Another view of some rapids on the Pine River. Just out of sight on the left is a big Portage sign for canoers and kayakers and since there’s more of this behind me, it’s a wise idea to walk your boat around this bit.
If you want to compare this with a similar shot taken just a few feet away, click here. I prefer this one I think. The leaves are a bit of a cliché, but they fell there and I left them there. At least they’re not maples, lol. Experimented with shutter speed to find the best pattern in the water and this was it for that repetition and undulating feel.
Specific Feedback Requested
Overall impressions, ideas for processing improvement or better placement in the field.
Technical Details
Tripod and CPL
Lr for a little boost in exposure, wb adjustment and some work in curves and masking to balance the tonalities from extreme light to dark. Calibration and HSL panel to nudge colors slightly warmer. Lens correction & transform since this is so very wide.
Ps to remove distractions in treeline and to use luminosity and other mask techniques to lead the eye through the scene.
Hi Kristen, really relaxing image and scene! I enjoyed the leading curved line of the stream leading from the right corner to the center background. The overall exposure is nicely balanced.
I have two versions for you to consider. In each image below I cooled down the foregound a bit so it provides a transition to the warmer tones in the background. I feel this adds a bit more depth and dimension.
Thanks @Alfredo_Mora - I haven’t tried using color in the foreground for this purpose, so you have indeed given me something to think about and experiment with. The crop is something I did in the field and felt that there wasn’t enough going on for me to favor that look. I’m glad you think there is. Just goes to show how we all see so differently.
Your overall exposure looks wonderful Kristen both the water motion and background. I also like the foreground leaves. They add an element of interest with a touch of color.
Such a lovely and beautifully composed scene and photograph. I think one of my favorites of your recent posts from this area.
The flow of the river, with it’s white-water textures is just calming. I think the autumn leaves in the foreground (and the bit of rock) work well to connect with the trees and the upper part of the image.
Just a well balanced and beautiful image. No nits or suggestions - although I do like Alfredo’s “cooler” water version edit.
Thanks @Eva_McDermott & @Lon_Overacker - glad the composition works for you, I was doing my best impression of a monkey with a tripod trying different things.
I have more from the Pine river, but won’t give them to you now so you won’t get too tired of this kind of thing. It’s a weakness of mine, but I did go out of my way to find different and smaller slices of fall that hopefully break me out of my rut a bit.
The image has good flow, and the inclusion of the leaves bottom left is nice. I almost wish this was flipped though so that the leaves were bottom right. I wonder if people that read right to left might find this rendition more in line with how they see though! Something to ponder…
Thanks @Matt_Payne - interesting that you picked up on a left/right flow when I read this as pretty centered other than the direction of the river itself. Sometimes I do flip images, but more often than not I leave them as found. A good exercise though and maybe one that will help with composition and direction of the eye in general.
