Quiraing, Skye, Scotland.
Everyone must surely have seen this view or very similar of the Quiraing so I have been a little reluctant to put it up here. But if light is what a photograph lives or dies by then hopefully this stonking, searing ray of light through some very heavy storm clouds will energise a very familiar view. Twas an awesome if very brief moment of exquisite transient light.
Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, hard edge 0.45ND Grad, soft edge 0.3ND Grad across sky, f/22 at 1/2 Second Fuji velvia 50.
3 Likes
Well, this is simply spectacular !!!
It may be an icon, but as the cliche says, “icons are icons for good reasons”, and when you can get an icon in light as gorgeous as this, how can anyone resist? This looks like it belongs in a Lord of the Rings movie, it has such an other-worldly feel. I assume this was taken with autumn color, what month of the year was it shot, October?
The processing of the light on the landscape looks great. If you wanted to go for an even more dramatic mood, it might be interesting to experiment with a slight cooling down of the sky, but leaving the landscape as presented.
Hello Ed
It was late September. Quite like the idea of adding a steely hue to that grey sky, though to be fair it is probably like it is because it is not long after sunrise.
I agree with @Ed_McGuirk about the LOTR feel to this image. That tree on the lower left is just simply spectacular. There is really no nit from me, only wishing that I have taken this image myself.
You people in Scotland are certainly blessed with excellent light. The really fine tree in the lower left kind of gets lost in the background.
An impressive landscape with some gorgeous light and dynamic weather, Ian! The tree on the bottom left is a nice little bonus also. A fine job of processing also (as usual for you). The clouds do seem to have a slight magenta cast (at least on my monitor) so a move to slightly blue would enhance the stormy part of the scene. A move from slightly magenta to a slight yellow tint would enhance the early morning sunlight feeling. It would be interesting to see both. The only other thing is the noticeable noise in the clouds, particularly in the larger version. A little noise reduction (but only in the sky) might be worth the effort.
Stunning light and color Ian. I never get tired of seeing your images of this magical place.
I love the Quiraing, Ian and of course, I love this little tree that is rightly famous. You certainly have spectacular light on the ridge with the road to the parking lot. Spectacular colors. I must admit I have never seen this scene where the tree is NOT the main focal point in the image. Well done!
I don’t see any sheep in the image. Did you clone them out or they just weren’t there? I have never been there in the Fall. Very different from the carpet of monotone green in the summer. Gorgeous!
Hello David
No sheep on the hills this time. To be honest I very rarely clone anything from my pictures. It was taken shortly after sunrise and the place was refreshingly devoid of people.
Gorgeous capture, and the light is amazing. So glad you shared it because I might not have otherwise ever seen it. I wish the road wasn’t there, and I might have been tempted to clone it out as it distracts from the natural beauty and wonder of the scene.
