A distant, frozen planet

Image Critiques Weekly Challenge
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A distant, frozen planet
A distant, frozen planet3000×2000 2.15 MB

But no, it’s our planet. Lake Michigan. The western shore just below the Marinette light to be exact. Taken a couple of years ago when I just wanted to go see the ice. February is probably the best time to see it. It piles up into small mountains on the shoreline. If there is a big tide, it slams on the land like a locomotive. If you park your car too close, you lose it. Lake Michigan is blue pretty much all the time, unlike Superior which is very brown and tannic. No wonder since they were formed differently.

Anyway…the water and ice were blue, the reflection of the sky on the snow is more blue and then the sky itself. Just an ocean…well, lake of blue!

Specific Feedback Requested

It was a sunny day and I tried to cope with the harsh light as best I could by harnessing it for drama. The color was there, but enhanced by me in Lr. Hopefully not too much. Let me know what you think.

Technical Details

Is this a composite: No
Lumix G9
Lumix G Vario 12-35mm f/2.8 lens at 35mm (70mm equiv.)
f/13 | 1/160 sec | ISO 200
Handheld out on the ice of Lake Michigan

Lr processed - actually had to bring down exposure a bit and lower the highlights. Also added texture, contrast & dehaze a touch. Graduated filter to bring up details in sky and a touch of sharpening. A bit of crop to eliminate some of the immediate fg which wasn’t doing anything much.

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Fine look at the ice shapes and patterns. Just for yuks, I pulled the image into PS and mostly desaturated the sky. I find the ice and its blues suddenly jump out more and the image develops a nice eerie tension. As always, YMMV as that may not match your vision in the slightest.

Kristin
Kristin2114×1408 505 KB

3 Likes
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Kris, the big triangles of ice in the foreground are a great eye catcher, then the rest of the scene with all of the ice formations fill in. This is a scene well worth visiting. I like your interpretation and don’t think that the blues are too strong.

1 Like
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I hadn’t thought of doing that and I kind of dig it. You’re right that it adds a touch of the strange and I think it works - thanks!