Just one... for now...

CWSkopec

Well, my first visit to Yosemite was AWESOME!!!

But too short, and the wrong time of year for waterfall shots. But that just means I need to go back!!
Anyway, here's a shot from Valley View that I shot as a jpg and haven't processed any, this laptop screen just isn't good for processing raw files.
Feel free to comment/critique, even though I haven't processed this at all, I'll keep all critiques in mind when I process the accompanying raw files!



I'm on vacation for another week, and there's a lot more photos to be taken between now and when I get home, but I promise more photos and more processed photos [at some point] after I get home!! :wink

Thanks for looking!!

Internaut

Beautiful. I tend to think the more natural the better with this type of photo so I think it would look a little better with some minor tweaks:

- Selectively edit the sky to make it look just a little darker
- Sharpen everything else a little
- Perhaps a slight saturation boost (which might be all the sky needs anyway) and a little extra contrast.

I'm not that good with raw so would probably struggle to get the exact colours of the original which, in this case, I think are important....

zacker

maybe just some minor tweeking with the Shadow / highlight tool..

looks good, looks like an awesome place..

CWSkopec

Internaut wrote:

Beautiful. I tend to think the more natural the better with this type of photo so I think it would look a little better with some minor tweaks:

- Selectively edit the sky to make it look just a little darker
- Sharpen everything else a little
- Perhaps a slight saturation boost (which might be all the sky needs anyway) and a little extra contrast.

I'm not that good with raw so would probably struggle to get the exact colours of the original which, in this case, I think are important....

Thanks for the ideas Internaut!! I will make those tweaks when I get home and have time to process the photos I've taken on this trip.

I'm not too good with raw myself, so every time I process a photo is an experiment!!

CWSkopec

zacker wrote:

maybe just some minor tweeking with the Shadow / highlight tool..

looks good, looks like an awesome place..

Thanks Zacker!!

It is a truly amazing place! Next time I go in the spring... there's actually a waterfall on the right side of the photo (Bridalveil I believe) but it's been such a dry summer that there's almost no water trickling over it!!

Awais Yaqub

Waiting for more ! beautiful place nice picture

CatOne

That's a beautiful place, and you set up in one of the prime locations.

The light there was a bit flat... it's best in the 5 minutes before/after sunrise or before/after sunset. Most of what I've seen from there is a sunrise location.

Also because the sun may come up directly in front of the view, from a contrast perspective, a graduated neutral density filter or some HDR bracketing are often necessary.

Here I used a 3-stop but probably should have gone with a 2... the effect is a little ridiculous:



If you can get snow in the foreground that covers the rocks and logs in the stream, you can get a GREAT shot. Well, at least some of the most famous shots are from that location after a snowfall

Nice work!

CWSkopec

Awais Yaqub wrote:

Waiting for more ! beautiful place nice picture

Thank you Awais!! Hopefully it won't be too long! I'm on the road for the rest of the week and then I'll finally get home and be able to process more! Look for them early next week!!

CWSkopec

CatOne wrote:

That's a beautiful place, and you set up in one of the prime locations.

The light there was a bit flat... it's best in the 5 minutes before/after sunrise or before/after sunset. Most of what I've seen from there is a sunrise location.

Also because the sun may come up directly in front of the view, from a contrast perspective, a graduated neutral density filter or some HDR bracketing are often necessary.

Here I used a 3-stop but probably should have gone with a 2... the effect is a little ridiculous:



If you can get snow in the foreground that covers the rocks and logs in the stream, you can get a GREAT shot. Well, at least some of the most famous shots are from that location after a snowfall

Nice work!

Excellent shot, Bill!!

Graduated filters are next on my wish list... unfortunately I couldn't afford my trip if I had picked them up before hand, so everything is bracketed. Hopefully when I get back to my monitor and my desk I can do some HDR work or at least some exposure blending to help it along!

The light is a bit flat, I agree... My goal that day was to make it back to Tunnel View for sunset... apparently right around the equinoxes is supposed to be the best time to get a shot at Tunnel View as both sides of the valley light up with the warm sunset rays. So this shot is about an hour before and I'll have to pick through the actual sunset shots when I get home!

Thanks for the comments!!

P.S. My next trip to Yosemite is going to be in the spring, so I can see the waterfalls in full effect, but my NEXT trip after that will have to be winter after seeing your shot! Beautiful!!

Sam

Hi Chris,

Yosemite is a beautiful place. My thoughts on shooting this or other famous places may be a little different, but here it it is.

For the most part our small cameras have a limited ability to capture the scope, and grand scale of these places, and they have been shoot a million times with every type of camera imaginable. I try and look for smaller scenes, to provide a unique perspective, and or more within the equipments capabilities.

That said, if you can get lucky or are a great planner, and can get there when the light / weather is combining for something special, then you can get a rare, and / or unique shoot of a location that has been shoot a million times. Then you have an image that reflects a rare moment in time you can share with others.

I got real lucky in December, and while leaving the valley in the early evening saw this. (I have posted this before)

Sam

Sam

Here is an example of a small slice of Yosemite, rather than a grand sweeping image.

Sam

CWSkopec

Sam wrote:

Hi Chris,

Yosemite is a beautiful place. My thoughts on shooting this or other famous places may be a little different, but here it it is.

For the most part our small cameras have a limited ability to capture the scope, and grand scale of these places, and they have been shoot a million times with every type of camera imaginable. I try and look for smaller scenes, to provide a unique perspective, and or more within the equipments capabilities.

That said, if you can get lucky or are a great planner, and can get there when the light / weather is combining for something special, then you can get a rare, and / or unique shoot of a location that has been shoot a million times. Then you have an image that reflects a rare moment in time you can share with others.

I got real lucky in December, and while leaving the valley in the early evening saw this. (I have posted this before)

Sam

I like your thoughts, Sam. You're right on the money. All these places have been shot and shot again. I did spend a good amount of time and shots on smaller scenes, but this is one of the few I shot in jpg and could post while on the road without processing too much.

And (un)fortunately, the weather was absolutely perfect. Not a cloud in the sky or a storm on the horizon. Made for some great hiking without worrying about rain, but I missed out on the dramatic skies.

Both shots you posted are spectacular!! Nice work!! Is that second one the famed "Jeffery Tree" at Sentinel Dome? The evening I spent up that way, I choose Taft Point instead and missed the sunset at Sentinel... Oh well... next time!!

Sam

Thanks Chris,

Yes that's Sentinel Dome. It's kinda funny, on Wend I was talking to a guy who is a beginning photographer, and he was telling me he was going to take an out of area friend to Yosemite, and would hike up to Sentinel Dome even though there wasn't much to shoot there.

I told him I wanted to go back because there was so much to shoot there,

SAM

CWSkopec

Sam wrote:

Thanks Chris,

Yes that's Sentinel Dome. It's kinda funny, on Wend I was talking to a guy who is a beginning photographer, and he was telling me he was going to take an out of area friend to Yosemite, and would hike up to Sentinel Dome even though there wasn't much to shoot there.

I told him I wanted to go back because there was so much to shoot there,

SAM

There are probably more shots to found there than one could take in a lifetime! I know my four days filled my poor, little laptop's hard drive and I had to stop to get a spindle of DVDs to take the load off this little guy!:D

I'm jealous of the folks that get to live in the Valley and can just step out of the door to get some great shots!!