Photography newbie

OK folks, I'm new to this stuff. Canon 40D, Canon EF 24-105 lens. Late evening in November.





This is a local park/lake in Sumter, SC.





Gene





http://web.ftc-i.net/~gfailmezger/SwanLake.JPG

Very nice I think

This is a decent shot, but I feel that there is not a good focus to draw the eye. The bright green branch is a good start, but the dynamic range is hard to work with. The sky is too bright and the highlights on the duck are blown. In addition the branches in the foreground are difficult to work with. I do like the trees out in the water and the reflections. Good color.


We don't get fall colors here in Flagstaff. I need to make a trip to the east coast. Keep shooting!

Thanks. This is exactly the kind of stuff I need to hear.





Gene

Good composition. A bit oversharpened I think.

Stephen makes some good points. I think that if you had gone five or so steps to the right (if you could:)) you would have pulled the colors out in a very desireable way. Then you might have given the little beach on the other side of the lake the focal point. That would be good but might cut out some of what you want. Then another option would be to use the point as the focal point of the picture but you don't have light on it so it is very hard to draw it out. I think that the best option would be the green in the trees as Stephen said.

You are on your way to an interesting composition. For my taste, I think you had some potential in here for exploring reflections. Think about what you wanted to achieve with this composition. What did you want to show us? For me there is so much going on, but I don't know where to look or what to think. You coudl have explored high contrast light and dark for instance. The trees to the right of the bank would mave made anice subject. The one with the shadow splitting the middle of the tree in particular is appealing. Anyway, I can tell it was a stellar day. Thank you for sharing and allowing us to comment.

Gene,
Great start, here is what I would do.


Crop:
If you like the verticals of the trees, then crop the right half off the photo. If you like the reflection the best I would crop the top third and the right 1/5th off. The bright section cathes the eye, but I am guessing it's not your main intent here.


Exposure:
The duck looks a little blown out.What happens if youlower the exposureand add a little fill light? Some people swear by curves, but I seem to hurt more than help with them. I would also try levels sometimes playing with the dark side helps a little.


Rotate:
Also this may be tilted just a little bit(2degrees) to the right.


Good luck make sure to post again when you have it the way you want it.


Thanks,


Tom