[aaacb]

Any feedback welcome One aspect to improve that I'm aware of is to clone out the distracting under water stick on the right

[MikeNArk]

Don't see a distracting under water stick. Kind of like the green twig reflection in the water. Looks nice.

[angkymac]

That faint stick underwater is not distracting, although for a purist minimalist, it could be removed.
I really like this shot!
For a suggestion, cropping the bottom (which would change aspect ratio) would remove the out-of-focus log in the bottom left corner. I would want to try that. But doing so would also remove a useful repetitive pattern.
Try it again with different ripple action--or without any. Maybe very early in the morning.
This is an image worth playing with a lot. Maybe sliding a bit to the right, and angling the camera to the left just slightly enough to catch the point of the log coming out of the water, and moving the little sprout to the right 2/3 corner.
Good picture! Give it some more shots.
Angky.

[hongman]

Nice photo... I don't think the stick is distracting, but adds balance to the image vertically

[aaacb]

Thanks for the thoughts. And yes, this is very close to home so I can revisit. Though from experience I know these conditions with soft light through the clouds were some of the better, maybe I can experiment more

[AgentL]

Nicely seen! I wouldn't remove the stick or the log on the bottom - the first isn't distracting to me, and the second would throw off-balance the reflection of the leaves in the water. I like it as is.

[angkymac]

Nicely seen! I wouldn't remove the stick or the log on the bottom - the first isn't distracting to me, and the second would throw off-balance the reflection of the leaves in the water. I like it as is.

Yes, indeed you are correct, AgentL!
That might detract from the whole image.
And, per Hongman, I agree on the vertical balance.

So perhaps moving the point of focus closer to the camera a tiny bit and extending the depth of field to bring that foreground log into focus...
Not that it *must* be in focus...

i hope we'll see some more experimenting with this scene; I like it.
Angky.

[aaacb]

I think this scene really benefits from still water, and the pattern was slightly disrupted and didn't work quite so well. Here's just for comparison's sake a version with waves, the light wasn't as good either. SOOC except for the crop.
I may re-attempt, but I think the first shot was really lucky

[angkymac]

I think this scene really benefits from still water, and the pattern was slightly disrupted and didn't work quite so well. Here's just for comparison's sake a version with waves, the light wasn't as good either. SOOC except for the crop.
I may re-attempt, but I think the first shot was really lucky

Yes, your first shot really appeals to me.
This last shot is interesting too, but the first one, without the waves, allows focus on the wood and little sapling as its own natural design.
Thanks for adding this one for comparison.
Angky.

[Photos-by-Chas]

Both photos have interesting qualities, but I do like the first one a little more. I would not mind seeing more photos from a variety of angles, just for the variety, and maybe the differences.

[aaacb]

went again, here's how the scene has evolved over three weeks. 135mm this time instead of 200mm

[35mmfilmfan]

I like the first image - with the sleek sinuous shapes of the fallen trees, and the faint ripples around them, it puts me in mind of three otters playing in the water. The other images are less open to interpretation - and the stick you mention could be a fish attempting to escape the predators surrounding it.

[SpecialK]

First image I would crop off the left side about half way to the hole in the log and a bit off the top for balance.

[angkymac]

went again, here's how the scene has evolved over three weeks. 135mm this time instead of 200mm

This appears to be a slightly different vantage point from the first. Good efforts you've made to try differing the composition.
I like the B&W as much as the first color shot. And I think I like the 135mm composition, but it seems to highlight the contrast in the water.
Like you (and others) had said, that first shot with the smoother water is really good. In the B&W, the texture of the ripples seems to overwhelm the scene--the wood is the focus, not the waves.
What happened to the little green seedling in the brighter spot of light?
One thing I would want to do is to put strong emphasis on the grain / texture of the wood, especially for B&W.
To do that, you might lighten the lower half of the top log so that the texture becomes visible (if it has any--might be all mossy).
Glad to see you working on different modifications; we all need that on-going practice.
Thanks for re-posting this for us.
Angky.

---------- Post added 08-12-21 at 04:46 PM ----------

went again, here's how the scene has evolved over three weeks. 135mm this time instead of 200mm

This appears to be a slightly different vantage point from the first. Good efforts you've made to try differing the composition.
I like the B&W as much as the first color shot. And I think I like the 135mm composition, but it seems to highlight the contrast in the water.
Like you (and others) had said, that first shot with the smoother water is really good. In the B&W, the texture of the ripples seems to overwhelm the scene--the wood is the focus, not the waves.
What happened to the little green seedling in the brighter spot of light?
One thing I would want to do is to put strong emphasis on the grain / texture of the wood, especially for B&W.
To do that, you might lighten the lower half of the top log so that the texture becomes visible (if it has any--might be all mossy).
Glad to see you working on different modifications; we all need that on-going practice.
Thanks for re-posting this for us, and we all have our different perspectives.
Angky.

[StiffLegged]

That’s an interesting subject to try different approaches with: if you have them, try ND filters to blur the water when it’s wavy. I’d certainly revisit it if I was close like you, part of the fun is how different light plays with an interesting subject.