aperture/shutter/ISO levels to get an idea for what to focus on next time.

Here's a handful of the attempts, any insights on what I can improve or do different would be appreciated

#1 - 1/1250, f4.5, 70mm, ISO 200:

#2 - 1/320, f3.5, 35mm, ISO 200:

#3 - 1/2500, f1.8, 35mm, ISO 200:

#4 - 1/250, f5.6, 300mm, ISO 200:

 

[OrionsByte]

I think you're shooting way too wide open for those shots, for one thing. You could have stopped down to f/22 and still had plenty of room for a good, stable shutter speed.

There aren't any interesting clouds or anything really in the sky, so having so much sky in the shot is kind of bland. More foreground interest (and a smaller aperture) might have been more interesting.

#3 has the most promise in my opinion - I like the silhouette effect. One other thing to work on, though, is not putting your subjects dead-center in the frame. Placing them off to one side or the other (look up the "rule of thirds") can present a more pleasing composition.

Keep shooting!