more cherry blossom photos - critques welcome

Went back to Jinhae again (flowers blooming this time). I know some people will say the composition is too busy and I accept that. However I was just wondering if people could critique me on everything else they dislike/like about the images.


Many thanks


Shooting mode: Aperture priority, Shutter speed: 1/30, Aperture: 11.0, Exposure compensation: 0, ISO: 100, Focal length 55.0, White balance mode: Cloudy


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Shooting mode: Shutter priority, Shutter speed: 1/500, Aperture: 2.8, Exposure compensation: 0, ISO speed: 100, Focal length: 33.0, White balance mode: cloudy


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Shooting mode: Aperture priority, Shutter speed: 1/13, Aperture: 8.0, Exposure composition: 0, ISO: 100, Focal length: 18.0, White Balance mode: cloudy


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Some definite improvements in the sharpness department - your apertures and shutter speeds are more appropriate, I think.


I like the first one the best - only critique there is the blown out/white sky makes it harder to distinguish the blossoms. I'll reiterate my recommendation for a CPL filter (unless the day was overcast - in that case, you'd have been better off on another day, maybe).


On the second one, it looks like nothing is really in focus. In brightly-lit scenes, a wide aperture (e.g. f/2.8) is usually used to provide out of focus blur so the subject is sharp and the fore/background are blurred. In #2, I can't find a clear subject for the image. Also, it looks a bit tilted, though that can be easily fixed in post processing.


For the third one, again, I'm not a fan of the composition - again, I don't see a clear subject or intent. Exposure is ok. If it were me, I'd have wandered down and shot a pic looking out through the closer archway, from low to the ground, with the archway in the shot to frame the bridge and trees.