I’ve cropped for 16:9 to keep out brighter highlights from the top of the image. I also cropped in a bit from the sides. Does this crop feel too tight?
Is this a composite: No
ISO 100, F16, 6 sec. 58mm on a 24-105 on full frame. Partially polarized.
That is a very interesting tree. The crop doesn’t feel too tight to me, and it works to accentuate the length of the fallen tree. A couple of things caught my eye. There is a vertical branch right at the edge of the frame near the ULC, with just a smidgen of space to its left, and it feels distracting there (because it is touching the edge). Also, the group of bright leaves near the right side of the frame feels just a tad bright to me. You might consider lowering the brights on them. At any rate, this is lovely and the light is wonderful. I love that kind of flat, slightly foggy light.
The crop feels just fine to me Bryan; in fact this fallen tree was made for it IMO. The soft overhead lighting is perfect for this woodland scene and really brings out the details. My only suggestion would be a small crop from the left to get rid of a tree touching the frame and a little from the top to get rid of a few bright sky areas. I hope you do not mind, but here is a repost with what I was thinking. Wonderful image.
This works well for me Bryan, and does not feel too tight. Generally, content should dictate aspect ratio. The panorama not only eliminates the sky but it accentuates the strong horizontal line of the fallen tree. If you had shown more space at the top (assuming that the sky was not there for a bit), then the vertical lines of the background trees would have become more prominent, and potentially draw attention away from the fallen tree. I also like how you have the branches of the fallen tree exiting the frame like this, i think it even further reinforces the graphic shape of the tree. My only suggestion would be to slightly decrease the luminosity of the beech leaves halfway up the right edge of the frame. Otherwise, the processing on this looks great.
Thanks for the suggestions. I’m fortunate to have some green spaces not far from my house but no grand landscapes. Not really able to travel right now. Makes me have to work a bit hard to find some quieter images. Damp/rainy days in the forest add some nice atmosphere and help with the colors.
Here’s an updated version of the image with updated crop and slightly reduced highlights in the upper right hand part of the image. I used the LR brush/grad/radial adjustments and the built-in luminosity masking to get a more subtle adjustment. For more difficult situations I may use luminosity masking in PS.
I like this a lot, Bryan. I agree with Ed’s crop suggestion. I like the pano format here; works well.
