Perfect, even the unusual format works wonderfully here! And the golden hue is quite dramatic.

Well done!

Yvonne

I couldn't agree more. I especially like the unique crop, something I'm fond of doing myself. The color is excellent, congratulations.

I love it!

John:

This is very impressive.

It looks as if you made it to CA.

Best wishes...

joe

i greatly appreciate the vote of confidence. wasn't really sure whether or not the unusual format would be appealing, but it looks like the experiment worked. this is again an attempt to save what i considered to be a rather boring picture. with the large amount of underexposed dead space on the sides of the pic, i tried to spice it up with the narrow crop and the golden tone. just goes to show there's something to be said for the forgotten art of cropping.

yes, joe...i took this somewhere south of Half Moon Bay while on the last day of our trip here to San Francisco. i made a conscious effort not to stop and take pics that day...just to enjoy the drive. the day before we had been in the middle of the Mojave desert and this day we spent the whole day driving up the coastal highway. what a dramatic change of scenery. anyway, this was one of a few pics i decided to snap...i'm glad you all think it turned out well. i'm sure i'll be back in sante fe soon. probably for the holidays...i'll let you know when i'm back in town.

thanks again, everyone!

best, john

Very nice job with the image! It is Pigeon Point Lighthouse, halfway between Santa Cruz and Half Moon Bay. I shot a lot of pictures there over several years, but alas, that was before the E1.

Just fantastic - everything else has been said. Be proud!

what an image to come back to!! Been away for a week and this image is deservedly in pride of place.

The whole image pulls together for me. I have a similar (non E1) image with the sun dead centre and it picks up criticism as being distracting, well it isn't in this one (for me!)

This is a striking image! I agree with most all comments.

I am not usually a fan of images that have the sun in them, but this works with it. Interestingly by cropping the sun out at the darkest portion of the sky (removing about 50% of the sky), the image works in a different way.

thanks for commenting, edwin. i was hoping to get some feedback from you and eugene. funny you should mention the additional crop possibilties, other people have suggested that as well...i actually shot another version like you described, but unfortunately didn't notice when i took it that i caught the ocean in a bad spot so the pic loses alot of interest in the foreground. i took like three different versions and i decided this one worked out best in all aspects.

anyway, i really appreciate it.

best, john

Hi John,

Another great image from you!! This is getting to be a bit of a habit!! I love it. I think portrait works really well here. I love the tones. Well done. The golden hues and the blacks work really well for me. I was slightly unsure about the very narrow crop but not in a big deal way. I'd love to see this printed up real big. I'm sure it would look just great. I look forward to seeing more from your trip and good luck with the job-hunting.

Best...

Eugene

Great shot John!

I was messing with the vertical scroll and I thought "Ooh, I like that crop there" then I realised it was the same crop that Ed was talking about.

I've said before that I have an aversion to rules and hence don't really understand what the "rule of thirds" is all about. But I couldn't help but notice that with the crop I have in mind, the sky would take up 1/3 an the sea the other 2/3!

..i came back often to see this pic and i must admit that the cropping was bugging me since i avoid it myself on my photos but..i kept coming back because i couldn't explain why i was liking the pic more and more..well now i can say it's bacause you put all the good ingredients to support the cropping you made, from the composition to the overall tone!! good job...

Best

The more I look at this, the more I'm convinced that with the crop I suggested earlier I would give this a 10!