Please share your immediate response to the image before reading the photographer’s intent (obscured text below) or other comments. The photographer seeks a genuinely unbiased first impression.
Questions to guide your feedback
Attractive or threatening?
Other Information
Please leave your feedback before viewing the blurred information below, once you have replied, click to reveal the text and see if your assessment aligns with the photographer. Remember, this if for their benefit to learn what your unbiased reaction is.
Image Description
Morning sunlight comes under the storm clouds from the previous night to highlight the walls and plains at the entrance to Cave Creek Canyon, near the town of Portal, in the Chiricahua Mountains in Arizona.
Technical Details
Canon EOS 5D II; Canon EF 28-70mm @ 42mm; f/16 @ 1/40 sec, -0.67 EV, ISO 100; Gitzo tripod, RRS BH 55, remote trigger
Wow! Lovely scene. Seems attractive to me, not at all threatening. I get the attractive feeling because the storm is over there, maybe moving away, and you are in soft sunlight with pleasing colors, probably drinking coffee, so not very threatened!
Thank you @Cathy_Proenza for your comments. At that time the threat was past. You know the old adage-you should have been here yesterday. I was. Different story.
Gorgeous image Bob. Great highlights on the rocky columns and the grasslands below. The threatening clouds just round out the frame. Nicely done.
This is one of my favorite areas of the US. The biodiversity of this area is probably among the highest in the US too. It has elements of the Rocky Mountains, the Sonoran Desert, and the Madrean Archepelago all rolled up in one. It is one of the most researched areas in the world.
Thank you @Ed_Williams for your positive remarks. It is a photographer’s treasure trove. I experienced a huge swing in weather conditions in my short there. Bad weather makes great photos.
Absolutely stunning Bob! The way the morning light bathes the landscape in a golden hue, while storm clouds loom above, creates an enchanting contrast that is captivating. The scene feels alive, almost as if you can feel the crisp air just after the storm. Great work!
My reaction comes from a bit of a different angle, for me the Initial Reaction was “that feels like home.” I grew up about a couple of hours drive north of there, and have many great memories of the area.
Sadly, I wasn’t a photographer much when I was there, and your image is inspirational. The beauty of the desert leading to the canyon with the “sky island” in the distance is quintessential southeast Arizona. You captured it with such great lighting.
My only nit is that the sky seems a tad magenta, especially in that urc.
Gorgeous! This doesn’t feel threatening to me at all. It feels hopeful, with that warm sunlight shining across the foreground and the gentle pinkish hue of the sky. I agree with John W. on the URC - it looks quite odd.
Thank you @John_Williams and @Bonnie_Lampley for your nice remarks and pointing out the magenta in the URC. I have resolved that issue and am reposting the image.
Yes, so much better without the magenta issue. You found a very strong scene. The sky is dramatic and the colors interestingly subdued – sort of an old film look. I love how the canyon wall is heavier on the left, so the line of sight ends up a little off center.
Thank you @Diane_Miller for your cordial comments. I believe Ansel Adam’s is credited for saying “It seems like God gets everything just right and all I need to do is show up and click the shutter.”
Thank you @Keith_Lisk for your exuberant comment. I too was quite taken by what I was experiencing yet capturing and intending to share with others always includes some anxiety.
