Abandoned

Image Critiques Landscape Critiques
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Critique Style Requested: In-depth

The photographer has shared comprehensive information about their intent and creative vision for this image. Please examine the details and offer feedback on how they can most effectively realize their vision.

Self Critique

Not sure how I could have improved this, given my intention.

Creative direction

I wanted to portray movement of the grass on a very cold, foggy, windy day. I was drawn to the dryness of the landscape, and the feeling of abandonment of the fence, with the cold foggy environment.

Specific Feedback

How does the image make you feel?
Technically, I have ignored some rules of photography. I have a slow shutter to show the movement of the grasses in the wind. The image and the subject are soft because of the fog. I am interest in whether this appeals, should I sharpen a little or would it lose what I have captured. I would like your advice on any post processing or how I could have better captured, if possible.

Technical Details

ISO 160 F22 1/8th

Description

This was taken on a very foggy and windy day. It was very uncomfortable up on a ridge. My aim and journey in photography is to be more impactful, but I am torn between doing that, and being perceived as a bad photographer by not comforming to the “rules” ie sharpness and bluriness by slow shutter speeds. What do you think?

7 Likes
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I would leave it as is, a beautiful shot that conveys the lonely and abandoned farms.

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Hi Loretta, this is nice work. The strong wind just jumps off the page. I like the effect of the parallel fence line and the hills going into the distance.
I was not sure about the apparent vague cyan and pink in the distance, but figured out that those were hills in the fog, but not sure the colors work for me. The wooden and metal posts are “foggy”, but they seem to be too close to actually appear foggy. You might try bringing some clarity back into them and see what you think of the result. Overall, the image is quite warm. I wonder if a cooler temperature might convey the coldness you mentioned … would shift some colors in the yellows and greens around the post, I suppose.
Looks like some lens smudge just above the grassy horizon about 900 and 3100 pixels in from the left.

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Good observations on all accounts. Thanks.

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I love the subject of the broken down fence. The corner post is leaning after years of holding the barbed wire taut. The blur of the grasses and haziness gives the photo a painted quality.

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This is quite evocative of a windy day and abandonment, so you certainly succeeded there. The softness works well with your intent. Old abandonment seems like it should be soft and worn down. Dick K. had good suggestions about the clarity of the main post and the color balance. A bit of clarity/contrast increase on the post and a white balance adjustment would bring out more depth to the scene. I took a crack at it, increasing the clarity and highlights on the post and adjusting the white balance. There is some banding in the sky, but that may just be the way the jpg was rendered. Also, there are a few sensor spots in the sky.

Compositionally, the post feels just a tad big in the frame. Even though it’s leaning, it feels very solid. Perhaps if it had a bit more room, it would feel more tenuous and lonely.

Here’s my idea on the processing:

LorettaC
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Here’s a comparison of the histograms before and after cooling it down:
Before:
Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 10.31.36 AM
After:
Screen Shot 2023-12-19 at 10.32.54 AM

As far as being thought a “bad” photographer - If someone thinks a photo like this is “bad” and you’re a “bad” photographer, well, you just have to ignore them. It’s not a bad photograph - it’s absolutely lovely. It’s the quality of the appreciation, not the quantity that counts.

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Yes I agree it needs cooling a little. I have looked at the cyan, pink and it is banding. I have the raw file, so little fix that. I also see the smudge. Thanks very much for your attention to this. I have to be pay more attention to my post processing.

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The corner post failing to keep the barbed wire straight was what attracted me to this. It was not apparent until I read your posting. Sometimes, I feel the draw of something, but can’t put it into my consciousness. I remember standing there at the time and not knowing why I was transfixed on the wire and post. Thank you for drawing that out. I just love this forum.

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Great rendering and I agree with both the coloring and bring out the post. I have to say although I have watched many post processing classes my failing is to see what I should do with my own images. I think I will have to have a list of prompts next to me, when rendering. It seems so obvious now to cool the image down, and sharpen a little the post. Why I couldn’t get this before is beyond me, right now. So thank you. I am learning so much by all the members of this forum. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

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Lorretta - I think that much of the processing instruction we can find online tends towards “how” to do things, not “why” to do them. Using your photo here as an example, you articulated quite well what you wanted to convey (cold, wind, abandonment). The next step is to ask yourself how to do that. There are certain “conventions” most people agree on (at least westerners) to convey these things. Color-wise blue-tones are considered cooler, yellow-red tones are considered warm, so if you want to convey cold, a cooler white balance would work better. Things like abandonment are harder to convey. It could be texture (peeling paint) or things askew, like your post.

I think it’s actually the hardest part of processing to figure out the “why” because that’s the artistic part of the process. The “how” is (more or less) easy because there’s a jillion videos out there to show you how.

