Future Uncertain

Too often I wish I had shoot a little differently when I get back to processing. Photoshop can cure some of those goofs and clone a inch or so on the bottom and the comp issue can be fixed.
IMO the tree is too close to lower frame, tension or not. A bit too much noise in clouds also and some selective noise reduction can cure that too..

Carey, I like this a lot . I love all the empty space and the lone tree. Sure it's tight but I agree with the tension it creates. If it were mine I would try to bring some tonal difference to the foreground, just slightly. I think the tightness of the tree would be a problem when matting, but like Rick said, it's fixable. Really a nice shot.

I love the empty space and then this lone tree.Also black and white works fine with this. Yes, it's a bit tight and the tree is close to the frame, but it works fine with me here.

Love these kinds of scenes. Tad bit tight...noise is artistic if you want it...like grain for that feeling. Fun :)

aF

Nice and simple, maybe a little to much noise in the clouds but that is an easy fix.

I think this image really reminds me of something I read recently, which Minor White said: "We photograph something for two reasons: for what it is, and for what ELSE it is." I believe this image is anything but shallow, it seems to me to have great depth of meaning, and mystical presence. Truly suberb!!

The tension, imo, works and it doesn't bother me. I've gone back and forth about the grain in the clouds. Maybe slightly less would be better, but I'll leave it to you.

Very nice composition Carey. I enjoy the simplicity here and could see just a tiny bit more tonality in the fore ground. But a great job the way it is. Well done.

I like this a lot! I love the wide open spaces of the plains and west and this does a grand job conveying that. Real sweet!

Carey, this is nice B&W winter scene. I especially enjoy the combination of gently rolling hills and wispy clouds. The tight comp doesn't bother me.

Thank you everyone for your comments and sorry for the slow response but I have been working some killer night shifts and have been feeling a little rundown the last few days.
As mentioned before, there wasn't any extra real-estate to be had in this image, the reason being there was a fence running along the plain just outside the bottom of the frame. I would have had to have crossed four lanes of traffic to get a better perspective and didn't wanna risk some rubbernecker causing a pile up while I was trying to negotiate that.
That being said, aside from the point that Gary raised about matting I'm happy with the trees position as I feel it makes it seem small and lonely against the the vast darkness of the sky and empty plain, which was what drew me to the scene to begin with. My aim here wasn't so much to show an aesthetically pleasing landscape as to convey a strong sense of being alone in the universe by utilizing a lot of negative space combined with a minimalist foreground.
In regards to the noise, should be able to fix that without too much trouble.
Thanks again for taking the time to comment.

Powerful image!

Very dramatic. Lonely. Meaningful...

Tim!

Very arresting image. I like how the tree is off-center. Only subjective thought is perhaps a little less sky? Well done.