Rodeo Beach [+repost]

Gallery: LandscapePosted September 7, 2011399 views16 comments

Spent my labor day weekend in San Francisco with family. This is Rodeo beach near the Golden Gate bridge. Sunset never really materialized, but found this starfish on one of the rocks. This was the first starfish I saw, and this is my first seascape image. The waves are VERY unpredictable!

Canon 5D II
Canon 17-40mm f/4
f/20 2.5sec
Single exposure

All comments and critiques welcome.

Thanks for looking!

Comments

16 comments

Comment posted by Jose Viegas on September 7, 2011 at 4:15 AM

I really like the contrasts on this shot, the red starfish against the dark rock, the whit from the surf against the heavy sky, and the composition. What I could suggest would be correcting the lens distortion, visible on the line of the horizon.
Jose

Registered on August 26, 2011, 3 Posts, 66 Comments

Comment posted by Yiming Hu on September 7, 2011 at 8:41 AM

Very nice. The red starfish contrasts very well with the dark rock and monotonic background. Clouds and wave motions are also interesting. I agree with Jose's suggestion of fixing the barrel distortion. In addition, there are some obvious colored fringing around the top three rocks, which can easily be fixed.

Registered on April 28, 2011, 38 Posts, 733 Comments

Comment posted by Reno DiTullio on September 7, 2011 at 9:56 AM

Very nice perspective, red star fish is a great focal point, well done.

Registered on November 14, 2003, 130 Posts, 1644 Comments

Comment posted by Eva McDermott on September 7, 2011 at 12:02 PM

I like the stark contrasts Chikku as well as the sweeping lines in the water.

Registered on January 4, 2009, 1015 Posts, 13229 Comments

Comment posted by Phil Pogledich on September 7, 2011 at 12:07 PM

You were very fortunate to find the starfish in a perfect location for the shot. Overall this is an excellent image. The leading lines left by the receding surf are also a nice element. Good work!

Registered on August 24, 2009, 123 Posts, 3099 Comments

Comment posted by Joseph Campisi on September 7, 2011 at 12:09 PM

That red starfish makes the shot of course. Just correct the slight barrel distortion and you have a winner!

Registered on November 24, 2008, 304 Posts, 3211 Comments

Comment posted by Allen Brooks on September 7, 2011 at 12:33 PM

The starfish really makes this photo.

Registered on July 27, 2011, 262 Posts, 2597 Comments

Comment posted by Floris van Breugel on September 7, 2011 at 12:37 PM

I love the reds of the starfish against the monochrome landscape. I wonder if you could make the sky / beach darker to really emphasize that contrast.

Registered on December 19, 2008, 306 Posts, 4840 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Overacker on September 7, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Chikku,

First seascape, really? c'mon now...

Well I certainly think it's a great one. The color and starfish really stand out against the almost mono-chromatic rest of the seascape, which really makes this an eye-catcher.

Aside from the slight lens distortion already mentioned, you also might want to clone out the ship on the horizon? Or is that the Farallon Islands?

Not sure if this would improve the overall comp and presentation, but how about just a slight crop up from the bottom, say about 20% of the distance from the bottom to the starfish? Just feels like a little bit of extra at the bottom that's not doing anything for the comp. Otherwise, you've got a winner of a seascape.

Lon

Registered on November 24, 2006, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments

Comment posted by Chris Chamberlain on September 7, 2011 at 10:44 PM

Another fine shot from this location. I like the overcast sky. It gave you cause to go for something different, and it works very well.

Chris

Registered on March 13, 2007, 500 Posts, 8365 Comments

Comment posted by Chikku Baiju on September 8, 2011 at 2:17 AM

Thank you everyone for the comments and critiques. I liked Floris's idea of darkening the beach to emphasize the contrast. So here is a repost which is a little darker and a bit cropped of the bottom.

Registered on January 9, 2010, 31 Posts, 246 Comments

Comment posted by David Edwards on September 8, 2011 at 3:23 AM

Top shot, Chikku. Love that the star fish is the only strong color in the image. The soft blues of the background are a very nice in contrast. The repost is fabulous.

Registered on December 6, 2008, 142 Posts, 2623 Comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on September 8, 2011 at 9:15 AM

I agree with the others that the red starfish makes for a great focal point with it's color contrast and shape. Excellent first beach scene!

Registered on May 7, 2007, 670 Posts, 19650 Comments

Comment posted by Lorna Taylor on September 8, 2011 at 12:28 PM

Beautifully seen, love that one pop of colour from the star fish!

Registered on November 12, 2010, 254 Posts, 3083 Comments

Comment posted by Stan Rose on September 9, 2011 at 4:50 PM

This is fantastic--terrific comp and great color contrast! Surprised it doesn't have a ton of comments. Minor nit--the bright water highlites.

Registered on September 15, 2005, 836 Posts, 17099 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on September 10, 2011 at 5:38 PM

Fantastic! Really enjoy this image. The starfish is a beautiful contrast. Excellent!

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments