I think the idea is great, so on that front – yes.
Unfortunately the exposure is totally overcooked, resulting in the burnt out background, so on that front – no.
Overall, I really like the composition and the idea, just really wish there had been some fill in flash, or a burst of flash with a long exposure to bring the background into line.
thanks for you reply and comments. Its pretty hard to get fill in flash with a 300mm lens and if I used a long exposure the swans might fly away
Oh – didn’t realise it was a 300mm lens. Maybe include EXIF data next time, so comments can be a bit more directed? Under the circumstances, I think you’ve done a good job. The only real way I can think to avoid the burnt out background would either be to create a HDR image with bracketed exposures / repeat RAW processing, or to have shot from a different angle / with the sun in a different place. Obviously the last two options wouldn’t be possible for this exact composition, unless the swans did the same thing at a different time of day!!