Nice subject... interesting abstract composition. it's the kind of thing I really like. On this one I find the out of focus portion in the foreground to be distracting. Also, a bit more contrast would punch-up the image a bit. I would re-shoot at a time where you get more light rays from the sun.
Are you looking at this on a mac with a flat screen. This one is a print scan and the print actually had good contrast, though you surmise correctly about the time of day. I was a little late at this location (I had been shooting details of a house foundation nearby).
When I look at it with my PC (work or home, flatpanel or CRT) it matches the print. On the mac, the black is more a zone3 without detail than a zone 2 (which is what I metered for).
I think that I will reshoot with the 4x5 this weekend.
I am looking at it on a PC with a brand new monitor. I've tried very hard to calibrate it; that doesn't mean that I did a good job. The foreground is "clearly out of focus" on my monitor. I think more sunlight would raise your high values thereby giving you more separation from your zone 2 & 3 low values. How do you like toting around the RB... I like the format, but I ended up changing over to a Hassy. Although, I must say that I miss the "ideal format" of 6X7. Good luck and thanks for printing.
Actually its not bad at all. I pack the body, two 120 pro-s backs, 90 and 180 into a pack. 12lbs maybe. Of course, the camera itself weighs as much or more than my Shen Hao. But, both are lighter than the Toyo G in Toyo hard case which is probably 40 lbs.
I think that the plan next time will be a little more sun, but definitely a longer exposure with a smaller aperature. The forground issue must be related to the downward tilt and use of f11. The 4x5 and some movements will solve that problem.