‹ Previous Weekly Challenge Gallery Next ›

Snow Wave Trick? ANSWER

Gallery: Weekly ChallengePosted January 21, 2013102 views7 comments

TRICKERY? Do you see anything in this shot that makes it look like the light is coming from two different directions at once? If you do, can you figure out how that happened?
>>>---> UPDATE: SEE THE ANSWER IN MY COMMENT # 7.

Nothing here snow and hints in the shadows about what lies outside the frame. Probably as simple a scene as I will find in my area for an abstract composition. (Reminded me a bit of those barren rock formations out West that produce such amazing abstract scenes -- hence the title Snow "Wave." It's just a small stream bed -- one of the rare places in my neck of the woods not covered by trees. But of course you can tell there are plenty of trees nearby.

Canon 50D
Sigma 17-70mm. f/2.8
1/200 sec. @ f/7.1; ISO 100
Converted to B&W CS5
I used the content-aware fill to get rid of a small triangle of open brook water in the top of this crop, as well as a small twig.

TRICKERY? Do you see anything in this shot that makes it look like the light is coming from two different directions at once? If you do, can you figure out how that happened?

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Christine Adams on January 21, 2013 at 9:24 PM

I'm not sure what you're asking Wayne (maybe I'm just tired

) but I do know that I love this shot! I have similar shots and people inquire about what it is. I like the light, the angle of the shadows and the abstractedness. (Is that a word?)

Registered on January 24, 2006, 119 Posts, 1871 Comments

Comment posted by Balan Vinod on January 22, 2013 at 10:51 AM

Beautifully crafted image Wayne ..love this abstract ..so simple and effective ..well done

Balan Vinod

Registered on March 20, 2006, 889 Posts, 2312 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on January 22, 2013 at 5:26 PM

The strong diagonals in both the shadows and the undulating snow make this very dynamic. My guess about the doubled shadows (that I probably wouldn't have noticed on my own) is that there's water nearby reflecting the sun strongly.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by Carolyn Derstine on January 22, 2013 at 5:33 PM

Very nice abstract! I love the waves of undulating snow drifts and how the shadows follow the curving lines. Great comp too with the diagonal shadows. The title works very well to describe this image. Great find, Wayne!

About your trickery--I would suspect Mark has the answer.

Registered on February 16, 2011, 610 Posts, 3684 Comments

Comment posted by RL Potts on January 22, 2013 at 8:17 PM

Nice one, Wayne. Op art. We run across it once in a while. I found this effect last week in some beach patterns. It is a bit hard to explain, but if you could, it would make a good subject for a challenge. I often wonder how folks will see such images. I think this one is more interesting when seen in the alternate way. This also looks very much like folds of fabric. Interesting processing. Interesting image.

Registered on November 24, 2003, 188 Posts, 985 Comments

Comment posted by Craig Myers on January 23, 2013 at 8:01 PM

Intriguing abstract. For me, the visual interest comes from the variety in the shape and intensity of the shadows which nevertheless share the constant of all flowing along roughly the same diagonal. Nicely composed.

Registered on September 1, 2008, 85 Posts, 757 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Jones on January 25, 2013 at 4:25 PM

>>>---> "TRICKERY" ANSWER:
Robert's comment about this snow looking like "folds of fabric" refers to the "optical illusion" I was talking about. The first time I posted a similar version of this (in Landscape a couple of years ago) I was surprised when someone commented "I'm really intrigued by the fold in the foreground." There actually is no "fold in the foreground" but after I read that comment, I saw it. The way that two tree shadows intertwine gives the impression that there is a snow drift in the foreground, with an overhanging top casting a shadow under the drift, like the "folds of fabric" that Robert mentioned. However, for that shadow to exist, the light would have to be coming from high to the rear of the scene -- which contradicts the fact that the trees are casting shadows from the actual light low to the left. If you cover all but the left 20% of the image, showing just the right side, you can see that the dark and light lines are just two shadows on fairly flat snow -- not a "folded" drift.

Registered on April 18, 2007, 953 Posts, 6435 Comments