Desert Yuccas

Great capture, Igor. I can imagine being there, feeling the immanence of cool evening air and the waning light.  I love the contrast between the yucca texture and the sand dunes beyond.  I'm undecided about the couple of bright pebbles/stones.  They grab my eye, but they too are catching that light.  There is also one bit of yucca or another plant in shadow in the bottom center.  It also catches my eye as I try to figure out what it is.  I'm interested on others' thoughts on the bright stones and the dark mass. 

Igor, You really caught some wonderful light here, and yes, I bet it didn't last long. I like the composition very much and I'm glad you included the sky like you did. That extra color up there really helps this image imo. This works for me very well as it is here and I like the light on the pebbles too. They start my eye out at the bottom and then the light leads me through the yuccas, after that the shadow trails seem to lead me all the way to the sky. Nice textures and detail in this.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI.

Igor,

The detail and color in the cacti and the hills is excellent. I love the light, especially on the hills. I have two minor items that concern me. First, there is a bit of a branch near the right edge mid-frame that is lit by the sun. It's brightness grabs my eye. Second you might consider backing off the cyan in the sky, and add a little blue.

One other note: The polarizer, along with the wide angle focal length, caused the sky's brightness to be uneven. There is not much you can do in post processing here, but I wanted to mention it for the future.
--P
 

Baja is an especially magical place that we need to keep a secret.  Please don't tell anyone.   The lighting is superb, as you mention.  I also like the scene that you found here.  Some pretty unusual plants can be found down there.

Charlie,

I share your enthusiasm about keeping Baja a secret place. About the best thing that works is to tell people about how dangerous the bandidos and drug dealers are. That seems to work on a surprising number of Americans. Nevertheless the peninsula has undergone an enormous amount of growth in the last 35 years and is no longer recognizable from what it had been. The Mexican government has worked hard to develop this area for American tourism and retirement. It's actually sad for us old timers. There is virtually no place to go any longer to experience what is now referred to as the ambiance of Old Baja. I feel lucky to have known Baja during it's golden era and if I stay away from the urban areas I can pretend that it's still there.

Preston,

I like the color of the sky as is. I prefer it this way rather than blue. I worked to get it this color.

Igor

Igor,

I appreciate this image as I appreciate fleeting light and how most photog's love this time of day. And we're often scrambling before that light fades.  You've managed to successfully capture that moment of fleeting light. Even without your description, the story is evident. Not only the light, but your image tells a story of the area.  A close up of the yucca, the barrel cacti, etc., many of the elements that make up the desert, a close up... but the far background is really just a far-away look of thousands of these little scenes - so the fore and background are clearly connected.

From a nature story and fleeting light point of view, this works very well for me.  From a purely composition point of view, it's an image split in half.  The good news is the story is more powerful than the split comp.

Technically, the minor suggestion I have would be to warm up the light striking the yucca.  I know it's hot, direct, late light, but could be warmer, IMHO.  minor.

Lon

The focus on the cacti with the ridges leading into the background works great here, Igor.  You caught some fine lighting.

Nice work to see and get this before the cactus went into shade, Igor. The light nicely highlights the shapes and fine details. The barren landscape in the bg provides context that this is a remote desert 

The lighting seems to me to give this a surreal feel, Igor, which I really like.   The plants appear imbued with energy in this barren landscape - and those little pebbles lying in the soil are a lovely counterpoint.

Beautiful light and I love the warm yuccas against the dark back. The uneven light Preston mentions does not bother me at all but the sky does look on the cyan side of things. Real nice. 

I like the interplay of light and shadow as well as the sense of texture. 

This is a beautiful image, Igor. While the spot lit yuccas are the star, the design of the overall composition is clever and really does justice to the fact that half of the landscape is in shadow while the rest (background) is bathed in light. I am also enjoying the subtle glow in the sky.

Your recent work has been very very strong. Way to go!

Love the light on the foreground Igor; makes me pine for heading south of the border! The ravine so close to the right makes me wish it was a tad farther from the edge, but that's a minor nit.

I think you accomplished what you set out to do very nicely.  The dark-light-dark-light sequencing works well and the texture of the plants adds additional interrest.