Photo Critique #1

As you must have noticed, I have got a interest in photography ... actually, maybe that's understating it ... I love photography. For more than 20 years, I've liked photography.  I didn't have a proper camera at first (some might argue that I don't have a proper camera now either), but that didn't affect my interest.  I eventually got my first digital camera 11 years ago, and I haven't looked back.  Over the years I have taken thousands of photos, some that I thought were good, and a lot that were not that good. I never got any training in photography, and never did a course ... so recently I decided to do a online photography course in the hopes of taking my photography to a new level.  I also decided to start analyzing and critiquing some of my favorite photos ... because this will help me to take better photos.

Here is the first photo that I have chosen to critique.  It is a photo of an Impala that I took before sunset in Kruger National Park, on the 5th of June, 2008. There is something about this photo that I like ... I'm not sure what it is; can't put my finger on it.  Maybe it's the sunset light ... maybe the way the light is falling on the Impala.

I'm not exactly sure how one does a critique of a photo, but I can tell you what I think is wrong with the photo (I suppose that is a critique).  The first thing that doesn't seem right with this photo is the other Impala that partly appears in frame on the left side.


They say that sometimes it is good to crop ... and sometimes one must crop.  So maybe this photo should rather be cropped so the other Impala on the left doesn't appear in the photo.  Also, there are 3 bright spots along the top, near the right corner, which seem to distract from the otherwise darker background.

So the top strip of the photo should also be cropped off.  This means that there will be less distraction along the left and top, and also the main subject of the photo will be bigger.  Cropping from the left side, and not the right side would mean that the Impala's head would be closer to the left margin, and this would mean that the Impala would be looking "out" of the photo ... so maybe the right side should also be cropped, to keep the photo balanced.

Lastly, I would have preferred it if there was a bit more contrast in the photo, and a bit more color saturation. True ... one can tweak the brightness, contracts, saturation and various other elements afterwards ... but I would have rather had it right in the original photo.  Here is what it would look like with a bit more contrast and saturation.

The extra contrast and saturation does make the photo appear to be more vibrant and warm.  Anyway ... the reason I am posting my photo critiques on my blog is mainly for one reason ... because I would like so feedback.  I am not looking for a pat on the back or something like that ... rather I am looking for contructive criticism, because this is the only way I am going to learn.  So please ... please, give me comments and feedback ... I really would like to hear from you.