On October 25 we had 10 inches of powdery snow in the Nebraska Panhandle. The next day the sky was covered with mostly high thin clouds. This is the north side of Scotts Bluff National Monument with a reflecting pond and because the snow was early the trees still had a lot of leaves left on them and a Canada Goose was nice enough to sit still long enough for me to get the image. Beautiful day around 20 degrees with no wind.
I appreciate any and all comments and critiques. I take them all seriously and learn from them.
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
Canon 7D, Sigma 17-70, 70mm, 1/320 sec, f/13, ISO 160, This is a seven image vertical pano cropped to about 70 % of original.
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Wow, what really interesting conditions you had here, it must have been amazing to see this in person. The reflections of what I assume are cottonwood trees is simply wonderful. And this scene is a natural for the panoramic aspect ratio you used. The snow covered buttes and fall trees work really well together too.
A couple of suggestions. The sky reflected in the water seems warmer (more yellow) than the sky itself, you may want to adjust the White Balance of the water. IMO the top of the butte is very tight to the frame edge, and could use a little more breathing room. Here is a rework, where I added canvas in PS and filled in sky using Content Aware Fill. I think one advantage of adding canvas is that it makes the comp more symmetrical, with equal space above the top of the butte, and below the buttes reflection. I did not quite get the WB of the water right, but directionally I wanted to equalize it more with the sky.
Very nicely done, Richard! It is always a special treat when we can catch some fresh snowfall with some autumn color. I have only been fortunate to catch the right conditions one time while visiting NH. Great job with the stitch and the pano format works beautifully for this composition. I like where @Ed_McGuirk was going with his tweaks as it elevates this wonderful scene another notch. This had to be great to witness this first hand! There is just something about a fresh snowfall that is so refreshing.
