This was taken a few days ago on a foggy morning following an overnight rain. I rounded the bend on a hiking trail excited about this opportunity and took this image into the brilliant white sunrise over the marsh.
What technical feedback would you like if any?
Any is always appreciated.
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
I am looking for feedback on the composition, particularly the amount of foreground as presented.
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
Nikon D7500, F14, 100 iso, 16mm, 1/13 s, tripod
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You may only download this image to demonstrate post-processing techniques.
This has a great film quality to the edit, I think the fog really adds to that atmosphere. The amount of foreground and framing is perfect to create an almost yin and yang dynamic between the inky trees and their ethereal shadows.
The conversion to a high contrast monochrome works beautifully. The shadows seem to finger their way across the frame from that burst of light in the distance - a very evocative image.
This works just fine for me, Alan. The B&W conversion works beautifully as does the high key look. The amount of FG looks perfect as it allows those tree shadows to draw me nicely into the scene and enjoy all the details. Beautifully done IMO.
This works for me, too, Alan. It has this classic B&W look to it which is very appealing. The contrast in the woods is nicely juxtaposed with the low contrast in the BG. I really like that one shadow in the middle of the trail. It seems to tie in everything together in this image. Thanks for sharing!
This is a very powerful B&W image Alan. I like the very deep, rich blacks you have, they work very well with this strong backlight. With the chaos of the forest, it is not always easy to line up trees like this without creating mergers or distractions near the frame edge, but you have done a great job of avoiding those type of pitfalls. It shows attention to detail on your part.
To me the most interesting elements are the shadows of the trees on the ground. I love how much of the shadow on the path that you have included. I love the triangle shape you have created with the shadows. While I like it as presented, I might even like to see a little more foreground, but not much. If you don’t have a bracket where you have more foreground, you might also consider a small crop from the top. This would create the illusion that the foreground is bigger. In fact this second approach would probably be what I would recommend.
Excellent Alan! The highlight for me is how you precisely laid out the shadow on the path. At least I’m pretty sure it was planned that way… Processing looks great for this b&w presentation.
I like this very much as presented, but I was thinking of an alternate as well. It wasn’t until I cropped out the big tree on the right that I actually noticed all the rest of the secondary shadows; all emanating from the top of the trail, seemingly. Darker shadow lines on the right and more faded shadows to the left of the trail. Very cool. I think cropping that tree out - while maybe not an improvement per se, but an alternate view.
Thanks for the your comments and alternate crop suggestions to both @Ed_McGuirk and @Lon_Overacker. I have posted both versions of what I think each of you had in mind.
Lon I did notice the shadow in the path when I set up, but my placement was dictated by the shadow of the large tree that I used as a lens shade. I could say everything was planned in advance but the truth is I was later than I wanted to be because I almost did not go out, the fog was a surprise. I was kind of panicked to get to this general area.
The repost looks great Alan. It looks like you had a shot with more of the foreground shadows, and seeing more of those shadows (especially on the right), adds a lot to this image. The amount you cropped from the top makes this a little more cleaner and crisper too. Nicely done…
Processing looks great for this b&w presentation.
