I stopped by a beach at a county park north of Arcata recently on the northern California coast. It was about to rain, and there were little streams of sand blowing from behind me out to the sea. I’ve processed this image in a more dramatic way than usual, so I am asking for feedback on it. Is it over the top on contrast, color, etc? I know many times this is a personal preference, but I am experimenting with what I prefer!
What technical feedback would you like if any? any
What artistic feedback would you like if any? As stated above
Pertinent technical details or techniques: Single image, ISO100, 32mm, f/16, 1/20 sec., tripod. Processed in LR, PS and TK luminosity masks.
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
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Kathy: I think this is a fine image. The mood here is stormy and dramatic. The leading lines from the sand work well.
My biggest concern is the composition with the horizon in the middle of the frame. I looked a a couple of options and I’d crop off about half of the sky. There’s still plenty there to convey the message and I find it much stronger.
Kathy, it’s good that you stopped for this. And I know that I am. While the post work may not have been your typical workflow, I love your result. The radial patterns in the blowing sand and the dramatic sky are super good. That distant surf and head of land make it all come together. I love what you did with the sky. Kathy, I’d say you’ve got a real winner here. My only suggestion, just another option, I think the open space feel of what you have would also work great at a wider aspect. Something I’d be right proud to have taken.
Hi Kathy,
I like how dynamic this scene is. For me the blowing sand is the star of the show with the dramatic clouds playing a nice accompaniment. To answer your question about whether the processing is over the top. In my opinion you could push it a bit further. I think you’re onto a good thing here.
I agree with @Keith_Bauer about the crop. I this was my image I’d be wanting the sand to have the most visual weight in the frame.
Kathy, I like this the way you have it. That was my first impression. Then I read that you wanted to know if you had taken it too far. After that I decided that the dark clouds on thee right were a bit too much. I think that I would raise the darks a bit in those right clouds. I think you can do it and still retain the drama. I personally would not crop any of the sky, though.
Kathy, I’m glad that you decided to step outside your comfort zone with the processing here, it makes for a very dramatic image. The strong contrast does a great job with the radial patterns in the sand and with most of the clouds, you made a great choice to go more aggressive with your processing. I agree with @Igor_Doncov about backing off the darkness of the cloud in the URC, I would suggest aiming to make it just slightly darker than the cloud in ULC. My other nitpick suggestion would be to clone away the 6 or 7 small bright objects on the sand in the LRC, they are a minor distraction. I’m torn on cropping the sky, it’s so dramatic that if you were to crop anything it should only be a sliver. Removing half the sky would eliminate a lot of the radial effect in the clouds that echos whats going on in the sand.
This image would also make for killer B&W conversion as well.
Kathy, your processing looks good, as it shows the blowing sand and the shapes in the clouds very well. I like the mimicry between sky and sand and the sense of flow in both that pulls my eyes to that rounded ridge on the end of the peninsula. Is the blackness of the clouds near the edges too much?..maybe, but I’m not looking at the original file, so I don’t know if they were a different color from the central clouds.
Yes!!! That was my primary reason for voting against the crop.
Kathy,
This is fabulous! Kudos to you on pushing the processing - and not too much btw, but just enough to keep this very real. In fact, the drama of the clouds and weather conditions are enhanced beautifully.
I’m with Ed and Igor in not cropping. Not only does the eye get drawn in because of both the sand and the clouds, but the darkness in the UR clouds really creates an ominous look. And then I also like the paired darkness in the sand in the LR. Add the rugged, angry surf and the rain bands, and you’ve got a winner!
Lon
Thanks so much to all who have replied. It’s very helpful to get this kind of feedback and it sounds like I was mainly on track. I will experiment with cropping the sky, but I am inclined to leave it in for the reasons some have pointed out. I don’t think the blowing sand is compelling enough to hold the viewers attention if given most of the pixels. The sky definitely adds to the mood, so the bigger it is, the better, IMO.
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You just feel you are there, windblown and ready to run for shelter ! Beautifully composed and executed, Kathy.
