Herd of Schoonebeeker Heathsheep. This very rare Dutch breed is kept to maintain the vegetation of heather in the beautiful nature reserves in the Province Drenthe, their 'home'.
Photo was taken May 26, when the sun was almost down (I'm an inspector of this breed).
Only thing I did was cropping a little bit and a slight enlightening.
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Place: 69 out of 255 Avg (all users): 5.8203 Avg (commenters): 7.4706 Avg (participants): 5.6692 Avg (non-participants): 5.9837 Views since voting: 1470 Views during voting: 405 Votes: 256 Comments: 23 Favorites: 3 (view)
i keep coming back to this because it seems so close to being an absolutely stunning photo. there are a few things about it that distract me though...first, the blotches to the left of both dogs. is that flare? whether it's flare or a dirty lens (or maybe even mist on the grass), it's distracting to the eye and takes away from the flow of the photo. second, the sky has very little detail (especially towards the left) as the highlights get blown out. and third, the composition...there are lines in that photo (the sheep as they stretch into the horizon) that could make a stunning composition, but it's just not quite there. perhaps a tighter crop, or an outtake from a different angle...I'm not sure. I would suspect that this photo would have benefitted from being taken at a lower angle and a little bit closer to the sheep and a little to the left. that way the sheep would sweep into the horizon and across the photo a little more. that's just my thinkin'-out-louds.
Love the lighting on the sheep and dogs. I'd be inclined to crop a bit more from the front to call more attention to the sheep and remove some of the grasses that distract from the sheep. Still a lovely scene and definitely beautiful.
Despite the uninteresting and blown out sky, I like this image very much. The tones in the bottom half are superb and painterly. Had you shifted up the horizon to include less of the sky it may have gotten an even higher mark from me. 8
Whilst the capture of light here is near-exemplary, I wonder whether it was necessary to submit a full frame shot - II'm not sure exactly what is added by not cropping the left and bottom edges - a stronger composition, strnger movement through frame of the main subject, stronger placement of horizon, and no loss of the beauty of that great light. Still a strong shot, mind; I just think it could have been very effectively improved - oh, and would love to see it like that, also.
The rear end of sheeps hasn't been something I have looked for but this really has potential. They are though to centered on this photo for my taste and some disturbance in the foreground. Cropping of the left and bottom might make it better.
This is beautiful. I love the line the animals are making off into the horizon. The colour is so inviting and natural. It looks like its out a film, I'm just waiting for the action to occur. The only minor problem is the bright strip of light on the grass on the left. Magnificent!! 9
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