Japanese Garden Bridge/Repost

I don't think personally i would change the composition at all, Randy - yes, there's a lot going on, but the bridge especially, and the stream hold it all together very well in my view. What I would suggest is bringing the light levels down a bit in the upper areas of the image ( the bridge in particular looks a touch washed out ). Overall a good take on a lovely scene.

I also think this is a nice scene. I do agree with Ian's comments on the brightness of the scene.

Ian and Richard - Thank you for the lighting suggestion. This was an opportunity to learn more about Lightroom, and how to use its gradient and burning/dodging abilities. Here is the new image. Perhaps I got carried away with the burning, but it's a big improvement in my opinion.

The re-post is an improvement, IMO (though I agree with your assessment of over burning it just a bit). I like the composition very much with the rich variety of texture and green tones and the angular "hardscape" of the bridge. Good work

Thanks, Nancy. I'll experiment more with the image as time permits.

Randy: Welcome to NPN in general and to the finest Flora gallery on the planet in particular. Thanks for a fine first post here. My initial reaction was that it was too bright/slightly overexposed. I did scroll down and see your repost which IMO is much better. I like your comp and the overall scene. A shot like this really deserves a larger version. You may post an additional image 1200 pixels on the long side and up to 500kb. I also edited your title to reflect the repost. You can do that yourself by clicking on the edit link on your photo on the thumbnail page. It's wise to acknowledge the repost so that others will know to revisit. Great to ahve you aboard and looking forward to more. >=))>

PS: Another trick to getting a better capture is to use a polarizer. It knocks down reflected glare off the foliage and generally saturates the colors.

Hi Bill: Thank you for the warm welcome and for the tip about how to mark the subject on a repost. The polarizer suggestion is a good one as well.

It's good to be here, and it's clear that being a member will aid the learning process. I will enjoy viewing and commenting on the work of others as well.

I like the second repost for all the reasons given. You've done a great job with the busy composition. Each item seems to separate from it surrounding plants to give some sense of depth which is a goal when dealing with that busy of comp. I might even try for more separation by selecting foliage and add a touch of saturation or desat...or brighten / darken. Not overly... a very deft touch. In the future, I would bring a polarizer (circ) to get the white reflection off leaves ...and bring out colors. The white mushes everything together and can dominate to make the scene flat looking. A polarizer really helps.

Thanks for the additional suggestions, Ken. I will edit and try to further improve the image.

Hi Randy I enjoy this enchanting composition, and There is not much left for me to say. except the second version is much better.
Albert Darmo