New Joiners - Landscapes #960

Timing is important when shooting landscapes. The photographer has waited for that lone fluffy cloud to be aligned with the mountain peak so that it resembles smoke from a volcano. It's a great view and I like the cotton grass in the foreground. However, I wonder if there was a viewpoint where the photographer could have included the mountain's reflection in entirety. I might also crop this image to lose some of the empty blue sky above the mountain.

This is a lovely, colourful scene, with layers of interest. Unfortunately, the image is too bright and overexposed. Use your Nikon D3400's highlights warning and/or histogram to assess exposure. If you see a large spike of pixels grouped toward the right of the histogram graph, reshoot with negative exposure compensation to make the image darker overall. This will ensure you capture highlight detail.

I really like the level of water motion in this shot - it adds interest and energy. I'm guessing the photographer switched on Live mode on their iPhone and then selected the Long Exposure option to create this effect. Mobile phones are amazing today, but they still limit the creative options and accessories you can use. For example, in this instance, a polarising filter would have been really helpful, allowing the photographer to reduce reflections and glare to restore the natural colour saturation of the water and foliage.

There is really nice light play within this landscape, with light and shade helping to highlight different parts of the scene while providing needed depth, contrast and interest. This scene feels quite abstract at first glance, boosting lovely texture, repetition, and little sense of context or scale. But once you study the shot longer - and notice the trees at the base on the canyon - you begin to appreciate the size and vastness of this landscape. A nicely captured photo.

What a lovely, tranquil scene this is. I love the water's texture and shape. The simple layers of sand, water, and sky - combined with setting sun and warm, soft light - create a calm, pleasing result. The placement of the sun and horizon produce an engaging composition. A wonderfully simple shot.

This is a nicely timed shot, but it's an editing problem that I immediately noticed when this photo first popped up. I'm guessing the photographer has used a masking tool (for example, Select Subject in Adobe Lightroom) and made an exposure adjustment. However, this adjustment has affected the sky behind the tower too and it's now white and overexposed. Unfortunately, this crude adjustment really stands out. The original file needs reediting with more care. There are a few dust spots that need to be removed.

I love those soft, pink hues and the mirror-like reflection. This a calming, tranquil shot. The wide aspect ratio suits the landscape perfectly. The dusting of snow really reveals the outline and detail of the mountain peaks. A well composed and successful shot.

I love this simple, graphic composition. The drone perspective really reveals the lines, shapes, and symmetry within the landscape. In my view, there is too much sky and I might be tempted to crop this image slightly to lose some of that empty space.

As good as modern sensors are, they still have limited dynamic range. Therefore, they struggle with high contrast scenes like this. In the future, try identifying a shooting angle where the sun is just out of frame. This will help you avoid ugly and distracting overexposed highlights which are devoid of detail.

This is a well seen and captured shot. Telephotos are perfect for isolating detail and interest within the landscape and in this instance the photographer has highlighted the shapes and texture of the sand dunes and also the plants that live in this hostile environment. The narrower aspect ratio neatly matches the landscape.