* Is this a Landscape Pathfinder wants to know?

pathfinder

I finally managed to wake up before sunrise this morning, and while my spouse went to church, I played hooky and went over to Lincoln Trails State Park in Illinois. There is a lovely lake there that gets nice early morning sunlight.

I shot lots of frames and the best I think is this one that was just fortuitous - not what I went there for at all - SO - Is this a landscape? And if it is, what suggestions for improvement or criticisms would you like to suggest?
I thank one and all for their comments.:clap

miketaylor01

I would definitely say yes. But then again my interpretations of the themes lately have not been the best. I like this. Not something you see every day as you would have to wake up before sunrise to see it .

Aso for improvements I didnt like the reflections on the lower right and left sides on first glance but then the more I looked I notices the trees are reflecting all over the water and not just in these spots so I would leave it. I kinda like the effect those brighter reflections produce now. I dont think i would do anything to it. Isnt it funny how more often than not your best shots end up being just quick shots you got when setting up for another shot. At least that has been the case with me the last couple weeks.

dragon300zx

Path I would say yes and I personally wouldn't change it.

cmr164

pathfinder wrote:

I finally managed to wake up before sunrise this morning, and while my spouse went to church, I played hooky and went over to Lincoln Trails State Park in Illinois. There is a lovely lake there that gets nice early morning sunlight.

I shot lots of frames and the best I think is this one that was just fortuitous - not what I went there for at all - SO - Is this a landscape? And if it is, what suggestions for improvement or criticisms would you like to suggest?
I thank one and all for their comments.

And a very good one indeed. The only suggestion I might make is to check the rotation.

pathfinder

miketaylor01 wrote:

I would definitely say yes.

Aso for improvements I didnt like the reflections on the lower right and left sides on first glance but then the more I looked I notices the trees are reflecting all over the water and not just in these spots so I would leave it. I kinda like the effect those brighter reflections produce now. I dont think i would do anything to it. Isnt it funny how more often than not your best shots end up being just quick shots you got when setting up for another shit. At least that has been the case with me the last couple weeks.

I thought about burning in or cloning out the yellow reflections in the lower corners just as you described, but ultimately thought I would leave it alone as they match the trees on the shore just as you stated so well.

And yes I also agree that many of my favorite shots were grab shots while I was beavering away trying to capture something else entirely. Like the guy said " Half the secret of success is just showing up"

FreeUps

Hey Path,

Well, I think the capture itself is really cool. Lovely as always Path.

BUT, could I first see an original to shed a real oppinion? My 'post' oppinions could probably be more helpful if I had an original to work off. The backround seems to be too much for my pee-sized brain to handle. I'm not looking at the geese, cause I can't stop looking at the backround.

And as far as it being a landscape, I'de say absolutely.

Nice nice!
Marshall

Andy

a pondscape
you betcha, path, that's a fine landscape. lovely shot.

pathfinder wrote:

I finally managed to wake up before sunrise this morning, and while my spouse went to church, I played hooky and went over to Lincoln Trails State Park in Illinois. There is a lovely lake there that gets nice early morning sunlight.

I shot lots of frames and the best I think is this one that was just fortuitous - not what I went there for at all - SO - Is this a landscape? And if it is, what suggestions for improvement or criticisms would you like to suggest?
I thank one and all for their comments.

pathfinder

cmr164 wrote:

And a very good one indeed. The only suggestion I might make is to check the rotation.

I have checked with the ruler marker in PS and it needs about 0.16 degrees CCW if I measure the fog and about 0.39 CW if I measure the blue water - so I am inclined to think it is ok.
To be honest I did not see a slant at all ( but I did not think to measure it either ) , but I gather you feel you do - What do you think it needs Charles - and thank you for this information.

When I continue to examine the image and use a cropping box I find that the fog seems level, but the water surface seems to be slightly lower on the left - is this your perception also? This I can fix of course and I may upload an altered verrsion later.

cmr164

pathfinder wrote:

I have checked with the ruler marker in PS and it needs about 0.16 degrees CCW if I measure the fog and about 0.39 CW if I measure the blue water - so I am inclined to think it is ok.
To be honest I did not see a slant at all ( but I did not think to measure it either ) , but I gather you feel you do - What do you think it needs Charles - and thank you for this information.

When I continue to examine the image and use a cropping box I find that the fog seems level, but the water surface seems to be slightly lower on the left - is this your perception also? This I can fix of course and I may upload an altered verrsion later.

it was a gut feel, but the notebook is sitting on my lap and is itself not straight so probably I was just seeing things.

