Five Rocks

[John_Williams]

Critique Style Requested: Standard

The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.

Description

The family and I (10 of us) spent 5 days renting a house on the Oregon Coast between Christmas and New Year’s. It was great times with great people.

On the first morning there I took the dog out for a walk on the beach we were staying on, and found this little stream where fresh water was running out onto the sand on its way to the ocean. The sand was a fascinating mix of black, yellow, red, and green, and the water flow and color would shift and change slowly while I watched it.

I went back to the house to get the camera and tripod, and then proceeded to spend a leisurely hour ruining some wonderful shots by not having the focus shift settings correct. Fortunately I was able to find my error later that day, so I returned the next morning properly humbled and took these.

I don’t normally post multiple images, but I wanted to show how things shifted over the hour I spent there. I photographed multiple areas, but the best was the little section where these five small rocks were wedged in the sand; you can see them in all three photos despite the way the sand and ripples vary.

Specific Feedback

I’ve posted these in the order I prefer them, but would love your thoughts on whether you agree or disagree.

The light did vary a little when shooting, but there is mild variation in processing too. I’d love your thoughts on how to improve that.

Technical Details

NIKON Z 7II
NIKKOR Z 24-200 f/4-6.3 VR at 42, 54, and 46 mm
1/400 sec. at f/8.0 and ISO 800
Each is a focus stack of 6 or 7 photos

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Critique Template

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Vision and Purpose:
Conceptual:
Emotional Impact and Mood:
Composition:
Balance and Visual Weight:
Depth and Dimension:
Color:
Lighting:
Processing:
Technical:

[Diane_Miller]

Wow!! I’ve never seen anything quite like this – not only anything comparable to the set but even nothing quite comparable to any one of them. And extra points for going back the next day to perfect the captures!! They are all gorgeous and the scene overall is, to me anyway, very unique. And to pull off a focus stack with what must have been moving water – amazing!

The flow of lines is wonderful with implied distance toward the top, and the “striped” flows are so unique and interesting. No suggestions for improvement!!

[Bill_Fach]

John: Oh my, these are fine! At first glance I though they might be drone shots. What really makes them special is that they are absolutely unique and can never be duplicated. The wonderful lines and colors are perfectly anchored by the interspersed pebbles which to my eye are marvelous complements to the overall compositions. Extraordinarily well seen and superbly captured and presented. >=))>

PS: Where were you on the coast?

[Cathy_Proenza]

Wow! Amazing! They feel a bit surreal and disorienting, maybe because the scale isn’t clear. I flipped through them multiple times, but can’t decide on a favorite – I like them all.

[kathrin (Kathrin Middelhoff)]

Incredibly beautiful.

[Preston_Birdwell]

John, great eye to see these!

I don’t have a preferred image: I like them all from a compositional standpoint. I am wondering if a slight boost in the saturation of the warm colors would give the images just a little more pop.

Well done, sir!
-P

[Marylynne_Diggs]

These are spectacular, John. Nothing like a place on the beach to give you a few do-overs.

Regarding favorites, I think it’s #1 and #3 for me, partly because they are more saturated (though different colors result). The other thing that makes those two stand out are the greater contrast in the striped ripple lines.

As far as processing, y’all are way better than me at that, and I don’t use photoshop, so I’m not sure how it might be done outside of LR, but I’m wondering whether a graduated filter to remove reflection in the top 1/3 or so might be worth experimenting with.

I’m a little divided on whether that will reduce the sense of depth and scale, and it could be that the sense of a brighter top lends a quality you wouldn’t want to diminish. Nonetheless, if it were mine (oh, if only it were mine ) I would be tempted to try a grad filter mask from the top and make an adjustment only to dehaze. I think LR has a new “remove reflection” tool, but I haven’t seen it at work to know what it actually does.

Here’s a quickie effort in LR, using just a screenshot, so I’m not really getting the full effect of a processing a raw file. I tried a slight boost in dehaze and a tish reduction of highlights on the linear graduated filter mask. I’m not saying it’s better, just an example of what it might look like to remove the reflective quality at the top of the frame.

Any way you look at it, you have three great shots. Maybe vary the processing more dramatically among the three and make it a triptych? Just an option if you want to revel in their beauty through processing for a few more days.
ML

[Youssef_Ismail]

John,

Fascinating photos. Focus stacking with moving water?! Not sure how you pulled that off so well. Each one is unique but would seem to work well as a triptych.

