somber landscape photo for C&C

[A. Simard]

Hi there. Here is a somber photo of mine, and one of my favourites. Admittedly it would probably only appeal to a minority who appreciate this sort of thing. I was a bit concerned the viewer might not know what to make of that white patch, but ultimately I figured they would understand it's snow seeing as how the trees don't have leaves. I guess I'm really just wondering to what extent this sort of photo appeals to other people, or if it just appeals to my personal tastes exclusively!

Note by the way that I don't care about standard sizes, I crop the photo down to the pixel to what I think looks best. Also I don't know any of the 'rules' of photography and my belief system tells me to throw the rulebook out the window (I'm taking a photography course in a couple months just to be sure, however).

Also note that my camera isn't the best, and in any case I try to turn its shortcomings into advantages as you can see in what I've tried to do with the 'texture' or what not; although the photo is posted here in a small size so you may not be able to notice this regardless.

Much thanks in advance for any constructive criticism!

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[dhilberg]

Watch out for the photography course. Art is very subjective and if your instructor doesn't like your work you'll get a crappy grade, no matter how much effort you put into it (been there). Unless you need art credits I wouldn't bother. You'll learn more reading a couple books and just shooting. Although if it involves film and a dark room then I would do it, just for the experience.

I think the crop on your photo is too tight, but I like the positioning of the winter elements on the top and bottom (leafless branches and snow, respectively). It creates a nice balance. However, I don't find the photo as a whole very interesting.

 

[A. Simard]

Thanks for the reply, dhilberg.

Yeah with the tight crop I was aiming to accentuate the branches at the top, so that the viewer is forced to take notice of them in a sort of 'uncomfortable' way. Of course I'm very comfortable with the fact that it's uncomfortable, so in effect for me it isn't uncomfortable--rather it's beautiful--and I just want to express that vision through the photo!

As for the courses that's a good point you raise, happily though it's not a school course, it's just for me on the side.