This is a shot I wish I had more time to plan for. I was in Tucson for one day, and had just enough time to race out, and try to catch a sunset. I’d never been to this area before, so I just setup at the first spot that looked good. So, I know there is probably a better composition to be had, but I did the best I could…well, at least I think I did.
What technical feedback would you like if any?
Is there anything about this image that just isn’t working?
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
How does the post-processing look? Any areas that look off, or need to be addressed?
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
This is a single exposure. I’ve used dodging and burning to try and enhance the foreground cactuses.
I’ve also tried to balance the blue in the sky…I originally had it with a lot of Cyan, and I’ve tried to tone that down here.
I’ve also used several Color Balance adjustment layers to try and get the green to not be as blue-green.
Nikon D810 Nikkor 16.0-35.0 mm @ 20.0 mm | ƒ/11.0 | 1/10 | ISO 64
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Ryan, this is doing pretty darn well given your were rushed for time, and were not familiar with the area. I think the processing is well done, you did a great job with the light on the saguaros. And the shadows on the hillside in the mid-ground are dark enough to make the cactus pop against them, while still showing some detail in the landscape.
I also like your composition, foreground sunlit, mid-ground in shadow, and then bright sunlit sky in the background. The diagonal hillside in the foreground is also a great way to handle the varying heights of the cactus too. Overall, I think this image is well composed.
My only suggestion for improvement is that I wish there was a bit more separation between the two cactus on the left. You avoided a merger of the two, but slightly more space between them might help. Perhaps moving a few feet to the right to shoot might have created that separation without changing much in the rest of the scene. But that is getting very nitpicky, overall this image is very pleasing and well done.
Does this work? Absolutely! I think this is quite the beautiful Sonoran Desert image - including some fine Saguaro specimens.
Agree with Ed’s comments and I think the composition is excellent. The dried brush at the bottom left is perhaps the least favorite part of the image - but even the warm glow on the desert ground works beautifully. If I had a wish, it would be for just a hair more sky above the saguaro on the left - but that’s pretty minor.
This sure works for me. I agree with the other comments, but I think you did very well here given the circumstances. I think if you dodged the bit of darker brush on the left side-bottom edge, that would balance better.
The light is very nice and your processing really enhances the mood. Nicely done!
-P
Works well for me too. I love the colors in the cactus and how it varies from being in the shade, with a slight blue-green hint to the warmer green of the cactus in the sun. The flow of the composition is nice too. Everything looks natural as I would expect it to be. Good job all around.
@Ed_McGuirk Yeah, I wish I’d had a few more tries to get this one right. I tend to get tunnel vision, and will only see one area to improve. Even though I didn’t have a ton of time…I still have time to slow down more, and really work the scene. Thanks for the feedback.
@Lon_Overacker The top of the big saguaro bothers me too. I thought it looked good on the back of my camera, but it does feel a little too tight. Thanks for taking a look at my image.
@Preston_Birdwell Thanks Preston! I was worried I might be overdoing it with all the dodging/burning. I’ll give that a try and see how it helps.
@Youssef_Ismail Thank you, Youssef! I’m trying…slowly getting there with my post-processing. I’m glad you think the colors work. I start to get cross-eyed after awhile, and think nothing looks right. I appreciate your feedback.
Ryan, this could easily be addressed by Photoshop Add Canvas & Content Aware Fill. Filling in sky is relatively easy for PS to do. All you need to do is add 3% to 5% canvas at the top.
This is a really fine desert scene for most of the reasons given. I don’t think adding more sky is necessarily a good idea as it might cause an imbalance. I would dodge the dark brush brush at bottom left though but that’s pretty minor. It would also be nice if the left center saguaro was not partially hidden. But these are fairly minor issues. The large saguaro is a mighty fine specimen that carries the image.