[Ed_Lowe]

Hi John,
Well, these certainly are cool looking! I am loving the color palette and details; especially in the large version. The small stones and the rivulets in the sand are perfectly placed in this scene and do a masterful job of taking the viewer into this intimate landscape. These all work quite nicely for me, but I am leaning toward the last one because it appears to have more lighter earth tones. I also like the narrower format as it emphasizes those two main rivulets a bit more IMO. Anyway you slice it these are all winners; maybe a triptych?

[WillR (Will Rabinovich)]

A unique and intriguing collection of images. I think they work well as group. Sort of like a Lenswork Seeing in Sixes project.

-Will

[Mark_Seaver]

John, these are all great, but I especially like the first one with it’s extra contrast and the three major “braids”. It’s so nice to be able to get “right back” to a spot when you realize that you didn’t quite “get it right”…that why so many of my posts are from my backyard. I do wonder about a bit of very lights burning in the top 1/3 to reduce the sheen from the sky’s reflection up there.

[John_Williams]

Thank you so much @Diane_Miller , @Bill_Fach , @Cathy_Proenza , @kathrin , @Preston_Birdwell , @Marylynne_Diggs @Youssef_Ismail , @Ed_Lowe , @WillR , and @Mark_Seaver for the comments and feedback. It is very helpful!

@Bill_Fach

Where were you on the coast?

We were on Searose Beach, just south of Cape Perpetua.

@Preston_Birdwell

slight boost in the saturation of the warm colors

@Marylynne_Diggs

graduated filter to remove reflection in the top 1/3

@Mark_Seaver

very lights burning in the top 1/3 to reduce the sheen

Thanks for the suggestions! I’m adding a version trying to move in the direction of knocking down the reflection and bumping the overall saturation a tad. Hopefully I headed in the correct direction!

[David_Haynes]

Oh my gosh, this is exactly like a scene I was shooting last summer on the Oregon coast near Yachats. These are so unusual and beautiful. It’s the braids that make these so interesting in my eye. I believe I like the third image the best. It’s very cohesive and balanced. You could certainly try and knock off some of the sheen at the top portion of the image but it’s not a necessity. The sheen adds a dimension that might be lacking in a corrected image. I love the stones in the scene as they add quite a bit of depth. These were nicely seen and captured. I love it.

By the way, the scene I was shooting had colors ranging from blues and greens to purples, pinks and yellow/orange. How does that happen??? So weird.

Here are a couple with different colors from my trip. and like yours, these all have water flowing through them. Looking at your images I should have focused more on the braids instead of the patterns. I love your images, John:

[Marylynne_Diggs]

That top version looks fantastic. Personally, I like the reduction in glare. Would love to see the impact of that process on all three so we can take another stab at a favorite, though I’m still thinking triptych.
ML

[Bill_Fach]

John: Thanks for the location info. I spent many summers in Yachats as a boy and get back as often as possible as an adult. Next time I’m out there Searose will be on the dance card. >=))>

[John_Williams]

Oh wow, those are similar (and very nice)! Amazing how those colors vary.

[Diane_Miller]

The new version is wonderful but I think the original is, too. The reflection adds a bit of reality, so it’s just how much of a hint of reality you want. Definitely a twofer!

[David_Haynes]

John, I think I like the bottom version best now. These are sensational.
By the way, Jill and I were at Sea Perch RV resort which looks to be exactly where you were…Searose Beach. I wonder if we were shooting the same little stream coming down on to the beach. At the rv resort, there were actually three different streams over a stretch of about a mile or so. Our walks with the dogs were to the north of the resort. I’ve never before seen anything like this on any beach I’ve ever been to before so I thought maybe we were near the same place. Turns out we were. Small world.

[John_Williams]

Wow, that’s amazing! Our rental was literally several homes north of Sea Perch.

Although the other streams had nice (and finer) patterns, this one (at the north end) had the best colors.

Yet another reason to have dogs as family members!

[David_Haynes]

Oh my gosh. Yeah, if I remember correctly, there was a bluff about 10-20 feet high that leveled off where the houses are and there were stairs that could take you down to the beach. If I remember, the homes were set about 50-100 yards off the beach on that flat bluff. As you continue north up the beach towards the huge rocks that pretty much block access further up the shoreline, you come to the stream that I thought held the best patterns. The two further south towards the RV park were good but no match for that one that must have been close to your rental. I spent over an hour there (with the dogs) before they repeatedly ran through my scenes messing things up. It’s amazing how quickly they rebuild themselves though. I went back a couple more times and they looked like they had never been touched. Amazing recovery and amazing that we shot the same place but at different times.