I captured this image on a blustery night on the Sierra backcountry last September. This area is relatively exposed but we were able to find reasonable cover in some scrub pines from the near gale force winds. I utilized a 6 stop ND filter to smooth the chop off the water and catch some cloud movement, and did my best to brace my relatively light backpacking tripod from vibration.
I fidgeted with this file after returning home in Lightroom but never ended up processing until earlier this month.
This is a great capture. One of those, “I wish I was there right then” shots. The only thing I would look at would be to lighten the exposure just a touch. Just wow, though! How bout that ribbon of sunlight across the mt?! Score.
Dave, this is such a great composition. Smoothening out that water was a great idea and you’ve captured an awesome band on the mountain. That light is sublime. I must confess that I am a little troubled by the slightly out of focus immediate foreground though. Did you happen by any chance a picture of those rocks to focus stack?
Amazing grand landscape. I can appreciate the patience it must take to wait for just the right moment when it all comes together. And to envision the composition of what it will be when that moment arrives.
The out of focus fg rocks is due to the usage of a slow shutter speed and water running over some of the rock during the exposure. I suspect. But yes, having that rock sharp would have been nice.
That makes all the difference for me, your long exposure putting a “haze” on the water and the reflections. I think it adds greatly to the impact of the image, compared to a glassy surface with a perfect reflection. Very nicely conceived, framed and exposed!
This is simply exquisite Dave, one my favorites of your images. There is just so much to like about this image, I enjoyed taking time to appreciate all the nuances that make this outstanding.The water looks like molten metal, the reflection of the trees and water looks perfect, and the ribbon of alpenglow couldn’t be in a better spot. I really like your processing of the blue tones in the water and sky, they look awesome. And I think the darker processing here adds a lot of mood, I’d leave that as is. And you managed to pull this off despite gale force winds, you must be very satisfied with this one.
This is gorgeous, Dave. The ND makes the water look excellent and the light on the mountains is sublime. A very beautiful high country image!!
Dave, one of those rare moments in time where things just come together so well. Proof that it still takes being out there at the right time to take advantage of those rare moments…
Excellent field planning and execution as well as very cleanly processed too…
Nice job Dave! I think you made some great creative choices here, and the light on the mountain is just wonderful.
As for critique, I don’t think the very bottom of the frame really adds much to the photo and may even detract from the “stars of the show” at the top. I played around with several crops and this was probably my favorite. After cropping, I’d make sure the edges weren’t distracting by darkening most of the bottom of the frame, especially the bright rock on the lower left (which I did not do here):
There were some crops where I took even more off the bottom that looked good too. I imagine the bottom watery could handle a decent amount of stretching if you want to keep a certain aspect ratio, too. Hope that helps to give some ideas.
Awesome shot Dave, the band of light hitting the mountain and the textures in the water are beautiful. I like @Brent_Clark’s Idea of cropping a bit off the bottom, although I might crop a bit less.
Very nice image. The light on the mountain is definitely the show stopper, but there are plenty of other interesting details that keep my attention. I like how the dark clouds frame the top of the image.
I agree that the bottom doesn’t have a whole lot to add, but at the same time I don’t think it detracts either. The fascinating light draws my gaze upward, and the image has a nice peripheral balance when my eyes are focused on the mountain.
The light is gorgeous and exposure with the ND wonderful Dave. I do agree with Brent on a crop from the bottom since I think it highlights the red glow area and frosty foreground water.
@Adhika_Lie, you right! I didn’t even notice. Fortunately I have another frame shot at f/16 with the foreground rocks sharp. However, it was shot without an ND filter so was very tedious to hand blend.
@Dave_Douglass, @Igor_Doncov, @Hank_Pennington, @Ed_McGuirk, @Harley_Goldman, @Paul_Breitkreuz, @Brent_Clark, @Blake_Randall, @Cameron_Miller, @Eva_McDermott, Thanks for taking time to comment and provide feedback.
@Brent_Clark, thanks for providing a crop suggestion. I see what you’re after. I’m sort of fixated on retaining at least close to a 2:3 ratio so maybe I’ll experiment with a bit of stretching.
Outstanding Dave! Love how you smoothed out the water. One thing I’ve got parked in the recesses of my mind - hope I can remember when the situation presents itself.
Love everything about this - no nits or suggestions.
Lon
Outstanding image, Dave. The composition works nice for me as it is and I love what the long exposure did here smoothing the water and capturing some very nice cloud movement. Great light and really a beautiful image.
What a capture! The movement in both the clouds and the water adds a great sense of drama. As mentioned a good few times above, the red band of light on those peaks is epic! Personally, I’d agree with @Brent_Clark on the crop, and may even go a bit tighter, to really accentuate the more interesting elements of the composition. Awesome job man!
@Dave_Dillemuth, I have to say that I must see this in such a similar way as Ed. The water stopped me in my tracks in comparison to that swath of light across the mountain. Then in the process of taking that in, the soft and ethereal quality in the reflection of those trees and the light there… what a great dance between so many elements. Thanks for sharing. I’m not opposed to the idea of a crop towards the bottom, but at the same time, the way the water looks to almost be falling off the edge of the picture is rather fun.
Stunning work. The different but silky textures in the water and that band of glow on the mountain keep me coming back to this one.
Beautiful work - I would not touch your original rendition at all!
