+++ The Weekly Landscape Thread - #48, 2026.01.09

The second is lovely, making the most of the transluscent light in the leaves. I wonder if the first would be better if framed a bit to the left, with the nearer trunk falling further to the right. At the moment the right hand part feels a bit empty.

I have ND filters. I don't like to use ND filters unless absolutely necessary. This was taken as you say "naked." On that day at ISO 64 and f13 I could manage 1/2 second.

Some people have the impression that "Landscape photography = wide angle shots".
Glad to see your first one here proves that this is not always the case. It's a good example of a landscape photo made with a 300mm telephoto lens!
It picks out the details of the village below nicely. And yes, with the new snow, this view will be transformed, as only snow can :-)

The second is nicely framed, but I think I would have cloned out those 2 out-of-focus twigs hanging down and just touching the mountain

The cascade works well in this photo. As always from you, it's well captured and processed to show the contrast of the bright water against the darker rocks caught in a beautiful light

Thanks. interesting idea to crop some from the bottom, I think it would probably work too, but would make a different image.
In the original, the detail in the rocks bottom left, when viewed in full res, is part of "the effect"; its sheer size, and the height of the rocks, gives a feeling for the scale. It shows how narrow the valley is, and how high the road is above it, and makes the leading line of the river longer too.
For me the vertical format work well in this image. But alternatives are, of course, possible :-)

In the first, despite all those lovely yellows, it is the white of the Aspen tree that stands out here.
Nicely composed with that main tree being like the spearhead of an army of Aspens :-)

Glad you liked the description of "What is a landscape photo?"
I like the first here because it is so full of immersive detail. I get the feeling I can walk along that path behind the fence and look closely at all the boats in the still water. The distant lights of the city with their reflections in the river, and the sky scrapers in the background are impressive.
In the sky, it looks like a string of satellites are passing over, but probably that is just one plane with a flashing light captured during the long exposure?
The blue pyramid and it's reflection are nicely placed in the image. Overall, it's a nice result!

The second is quite different, but just as good.
The tug boat is underway and has plenty of room to move into, the water is dark, and the boat is even darker and looks purposeful, they both contrast nicely with the bright, almost white, snow covered mountain range in the distance.

That's a lovely peaceful shot on a sunny day, but I can see from the snow on the mountains that it's time to move down.
In Austria it is mainly cows on the mountain pastures, and they are also driven down each year for the winter, In some parts the "Almabtrieb" (as it's called in German) is combined with a festival and celebrated with music and local food and beer :-)
The bad thing about the "almabtrieb" is that many mountain huts, that we hikers like to visit, close down for the winter at the same time :-(

Good suggestion on the first. I did walk around the stand of trees quite a bit looking for compositions.

[/quote]
In the first, despite all those lovely yellows, it is the white of the Aspen tree that stands out here.
Nicely composed with that main tree being like the spearhead of an army of Aspens :-)
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Thank you. It was the contrast of the colors that grabbed my attention when trying to look for something out of the busy scene.

Thank-you for the critique... it is great to have an active thread leader who facilitates the discussion and stimulates the thought process. I am trying to "get creative" as opposed to the technical/documentary angle that has been my default MO. But... it is hard to break old habits!

Thanks, and, yes, some panos would be interesting.

My back has recovered well enough, and I went skiing yesterday, perfect conditions, great day :-)