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Marsh at Dawn
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Marsh at Dawn

by Pat Sampson

Gallery: Photo ArtPosted December 14, 20121,735 views12 comments
Don't hang me. (smile)

I sometimes like the HDR look and I enjoyed playing with it here. It seemed to work a little like a texture and to bring out more sense of depth in the image to me.

I've kept these small to try and keep the quality up. Even so, the compression is affecting them some.

Nikon D800
Zeiss 100mm macro
NIK Suite, LR, PS

Comments and suggestions welcome.

pat

Comments

12 comments
Comment posted by Michael Cothran on December 14, 2012 at 2:31 PM
Very nice. The texture on the marsh grass & water looks superb, but not so much on the background trees. Especially in the larger version. But I love the coolness of the water area coupled with the new warmth of the rising sun. The overall grungy look you have created is quite befitting the scene.
Registered on December 5, 2012, 31 Posts, 730 Comments
Comment posted by Pat Sampson on December 14, 2012 at 2:42 PM
Thanks Michael. I appreciate the feedback on it. I might should have brought the light up in the trees but I was going for the dark as a backdrop for the sun.

pat
Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments
Comment posted by Mark Seaver on December 14, 2012 at 6:52 PM
Very interesting result, Pat. The HDR really does seem to have created a very painterly texture throughout. The sun is positioned wonderfully. I could see cropping some from both the top and the left to create even more of a sense of right to left flow.
Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments
Comment posted by Rob Graham on December 14, 2012 at 11:42 PM
Michael summed up my thoughts nicely with regards to the water and the sun. The dark trees help counter the bright sun.
Registered on August 22, 2006, 842 Posts, 2824 Comments
Comment posted by Pat Sampson on December 15, 2012 at 9:35 AM
Mark, Rob,

Thanks for the crop suggestion. I'll play with it some and see what I get. I like the fg grass on the right though and will want to leave that probably. I've composed this about 100 different ways to date. (smile)

pat
Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Fach on December 16, 2012 at 9:33 PM
Pat: Brilliant comp of a wonderful little scene. The sunlight is especially compelling. I think your processing choices and execution are terrific. >=))>
Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments
Comment posted by Marc Ward on December 18, 2012 at 6:50 PM
Pat,

Great textures and feel for this environment. It feels cold and forsaken. Wonderful conveyance of emotion. I wonder what it would look like to run a large blur tool across the background trees to create a sense of dimension and depth? Lovely image.
Registered on February 26, 2009, 304 Posts, 1365 Comments
Comment posted by Pat Sampson on December 18, 2012 at 8:51 PM
An interesting idea Mark. I'll give it a try. Thanks for the suggestion. I appreciate it.

pat
Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments
Comment posted by Lucy VanSwearingen on December 19, 2012 at 10:50 PM
congrats on the wp. in fact.....on 2 wpicks! Haven't tried HDR< what program do you recommend?
Registered on May 23, 2009, 800 Posts, 2042 Comments
Comment posted by Pat Sampson on December 20, 2012 at 8:00 PM
Thanks Lucy.

I'm using Photomatix and NIK HDR Pro 2. I think I prefer the NIK product but don't really have enough experience with either one to make a call. You can download eval versions of both if you want to play with them. There's a lot of HDR work that I like, both the heavier handed work that's obviously HDR and the more subtle where it's just used to try to map the dynamic range to something that looks realistic.

pat
Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments
Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on December 20, 2012 at 8:35 PM
i'm not a great fan of HDR but i like this with it's subtle touch. sure glad you're back, and congrats on the two WP's!
Sandy
Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments
Comment posted by Catherine Reilly on January 10, 2013 at 3:23 PM
Love what you've done with the HDR here, Pat. I think it does exactly what you describe. Also looks artistic like a sketch on painted background. (I'm artists have a proper term for such!)

NICE to see you back! :biggrin:
Registered on August 16, 2006, 603 Posts, 9192 Comments