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A lovely find, well photographed. I second the many good thoughts above. My only minor addition is that it looks as though you may have resorted to a little negative Clarity to enhance the foggy look? I think that is one slider that should never be moved to the left, except maybe when going for a totally funky old film look for something like Instagram! As mentioned above, the big post (and even the more distant grasses) feels too soft in contrast and tonal detail. (The wind movement detail is fine!) You have a very compelling image here – I’d love to see a RP with the thoughts above considered!

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Thanks, I will keep the word “why” in the forefront of my mind. It is a simple but important question to ask in many areas of the human condition, particularly in these diverse times! Many thanks.

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I find this scene quite evocative Loretta and I think you succeeded beautifully with the creative direction that you were trying for. The fence does feel abandoned and left to the elements which you enhanced with the sense of motion with the blowing grasses. I think the couple of small tweaks suggested have elevated an already beautiful image another notch.

I wouldn’t worry if someone says this is a bad photograph or that you are a bad photographer. We are all here to better ourselves as photographers and that includes entertaining suggestions from others, but the bottom line is do what you enjoy and like. Rules are made to be broken.

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Thanks for your thoughts Ed. I am trying to find what avenue of creativeness I want to do in depth. This forum and comments, as yours, is invaluable. Thanks

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Loretta, I love this concept of this image - the wind, the soft atmosphere, the sense of a farm that has had to be abandoned. I’m with several other commenters that the colors were a little off. That wooden post looks like a repurposed railroad tie, and they often have remainders of tar that darken the wood, so the greenish tint on it wasn’t quite appealing to me (Bonnie’s edits really helped my feeling about it). I actually like the ‘heaviness’ and tilt of that post in the foreground, which strengthens my feeling of a once-prosperous farm or ranch that has slowly surrendered to time, lack of money for maintenance, and disinterest, and that’s now being beaten by the elements as well. I can absolutely see this image, with a few tweaks, framed and displayed on a wall.

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Abandoned GS rendering
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Nice composition but, as others have expressed, there is no real attractor to the viewer’s eye nor a path to them through the composition. My sense is that the color in this image is more distracting than enhancing. I think the stump, wires and posts are the primary subjects and are best displayed when their contrast with the lighter wind-blown weeds is increased by converting the image to greyscale. Similarly, the far background becomes more detailed without eliminating the atmosphere.

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Hmm thank you for your black and white rendition of my image. I will give this a go since I think some of the wind through seeing the texture more come through, although the fog doesn’t. Def food for thought. Thanks.

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Re: “although the fog doesn’t.” – The fog does not come through as a prominent visual element on its own, but it contributes to the diffusion of more distant areas, providing a feeling of depth that would otherwise be hard to achieve, and is such an attractive aspect of this photograph.

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Lorretta,

I LOVE this! You did a fantastic job of creatin what you experienced,

You did just that. The foggy atmosphere, the movement of the grasses… even the “dryness” as you described. And for me mostly, it’s about the story, the “abandonment.” I see generations of ranchland here; from the old weathered, wooden post connected to the later generation of metal posts and all the barbed wire in disrepair. So many stories could be conjured up - and leaves the viewer just wondering about that history. Kudos to illiciting these thoughts and feelings.

Very much reminds me of the landscape and environment of Point Reyes Nat Seashore.

To the technial and color interpretations… Great thoughts and ideas here. And with all suggestions, they are subjective and personal choices. My thoughts certainly fall in there. I actually quite like yours as presented. And of course without working from the RAW file, we’re a bit hampered in what can be done. For example, the banding at the top of the frame, which you’ve already acknowledged.

Fog can be many things. It can be dark and moody, almost depressing. On the other hand, with the presence of the sun near by, can be bright and airy. I see this as brighter, where the sun is rising and trying to reach through the fog rolling quickly over the ridge, creating those windy and “uncomfortable” conditions.

So I chose to go a little brighter, with only a very slightly cooler WB (just a few pts). I tweaked the reds, oranges, yellows in ACR, also desaturated the greens. The presence of the mustard weed I don’t think added. But also in ACR, dropped the dehaze and texutre a little bit to enhance the softer feeling of the fog and movement of the grasses. But then, I painted/masked out to keep the main post with a little more texture and detail.

Didn’t deal with the top banding because we don’t have the RAW. And fyi… there’s a couple of dust bunnies visible too… :slight_smile:

This is just a wonderful image, wonderful story. Hope you don’t mind, here’s another interpretation:

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Thanks for your very thorough reply. This is actually very near sibley volcanic park, in the east bay of SF bay area. It’s on a ridge at the back of my neighborhood. I was feeling homesick of the UK, as I miss rock walls, and old brick buildings, and fields with fences. So this captured my imagination. It was a foggy day, which I just love here. I think apart from making the post stand out, most of the comments, changes are subjective. But I did appreciate thinking about cooling it off. Thanks again.