Morning Glow

Gallery: LandscapePosted August 11, 2013213 views7 comments

This is another image that I took in Southern Wyoming. The warm light is reflected off of the nearby peaks. I had been wanting to try an image like this and this was the perfect opportunity.

Capture Info:
100 mm
f5.6; 1/50 sec
ISO 100

Processing Info:
My primary goal in processing was to emphasize the warm / cool color contrast. During capture I had used a warm white balance (cloudy setting I believe) to capture the warm color but I had to bring out the cool tones in post-processing using my newly acquired artistic license.

Levels adjustment to set black / white points
Basic s-curve to increase overall contrast
TK's vibrance mask to actually back off the saturation after the curves adjustment
Color Balance adjustment layer to bring out the cool tones
TK's luminosity mask using basic midtones channel mask
TK's make-it-glow layer at 35% opacity

Thank you for looking, and as always I am interested in learning so all honest comments and critiques are welcome.

Comments

7 comments

Comment posted by Nancy Lea Sandy on August 11, 2013 at 10:33 PM

You caught a nice glowing light on the ripples of the water. Orange and blue color combination is appealing and I really like the texture.

Registered on January 24, 2011, 576 Posts, 6942 Comments

Comment posted by Scott Smorra on August 12, 2013 at 1:09 AM

Very nice colors here Brian. I really like the combination of warm and cool tones. Your processing looks very good to me! I'm undecided about the out of focus areas on the top and bottom. I would prefer to have all of the image in focus, but this is still very nice as presented.

Registered on November 2, 2009, 161 Posts, 2143 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on August 12, 2013 at 7:40 PM

Brian, I like the warm and cool color combination along with the glowing ripples. I'm with Scott in wishing there was a wider range of focus, but still this is very nice as you have it with a nice appeal.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on August 13, 2013 at 12:17 AM

Very nice work on the color and light, Brian. A beautiful image with pleasing textures. I think you could crop to pano, but I agree it's fine as is, too.

Registered on May 7, 2007, 670 Posts, 19650 Comments

Comment posted by Harry Lichtman on August 13, 2013 at 2:16 PM

Colors are fantastic Brian - I immediately noticed the focus is not uniform in the image. While I'm sure intentional on your part, my eye wants either more uniform focus or uniform softness, even more abstract. If there were a definate focal point like a bird or rock, the selective focus may have been more effective. Maybe just the way my brain works

Registered on September 17, 2010, 304 Posts, 3507 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Chambers on August 14, 2013 at 11:43 AM

I love water abstracts and find one attractive. That said, it's not one of my favorites. Strictly my opinion, mind you, but I would rather see you use a longer lens and capture more detail of the ripples, add a little contrast, and more fully saturate the colors. As it is, it appears to be more of a snapshot instead of a well thought out composition. Well conceived, but could use a little work on the execution. Not trying to be harsh at all, just trying to give you my honest appraisal.

Registered on April 10, 2005, 753 Posts, 21216 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on August 15, 2013 at 7:22 PM

Thanks for the honest comments everyone. I really appreciate it!!

A few responses - I agree that this needs more DOF. The shallow DOF was intentional based on images that I had seen from some other photographers. I think the shallow DOF may have worked better if there was only one OOF zone.

Bill - you also touched on something that I have felt myself that the angle of view is too wide and that it would have been better to shoot with a longer focal length to simplify the composition and focus the composition more on specific areas in the reflection. I appreciate the constructive feedback.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments