Durdle Door Coastline

Fantastic seascape Guy!! I love how your compositions always tie the water to the land and the sky. That wonderful sweeping waterline and the starburst in the arch really set this one apart.

John Zinn

wow...to say it was gorgeous would be an understatement!
i love the swoop of water, and the rays from the sun!
the great light on the far right stuff doesn't hurt either!

may i ask...how did you go about combining them? did you mask? if you masked...did wat did you do at the high contrast areas...like the middle part of the arch? did you use a hard brush and take a while to get close to the edge?

i've tried combining shots before, and the edges always looked weird (probably because i knew they weren't supposed to look like that lol)

well, great shot! it's gorgeous...i hope you've printed this one!
Vito

<B>"two exposures combined in PS."</B>

That is definitely the key to overcoming the limitations of both digital and film capture. Very well done here, Guy. The curve of the water line is just fantastic.

Curious, this would be national park here in the U.S. How do you avoid footprints in the sand.

Guy, I love the sweeping curve and how it ties the foreground to the horizon on the background. The arch with the sun also perfectly balances the image on the left. Really well done.

Guy,

I have to agree with everyone else this is a beaut.The shoreline,clouds and the arch make this one.I do seem to be noticing what appears to be flare or something around the sun.It is not that important and in no way takes away from what you have here I just find it a little distracting.

Also agree about the blend to get around the limitations.I have yet to use such a feature,but I can see why it is needed.

Thanks for sharing.

Besides echoing all of the flattering comments, Guy, I am dying to run right into that water.

Good work.

Joe.

Not bad for a day's outing . Love the sunburst and the curve of the sand. A lesson in great composition.

Unreal! I love the sweep of the water, the moment caught of the sun, the light, and anything else you can mention about this. Fantastic!

This is simply astonishing. Not sure what else to say.

Simply amazing.

Ed

So beautiful..can almost hear the silent surf. Wish I was walking there right about now. Very nice

Outstanding!! I'll be coming back to look at this one several more times.

I ditto all compliments

WHat else is there to say? Awesome!

I'll toast to this one!

Guy, this is amazing! I just spent a little time on your website and it is filled with images of this quality. You have some terrific photos! My wife is from the SW UK and so we spend time there every year, but I can't say that I've ever come away with anything that can compare. Thank you for giving me a fresh burst of energy and inspiration this morning!

Erik

<i>Perhaps if I changed my name to "Guy" like Mr. Tal or Mr. Edwards, my photos would improve. Hmmm. </i>

Fantastic image, Guy. This is certainly a testament to the power of digital imaging and your mastery of the process.
By the way, what is a Durdle?

Guy

Thanks for the comments!

Vito,
I always find it difficult to answer digital questions without demonstrating on-screen. Basically I layered the lighter foreground exposure over the darker exposure for the sky. I then erased the top layer to reveal the sky (and other highlights) beneath. I did this in stages using different sized brushes at varying opacities until the contrast range in the image was roughly balanced - I tend to use quite large brush sizes at a low opacity and overlap the edges of the contrasting areas grading them until I get the desired result. I then applied levels and colour balance adjustments to each layer to fine-tune the overall balance of the image. Hope this makes sense
.

Guy,
I have no idea what a "durdle" is - I've never really thought about it! However, I will endeavour to find out for you .

Erik,
Feel free to get in touch before your next visit to the UK. I'd be happy to recommend some good locations - specific to the time of year that you're here.

Amazingly beautiful - what a wonderful image!

hey guy
i see wat you mean...i'll have to try it again with the low opacity stuff...
lol, i think i just tried to do it too fast ;)
Vito

Hey Guy,

Stunning. As usual.

Cheers

Carl

Guy,
Apparently (and quite logically I guess) the name "durdle" derives from the Old English word for pierced.

wow, amazing gorgious light! the composition is really beautiful.