Pastoral - V2

[masonspappy]

Finished this last year but not happy with the way the original looked, so this is Version 2.
- Brick church in the background replaces a wooden barn,
- Carriage now has a leather top.
- Foreground cottage has new stonework with (hopefully) better displacements.
Not sure about the clouds yet.  Tried a couple versions of 'easy' clouds but I think I'm looking for something that is light, wispy, airy.
C&C welcome as always.

[masonspappy]

And just like that....the wife says she doesn't like the curtains and I have no sense of interior decorating. 
(sigh)

[archonforest]

Looks pretty cool. The front building looks a bit narrow no?

[DocCharly65]

I like this idyllic view.

The curtains seem really a bit strange - but I think your wife will know what has to be put there - just go shopping with her 

[luvsmuzik]

I like this image, but either your focus is off or vertical scale is. Roof pitch just a tad steep, isn't it? I know many have that pitch, but even the outbuilding looks off to me.

Okay guys, the curtains are the stone wall and sky, I do not see curtains yet. Your texturing is great! Envious of the casual path connections, working on that myself.

[masonspappy]

Thanks all for the C&C.
Curtains hopefully look more like, well, curtains.
Rectory dimensions are a bit more proportional. Still need to change a few details on the roof, but the main roof shingles are true 3D, not bump-mapped.
Added cowling to carriage.
Moved the church closer to better display the detail and added some tree shadows to give better suggestion of depth.
Thanks all! Let me know if you see other stuff.

[bobbystahr]

Nice, house is much better and the church benefits from the move, but there's a slightly floating tree in front of it.

[Hannes]

Very nice and idyllic. A little overexposed to my taste?!

[Dune]

Very nice indeed, but the lighting needs some more drama. In photography it's almost a sin to have the sun in your back, so especially with this church in sight ( ) I'd move the sun to one of the sides, and perhaps throw in some heavy cloud for background shadows and drama.

[luvsmuzik]

Yes, this is much better. I will apologize for calling the church an outbuilding now. In the first image, with that camera angle....I saw the horse nearby, and I thought....is that a church or a fancy barn?

This image is much improved. I like the curtains too! Very fitting for the era. Sad all we see here nowdays is mostly blinds instead.

[masonspappy]

Thanks Luvsmuzik and Dune.
I didn't put the cross atop the church in the first images, so that cue to the building's purpose was missing. And actually, the building in the original picture was an old wooden barn. 
@Dune, moving the sun direction made a huge difference - thanks.  There are more clouds now, but not a great deal more so, as I wanted to keep the image within the context of a calm summer morning.
Thanks again everyone!

[Dune]

That is much better indeed. Is the ground very barren there? Perhaps growing more grass where the grass is quite patchy would make it less 'busy' and more pastoral....

[DocCharly65]

Really much better now

One thing I am not sure about your intentions:
The overall sharpness makes the picture look a bit artificial and noisy.
I think the whole scene could need some DoF (very slight and carefully set up)

[masonspappy]

@Dune: the spareness is intentional.  It's a rural setting circa mid-to-late 1800's and lawn care at that time wasn't what it is today (except for well-to-do folks).  Although the land around the church should have more of a manicured look - I need to work on that.

@Doc Charley. I'll play with the DOF - haven't done much with that and it would be interesting to see how that works out.

[luvsmuzik]

Much better! I think you are correct about the "lawn" treatments. Not too many chemicals used back in that day. Maybe vary the color just a tad on the grass so it isn't exactly the same as the trees. I prefer the yellow greenish lawn as in first image, but now there is more shade so....
Big like on lighting now.