Some recent sunset photos for C&C!

[Pillbug]

I recently made a trip out to a lake and took some photos of the sunset. Why does the horizon look curved on the 3rd photo? I'm using a 18-105mm lens on a nikon d90. C&C would be greatly appreciated!

1.
DSC_0022 by Mouthgasm, on Flickr

2.
DSC_0025 by Mouthgasm, on Flickr


3.
DSC_0052 by Mouthgasm, on Flickr

 

[hydkaran420]

I can't answer your questions but I like the pics very much. You were at the right place at the right time I guess.

 

[WesternGuy]

Welcome to the forum - always nice to have another member of the Great White North clan on board.

Nice images - which lake? The only nit I have is that #3 looks a little oversaturated - I have seen prairie sunsets and I'm not sure I have ever seen that shade of blue, but could be that you are farther north than I am and maybe that makes a difference - don't know. These are the kind of images that just scream for a graduated neutral density filter....

The curvature of the horizon in the third one maybe related to the focal length you took the image at - which part of the 18-105 did you use for each image?

The only thing I would do, is either place the sun right in the middle of the picture (yes it does violate the rule of thirds, but is permitted!) and place the horizon along the lower "thirds" line -this emphasizes the sky, which is what I presume you want to do here.

Of the three, I like the first one the best - has a good foreground anchor and the birds add some interest to the middle ground. In the second and third images, there is no foreground to provide the perception of visual depth, so we are left to wonder about scale, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. HTH.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

 

[Forkie]

I like #3 best. The orange fading in to deep blue and then to black is great. The curved horizon is most likely caused by lens distortion. Many lenses have this at their widest focal length and it distorts the other way when you zoom in to the other end.

What software are you using? Lens distortion is easily correctable in Photoshop - not sure about other software.

 

[illuminatingenigma]

I love the color in the third shot and the birds in the first one.

 

[markv20]

Nice shots! I really like #1 and #2. I think #1 would look better without the bush/tree branch sticking up on the left, to me it is distracting and keeps drawing my eye towards it.

 

[bazooka]

The 3rd is at 18mm, the first two are 35mm.

 

[spacefuzz]

I would love to see long crops of these

 

[Omofo]

I would love to see long crops of these

I agree, #3 would definitely look better in 16:9 format.