The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I had flown half way around the world to end up on this beach in New Zealand on a foggy morning. We couldn’t see the mountains. This was a photo workshop. There were 12 of us and two instructors. Now what do I do? What was left were rocks–lots of them. I worked on getting the submerged stones visible and focused, as well as the four above water. Depth of field is challenging when I want the foreground sharp.
Specific Feedback
I am going to include the RAW file. Any suggestions on how you would approach this challenge would be greatly appreciated. I might add that there were undoubtedly other compositions, but I got stuck in this spot on the beach and did not want to climb over the rocks to find another location.
Technical Details
This was an early morning shot.
Sony a7iv, ISO 64, F/16, 3.2 sec.
Processed in LR and Photoshop using the TK8 luminosity masks and actions.
I too love this image! Great job and choice on the crop too, as well as the processing to bring out the color and details.
Like Judi, I see the top as quite mysterious as it fades off to seemingly infinity… Very cool effect. And that on top of the revealing details of the submerged rocks at the bottom. Add the jagged edges of the exposed rock and I think you have a winner here!
I think this one would be a good one to play with to see what kind of edits one could come up with. I think though, that the small size of the RAW you posted would make editing changes a little tough. Actually, you might consider posting this in the Processing Challenge section and upload your unedited original (full size) image and see what others might come up with.
Most certainly a wonderful image and worth persuing. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so very much Lon. I hesitated to post this because it is so different than anythin g I have done in the past. Actually, the RAW file I uploaded is the uneditted original full size image. That is a the best example of the pictures I took that morning. I did reduce the resolution so I could upload but what you see is it. More suggestions would be appreciated.
Barbara, I think you did a nice job of taking and processing this raw file. I also like the crop you made. The underwater stones in the FG and BG show up nicely, especially when I viewed the large photo. You accomplished what you set out to do. I also like how the four large FG stones point your eye to that one BG stone. The uncropped raw file might process well too. Sometimes I’ll bring a photo into ACR/LR and just do some toning to see if I want to go farther. I often get pleasantly surprised.
Thanks, @Donna_Callais Donna. I was determined to make something beautiful out of the pictures I took that evening. I understand that “pleasantly surprised” feeling.
I like what you’ve done with this image. The clarity of the foreground detail in the rocks is nicely revealed as well as the detail in the four boulders. I also think copping out the land in the background and bringing out the colors of the water simplifies the image. I, too, am often challenged by conditions not as expected; I think you’ve done well here.
Thanks, @Robert_Betka. After traveling halfway around the world, I felt compelled to make something out of the location. A little fog was just an added challenge since the mountains had disappeared.
