Practicing sunrise and backlight, opinions?

[cowboylife]

First off, I know there's a ton of flare on the right side and I feel like an idiot for not having the lens hood on my Sigma. Not sure what I was thinking. Comments and critiques wanted.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f282/tylerpebley/IMG_0151.jpg


http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f282/tylerpebley/IMG_0192.jpg

[I Simonius]

First off, I know there's a ton of flare on the right side and I feel like an idiot for not having the lens hood on my Sigma. Not sure what I was thinking. Comments and critiques wanted.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f282/tylerpebley/IMG_0151.jpg

Flare can work sometimes but here it's just distracting IMO,- maybe wait a while until the sun was just a little lower and the light was more obscured by the hills?

[cowboylife]

...

[Robert_Lay]

The first picture gives more of the illusion of 3-dimensionality - the fence-line makes up the foreground and the haze in the background separates background from middle ground. The biggest unnecessary artifact is that the horizon is tilting downwards noticeably at the right side.

Otherwise, a very nice shot with good composition and interest.

BTW, don't be too sure that the lens hood would have prevented the flare. Since the sun's disk is actually in the picture, the lens hood wouldn't have helped.