I was impressed with the color palate of this potted Japanese Maple on our patio. Others nearby were already fully crimson, but this one lagged and displayed tones of blue, magenta and orange as well as green and red. A good botanist might present interesting discussion of the pigments in the chloroplasts within these aging leaves.
My challenge was how to display these colors while creating a composition which holds together with a purpose or message. Did I succeed? Does the frame applied help?
There has been no cropping. Color treatment in LrC was set on Adobe Landscape. The new LrC color grading sliders were used independently in highlights, mid tones and dark tones to increase tonal contrasts, and finally a small amount of texture was added. The tree was back lit by warm low November light.
Sony ILCE 7RM3, Voigtlander 65mm Apo Lanthar, f/11, ISO 100, 1/30"
Richard, I think this is a stunning image! I love the transition of fall colors among the leaves. I like the lighting, however, my eyes have jumped to the small white spots of light in the background. Perhaps the brightest spots could be toned down. The darker leaves on the sides make a nice frame for the reds in the center. I do like the red line framing the image but can not see the yellow or grey frame very well here.
I miss these vibrant fall colors having grown up in Connecticut and now living in Central Coast of California. This image is a real treat!
Ann Louise
Thank you. Yes those blown out spots where light comes through. There was a prominent one near the central red leaves which I healed over in Ps. I’ll work on this some more, perhaps also with a luminosity mask, however turning them down with luminosity also converts them to grey blobs, not much better.
Brian, thanks. And to the naked eye the colors in this tree are subdued, but with maximizing color and luminosity contrasts it’s like getting a spectrograph on a celestial body!
Colors are a little over the top IMHO and I would personally lose the frame. Again that is JMHO and preference. I feel anything other than a white mat detracts from image. Nice comp and concept.
Richard: A color junkie’s delight! The original is good but the repost is even better. I edited your title to reflect the repost. It’s always good to let others know you’ve done a revision so that they can revisit and compare. >=))>
Michael, thanks. I had that feeling that maybe the colors were too bright. The new edit I just posted follows your suggestions. What do you think? (It appears beneath your comment).
Great colors! The third image looks more realistic than the original and removing bright spots helps. Very nice composition also. When I looked at the original image, I thought of a Xmas tree with lights.
Some in camera effects are too extreme for my tastes. If your intent is to have more of an artistic image then this works. If you are looking for realism it is way too vivid. The resulting image you choose is your preference only.
