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Reclining Neighbors +2
Photo posted by Igor Doncov in the Landscape gallery on 08/26/17 at 8:18 pm EST
Registered on 11/22/14, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments
Post last edited by Igor Doncov on 08/27/17 at 2:53 pm EST

The shoreline of Sparks Lake is littered with fallen trees. Usually I step around them while prowling the shoreline for good lake compositions. In this case I turned my back to the lake and started to examine these logs. They seemed like perfect subjects for B&W so I decided to do some experimentation. I've shown this one to some of my friends and they liked it so I decided to post here to see your reaction.

I used Silver Efex Pro 2 for some processing and TK actions for resizing/sharpening.

"If you want to make more interesting pictures, become a more interesting person" - Jay Maisel. 

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Comment posted by Bill Chambers on 08/26/17 at 8:41 pm EST    
Registered on 04/10/05, 753 Posts, 21216 Comments

I love this Igor.  Beautiful tones!  I'm not quite sure about the composition though.  I think in this particular case, a straight on composition might be a little better; would love to see one if you have it.  Either way, it's gorgeous.
 

  
Bill Chambers
Gulf Breeze, Florida
Please visit Enchanted Light Photography

"You don't make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” - Ansel Adams
   

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Comment posted by gary phillips on 08/27/17 at 12:31 am EST    
Registered on 10/24/13, 185 Posts, 4136 Comments

I love this Igor.  The receding perspective works very well for me  It's as if they are perfectly content to be in this proximity forever.  Wonderful tones and detail.  I'm a little on the fence about the branch that has joined this couple.  For some reason, when I roll a crop from the top to just below the log and shadow top left, the impact of the branch lessens.  I'm intrigued by this image, nice work.

  
Gary Phillips
Ivins, Utah

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Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on 08/27/17 at 12:18 pm EST    
Registered on 11/01/03, 471 Posts, 5188 Comments

I like the two large trees, but the composition feels a little busy to me. You might consider burning some of the branches on the left and on the right so as to accentuate the two main trees. The tones in the image look good to me.
--P

  
Preston Birdwell
Columbia, California, USA

NPN 429 | California Nature Photographers (CANP) Moderator | 'NPN Discussion' Moderator

“If you want nice fresh oats, you have to pay a fair price. If you can be satisfied with oats that have already been through the horse, well, that comes a little cheaper" Author Unknown
   

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Comment posted by Lon Overacker on 08/27/17 at 12:45 pm EST    
Registered on 11/24/06, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments

Igor,

Excellent!  What a great find and find the "reclining" perspective to work beautifully and effectively here. Great choice in the b&w as well; I find that b&w works well in simplifying a scene and often reducing extraneous clutter, as would be the smaller branches, twigs and surrounding forest debris.

These two are paired together beautifully - can I say a match made in heaven?  angel  The only suggestion I have would be to pull out even more emphasis on the pair of fallen beauties.  I think you could increase the tonal value/luminosity of the main trees while letting the rest stay or go darker.  I'm not thinking of a big swing, but a slightly measured tweak.  I do think the tonal values are good as presented, you just might experiment with a lighter presentation of the main trunks.

Great eye on this one.

Lon

 

  

Lon Overacker
Livermore, California

Capturing Moments in Time

 

 

     

To photograph is to hold one's breath, when all faculties converge to capture fleeting reality. It's at that precise moment that mastering an image becomes a great physical and intellectual joy. -Henri Cartier-Bresson
 

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Comment posted by Doug Koepsel on 08/27/17 at 1:10 pm EST    
Registered on 04/01/10, 196 Posts, 1592 Comments

Igor, this looks good on the darker background.  My thoughts are just a few more points of brightness and contrast, And maybe just a small crop off the top as it looks a little busy up there. I like your scene with the two logs.

  
Doug Koepsel
Flagstaff, AZ
Plateau Light Photography
https://www.facebook.com/doug.koepsel
   

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Comment posted by Igor Doncov on 08/27/17 at 2:11 pm EST    
Registered on 11/22/14, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments

Here is the original image as shot. I had never intended to use the lake but because of the format of the image I had to include it in order to get all that I wanted in the image. I also saw this as a b&w from the start but now I'm not sure that the original color needed to be removed to be effective.

"If you want to make more interesting pictures, become a more interesting person" - Jay Maisel. 

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Comment posted by Igor Doncov on 08/27/17 at 2:52 pm EST    
Registered on 11/22/14, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments

Thank you for your suggestions. They were useful. The observation that this looked better on a black background was interesting because I knew as soon as I added the white frame that it was a mistake. It made everything else look dark. So I'm adding an offwhite frame. The contrast issue I had played around with and chose the lower contrast to keep more detail in the highlights. Again, I think the white frame caused one to want more contrast. I made to the change to a higher contrast while keeping the shadows fairly dark.

I'm also not too happy with the title. To me the subject is more abstract and is really about comfort and balance.

Years ago I had decided that this was one of my favorite type of compositions, a composition that at one time looks like an abstract and at another time looks like a very recognizable subject with all of the emotional ties to it. I remember looking at those old calendars of the Antelope Slot Canyon images and decided that that's what made them special. But when they were shot completely out of context I liked them less. 

"If you want to make more interesting pictures, become a more interesting person" - Jay Maisel. 

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Comment posted by scott lanz on 08/27/17 at 6:28 pm EST    
Registered on 11/14/03, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments

Well seen, processed and presented here, Igor. What you saw in and then pulled out of the original scene to produce this is remarkable. 

scott lanz
Youngstown, Ohio
www.lanzscape.com
   

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Comment posted by Paul Breitkreuz on 08/28/17 at 11:09 am EST    
Registered on 02/25/06, 525 Posts, 8448 Comments

Igor, I really like the first post here along with the original color version too, although cropping out the lake was a very positive move. Very nicely seen and photographed, as well as post processing.....laugh

  
Paul Breitkreuz
Corona, California
Trailimages.com
NPN 2326

"Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care."
- Theodore Roosevelt -
   

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Comment posted by Nick Bristol on 08/29/17 at 4:45 pm EST    
Registered on 02/01/04, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments
Comment last edited by Nick Bristol on 08/29/17 at 4:48 pm EST

This is excellent! All 3 of these look great to me and I probably like the last one best. Great job setting up the composition and then cropping out the water. The b&w processing is wonderful and I also like the color minus the water of course.  devil

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI.

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Comment posted by John Williams on 08/29/17 at 11:43 pm EST    
Registered on 09/06/07, 221 Posts, 5985 Comments

Most excellent Igor; good eye! I prefer the original, but it is fun to see the one with the water to realize what you were starting with.

  
John Williams
www.tranquilviews.com
Battle Ground, WA
I often have wandered in deep contemplation, It seems that the mind runs wild when you're all alone. -John Denver

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Comment posted by Anil Rao on 09/04/17 at 12:51 pm EST    
Registered on 11/15/03, 234 Posts, 4923 Comments
Comment last edited by Anil Rao on 09/04/17 at 12:53 pm EST

Hi Igor,

This is a captivating photo on many levels. I am especially drawn to the choice of framing, which offers both visual symmetry and a nice sense  of mystery. While the full capture has obvious location context, your cropped version has eliminated them. Subtracting all the color adds to that effect. The end result is a graceful scene that poses more questions than providing answers. And, this is precisely why I am drawn to this photograph.

Anil Rao

Santa Clara, California

 
   

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