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Emerging Color

Photo posted by Lon Overacker in the Photo Art gallery on 10/25/17 at 9:49 pm EST
Registered on 11/24/06, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments

It's been forever and a day when I think I last posted in this gallery. There is always some great work being posted in here.

Back when I was a moderator, I struggled with PA images in landscape - at least deciding what was considered PA. I always would fall back on part of the definition in the Posting Guidelines: "... obvious artistic renditions of nature."

With that, I think this belongs in Photo Art. True, b&w images are considered standard and not manipulated, but I think the moment I combine the b&w with the color in an obvious fashion, to me this is a "rendition" and no longer a representation of nature.

ANYWAY... I spied this sage late in the day while leaving the overflow parking lot at South Tufa at Mono Lake. I knew at the time I wanted to return and photograph this wonderful bush - and knew it would be b&w, with the shape, forms and contrasts. Once I got back and began processing images, I realized the little flowers on the sage were just not translating the way I need for a good b&w presentation. Then I recall a comment from Igor a while back about the dominance of the color yellow. So I decided to embrace the yellow and try and isolate that against the monochrome of the bush. I painted the color back in on a layer mask, easy enough to do, but it also brought back in blue, cyan and other colors. So I just added another saturation layer and desaturate the other colors except for th yellow.

I'm really happy with this, but as always would love to hear comments, feedback and critique from others.

thanks!

Lon

Of course you must click on the larger view.

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

All Photos and Comments by Lon Overacker

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Comment posted by Vance Gese on 10/26/17 at 11:58 pm EST
Registered on 11/13/08, 298 Posts, 6629 Comments

Lon, I think this is simply exquisite. The tones and lines in the sage are outstanding, seeming like feathers, almost wings of a bird taking flight. And then the tiny yellow flowers, like gems, a treasure that is hidden yet present. You could almost call this image Phoenix. Love everything about this. And thank you for explaining yur approach to processing this, combining the black and white with the color. It works spendidly.

Vance Gese
Vance Gese Photography
Quilcene, Washington

I was merely there, a small, puny, awestruck man,
praising Almighty God, with camera in hand.

Make a few images, well.

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Comment posted by Lon Overacker on 10/27/17 at 12:21 am EST
Registered on 11/24/06, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments

Thank you Vance! I appreciate the comment. This may be perhaps my favorite image of the trip. thanks for commenting.

Lon Overacker
Livermore, California

Capturing Moments in Time

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