One of the prettiest rivers in Florida is the Aucilla River. Full of dark, tannin stained water, it is the epitome of a slow moving southern river, full of mystery and romance. On its way to the Gulf of Mexico it adds to that sense of mystery by going underground several times only to re-emerge again later. This image was taken not far above where it goes underground for the last time on its trip southward. It re-emerges approximately three miles downstream from here.
The processing on this was fairly straight forward except for the brightness of the exposed sky and upper tree level. I handled that in layers within Capture One Pro 12.
What technical feedback would you like if any? Any & all.
What artistic feedback would you like if any? Again, any and all, but I would love to know if this elicits an emotional response within you.
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
Nikon D810 w. Tamron 24-70 VC @ 24 mm.
.6 sec @ f/11, 200 ISO
Singh Ray Circ. Polarizer
Tripod
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Hi Bill,
I take it from your description that the dark water is the main subject of your scene? If so my eye is definitely drawn to the high contrast area in the river.
Nathan
Beautifully composed, Bill, the sway of that fg trunk setting off the curve of the bank to the R. Wonderful detail throughout the foliage. I do find the bright central reflection just a bit of an attention grabber, but nothing spoils the array of greens across the frame.
Hey Bill, great to see a post from you!
Very intriguing indeed. there is great mystery in that darkness - perhaps going as far to elicit "The Creature from the Black Lagoon…) 
Colors and processing look spot on as I would change anything with the dark water. Composition works too by including the bowed trunk and enough of a similar bowed tree on the right.
Can’t say I would change anything. Oh, but I might wish the small plant in the LLC weren’t there, but that’s getting pretty picky.
Lon
Thanks, Lon. Funny that you mention Creature from the Black Lagoon. They filmed much of that movie about 20-25 miles from the spot I shot this, on the Wakulla River. They also filmed several Tarzan movies there and the underwater scenes from Airport 77 at Wakulla Springs. Robin and I stay at the Wakulla Lodge a good bit when we’re over there. We were there just last weekend and they were showing The Creature from the Black Lagoon in the lobby. Had to watch it, of course. The Lodge is fantastic - built in 1937 by Ed Ball as a personal retreat; it is now a state park. Nothing has changed since it was built, except for them now having wifi; no tv’s in the rooms, marble floors, an extraordinary painted ceiling in the lobby, and 6000 acres of swamp, bottomland, gators, and birds. It’s like stepping back in time!
Thanks Ian & Nathan for your comments and suggestions.
Bill what an interesting location this is. I like both the lush vegetation and the dark reflections in the water, they work very well together and create a nice contrast. Your processing looks great to me. I also like @Lon_Overacker reference to the The Creature from the Black Lagoon, and your backstory on the filming of the movie. I’m sure the Creature is lurking somewhere in those dark shadows…
My only suggestion would be to consider a crop from the bottom. It would address the small plant Lon mentioned, and I think it would place even more emphasis on the tree and those wonderful reflections in the water. I would suggest something like this…
Thanks Ed for the kind words and crop example. I like that crop a lot as it also removes so much of the negative space in the LRC. Thanks much, consider it done!
I like Ed’s crop, Bill. Some crop suggestions (like mine, often) will reinterpret the image into something else. But this one reinforces your initial intent.
I love this image Bill. I think it captures some of the spirit of swampland of the South. There is exotic beauty, mystery, and danger here. Ponce de Leon country. What treasures does this hide? This image draws you in, and you don’y know if the outcome will be good or bad. But you must obey your urge to enter.
Nice work.
My least favorite part is that brown rock that extends in from the left bank. I just find it confusing.
