layers

Color version for reference:

Hi Ana. An interesting composition here. I like the fractal patterns of the shoreline rocks leading away to the horizon with the natural diagonals and the lone rock in the water balances out well with that and gives the eye a place to go once the horizon is reached. Also very well exposed given the harsh lighting conditions . I also think there is a good tonality from top to bottom. Directly below the lone rock in the water is a batch of smoother water that creates a nice set of diagonals leading back down to the shoreline, a light bit of dodging here might help accentuate that and add another subtle interesting element to the frame. I also think the bottom left corner is a bit empty. That area has the same tonal value as the rest of the jagged rocks in the bottom half but is plain in comparison. Perhaps burning it down just a bit or pulling a gradient to darken some would help balance out this section of the frame. Thanks as well for providing the color sample. 

What an unusual and thought provoking image. I can't decide which version I like more but it might be the b&w. I might make the ocean blue just a tad less intense.

Interesting textures and layers of differing rock types. I like the B&W treatment. You might consider using a B&W adjustment layer in PS and darken the blues in the sky. If the adjustment affects other areas of the image, you can paint the layer mask with black in those areas.

I also like the color version, but the drama of the B&W works better for me. You did a good job handling the dynamic range in this scene.
--P

Ana,

Layers indeed!  I like both the subtle and the obvious layers bottom to top and I like the sea rock up top as a focal point and balancing out the diagonal of the rocky shoreline.  My only minor suggestion would be a slight burn down of the LRC; not because it's overly bright or anything, but just to help balance the light and keeping the eye in the frame.

Beautifully composed.

Lon

edit. I just saw the color version.  I might like that even better since the colors also help distinguish the layers. Both are excellent

I prefer the B&W version, Anna, which makes good use of the layers. I personally might try adding some selective contrast to the sky in the B&W to bring out the clouds, though it is quite nice as is. 

I like the contrasting light and dark tones as well as the contrasting lines shapes and textures. 

The layers are very nice Ana.  I find the image pretty flat.  It lacks the emotion that makes an image really sing.  Everything is perfectly in place, it just lacks a story.  I'm not sure that makes sense, but that's what comes to mind, for me.  Keep them coming, I like what your seeing.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions everyone!  I do think of this as one of those images that mostly helps you make the next image, so we'll see how I do when the next "layer cake" image comes my way.