Andy

on the level, pathfinder ...
it looks straight to me... nothing to over

pathfinder

FreeUps wrote:

Hey Path,

Well, I think the capture itself is really cool. Lovely as always Path.

BUT, could I first see an original to shed a real oppinion? My 'post' oppinions could probably be more helpful if I had an original to work off. The backround seems to be too much for my pee-sized brain to handle. I'm not looking at the geese, cause I can't stop looking at the backround.

And as far as it being a landscape, I'de say absolutely.

Nice nice!
Marshall

I am glad you like the image, but the background in this image is tame compared to several that I have not displayed - the colors are real, not altered. And the light shaft was just pure blinking luck!! But the fog was real and I knew I would see fog this morning at sunrise.

I am in the process of uplinking the "Original" - that is to say the 16bit file I brought into Photoshop from the RAW file that came out of my 20D. I did not alter the color temperature of the image, but I did set the exposure and the black points in converting from RAW. The 'original" image I have uplinked to smugmug in 8 bit. Here it is....


I was probably 400 yards or more from where the geese were landing. Here is another shot of the shoreline and this is a pretty straight image, not a highly saturated image - my camera is set up to capture more saturated images right now, but this is the way it looked to my eyes also....



Nice fall color, but I really liked the geese landing much better - I will have to go back again with my longer glass next time.

pathfinder

andy wrote:

it looks straight to me... nothing to over

Thanks Andy - But like I told Charles - I had not measured it so you never know........

pathfinder

pathfinder wrote:

Thanks Andy - But like I told Charles - I had not measured it so you never know........

After thinking over the comments made about my shot of the geese landing, I have recropped and edited a slightly different version that I am going to submit for opinions re; which version you all prefer....

Original submission....




A newer version not cropped as tight and with the water burned in a little more ..... Opinions pro or con??? I think I prefer the second version.



I will have to decide by Thursday evening, as I wil be on the road again for the weekend. So thank you all in advance

ian408

I think 2 looks better. Just that little extra on the side?


Ian

miketaylor01

I like the new version better. The only con to it that I can even think of is that the new crop brings the geese into the center of the frame. Im not even sure that that is a con though. Rules are made to be broken and it works here. Very nice shot.

wxwax

I prefer the original. I think the crop weakens the composition. I wouldn't darken the water, myself. I'd think about increasing the saturation in the trees, maybe, and perhaps finding a way to emphasize the shaft of light and the mist.

pathfinder

wxwax wrote:

I prefer the original. I think the crop weakens the composition. I wouldn't darken the water, myself. I'd think about increasing the saturation in the trees, maybe, and perhaps finding a way to emphasize the shaft of light and the mist.

Thanks waxy - I looked at different crops of this image and the choice is to emphasize the reflections or the trees - My first crop kept the bulk of the birds nearer the lower right sweet spot and if I enlarge the water area slightly, I do move the birds more near the center which I think is why you prefer my first image. ALso darkening the reflections draws attention from the light in the trees - An interesting conundrumn. I still have not made up my own mind fully yet either - I think the difficulty is in deciding what is the primary and secondary subjects in this image birds, trees, or water .....I am still interested in other viewers opinion now since we have a very close election going on here:D

wxwax

pathfinder wrote:

Thanks waxy - I looked at different crops of this image and the choice is to emphasize the reflections or the trees - My first crop kept the bulk of the birds nearer the lower right sweet spot and if I enlarge the water area slightly, I do move the bords more near the center which I think is why you prefer my first image. ALso darkening the reflections draws attention from the light in the trees - An interesting conundrumn. I still have not made up my own mind fully yet either - I think the difficulty is in deciding what is the primary and secondary subjects in this image birds, trees, or water .....I am still interested in other viewers opinion now since we have a very close election going on here:D

I figured your dilemma was that the bright water detracted from the trees. I wonder what it would look like with everything maximed?

pathfinder

wxwax wrote:

I figured your dilemma was that the bright water detracted from the trees. I wonder what it would look like with everything maximed?

:duel Ok Ok Waxy I have gone back and reworked the image again - just for you - I have returned to the original cropping but overlay burned in the foreground and the trees and lightened the light shaft and saturated the trees slightly more



This will be my submision for the challenge as I as leaving for Tennesssee in the morning. I will try to check in from time to time.

wxwax

I like it!

judyfuess

great shot! Love the mist coming off the water