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Bond Falls in B&W +
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Bond Falls in B&W +

by Nick Bristol

Gallery: LandscapePosted April 10, 2016337 views17 comments
This is a black and white version of a picture I posted earlier. I shot it this past fall at Bond Falls in Upper Michigan. It was mid-day light and I used a 6 stop ND filter to get the longer exposure I felt it would need for the look I wanted. The color version is a few images down in my gallery here. Thanks for looking.
Canon 5D3, 70-300L @ 200, ISO 160, F/11 and 0.4 sec. Silver Efex Pro 2 used for conversion and a touch of curves in PS.

Comments

17 comments
Comment posted by Ken Henke on April 10, 2016 at 3:40 PM
I really like the differing flow directions in this image. The black tones look perfect to me. Maybe the only thing to suggest would be bringing some more brightness to some of the water, particularly in the foreground. Just a few more streaks of brighter water rather than any global change?  
Registered on February 20, 2012, 117 Posts, 285 Comments
Comment posted by Ed Lowe on April 10, 2016 at 5:15 PM
This intimate look works rather nicely in B&W, Nick. You captured a nice range of tones and that FG section of water is particularly striking with those lines created with your SS choice. Excellent image.

Ed
Registered on February 7, 2004, 414 Posts, 7115 Comments
Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on April 10, 2016 at 6:45 PM
I really like this in B&W, Nick. The tonality is very nice with excellent separation. The shutter speed was perfect for this, and I really like the alternating light and dark bands in the foreground.

Well done!

--P
Registered on November 1, 2003, 471 Posts, 5188 Comments
Comment posted by Daniel Rappaport on April 10, 2016 at 6:53 PM
Well composed - the foreground flow really balances the falls nicely, Good tones and shutter speed.  
Registered on September 9, 2009, 294 Posts, 2006 Comments
Comment posted by Jean C Cajolet on April 10, 2016 at 7:49 PM
I like shutter speed, the two directions of the flow and the light in the water. It's a B&W and it's black or white.
Registered on April 28, 2014, 53 Posts, 532 Comments
Comment posted by Dave Dillemuth on April 10, 2016 at 8:57 PM
Nick,
Very dynamic image. SS works great to express the movement and power of the flowing water. Comp. and processing look great - no suggestions.
Registered on December 10, 2015, 104 Posts, 1112 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Chambers on April 10, 2016 at 9:25 PM
Very nice Nick.  You handled the dynamic range very nicely here and I like the composition a lot.  Excellent conversion.
Registered on April 10, 2005, 753 Posts, 21216 Comments
Comment posted by Igor Doncov on April 11, 2016 at 1:05 AM
Boy this is a sweet image. Such wonderful shapes and tones. I feel this feels more like water than an earlier one that shows a waterfall more realistically. That sharp dark crest holds it all together. The strong white on the left weakens the image a bit. Adding a bit more detail to it would help. There is a fine composition of the right half of the image that includes everything from the top down to about 2/3 rds.
Registered on November 22, 2014, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments
Comment posted by Dan Kearl on April 11, 2016 at 11:44 AM
Very striking and well seen. B & W works well and the SS works really well for the FG water.
Registered on September 2, 2013, 209 Posts, 1514 Comments
Comment posted by Roel Wijtmans on April 11, 2016 at 11:55 AM
Nice! The detail and flow in the foreground water is especially appealing to me. This is a very nice B+W conversion, and I prefer this over the color version.
Registered on September 30, 2012, 116 Posts, 2257 Comments
Comment posted by Harley Goldman on April 11, 2016 at 5:52 PM
Beautiful falls and excellent B&w rendition of it.  I like this a lot.
Registered on November 19, 2003, 586 Posts, 11271 Comments
Comment posted by Nick Bristol on April 12, 2016 at 1:06 PM
Thanks much to all of you for your comments. As always it is good getting your thoughts.
Ken, When I finished processing this one I did have the brightness a little higher in those streaks of hghlighted water in the foreground. It did look good to me that way too, but then I actually toned them down a bit when I posted it here. Thanks for your comments and suggestions! Nick
Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Overacker on April 12, 2016 at 7:25 PM
Outstanding b&w imagery Nick.  I really like the juxtaposition between the fore and background elements - yes, both flowing water, but the difference in flow, lines and direction let's them be different and apart; yet combined wonderfully.

Hard to find any complaints or suggestions here.  Minor, but there is a small splash (dot) of water near the ULC that could be cloned out. No biggie though, splashing water is part of the bg scene.

Well done!

Lon
Registered on November 24, 2006, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments
Comment posted by Peter Richter on April 13, 2016 at 2:39 PM
The second version works indeed better for me, Nick. Great dynamics, and I especially like the multidirectional flow together with the steady rocks anchoring the scene.

I am just thinking about a bit more texture in the whites at the left, but this is only a minor matter for me.

Peter
Registered on November 10, 2010, 218 Posts, 2723 Comments
Comment posted by Eva McDermott on April 16, 2016 at 1:28 AM
Fantastic, dynamic image Nick.  Wonderful range of tones and contrast.
Registered on January 4, 2009, 1015 Posts, 13229 Comments
Comment posted by Marylynne Diggs on April 16, 2016 at 11:14 AM
What an inspired choice to do this in black and white.  I rarely see waterfalls in b/w, and the lines in this one are just fantastic.  I agree on perhaps lifting the exposure in the foreground spray.  I think it would add some sparkle to an already wonderful image.
ML
Registered on December 14, 2010, 122 Posts, 1034 Comments
Comment posted by Nick Bristol on April 16, 2016 at 3:07 PM
Lon, Peter, Eva and Marylynne, Thanks so much to all of you for your comments on this. Very much appreciated. Nick
Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments