(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
I like the concept here. I do think the trees on the right and the fore ground look rather empty because they a re so dark. Not sure if you can recover much detail in those areas. You might consider a 4x5 crop anchored on the left side. Not only would that eliminate the dark area, it would tighten up the composition. The light in the midground to the horizon has a nice glow that I like.
-P
Ben, similar to @Preston_Birdwell, I really like the concept of looking through a window in the trees to the distant farm building. I like the repetition of the trees on the right side, it is very graphic in nature. If you leave the trees this dark (they are nearly in silhouette), then Preston’s suggestion to crop some from the right does help draw more attention in the center of the image.
But just for fun, I wanted to see what could be done to restore some detail in those trees. I used TK subtracted luminosity masks, (D2 - D5), to make a selection of the darks (but not the darkest darks), and then used a levels adjustment layer to increase exposure in the selection. I actually liked what it did to the bottom of trees a lot. I also pulled down the highlights slightly too. If you can do something like this, then the original composition may work without cropping. Although one could make the case that Preston is till right about a crop placing more emphasis on the farm. I’m kind of on the fence about crop vs. not crop.
I like the structure and intent and would return during more colorful times of the year.
Concur on the nice concept and on the suggestions about cropping. I would convert to B&W. Can you find a bit of structure in the sky when post-processing?
Ben, I would come back and shoot this scene when the fog is thicker so that the line of trees slowly fades into the fog. You’d lose the house then. Perhaps a composite would be best here. As everyone stated, the concept is great.
It’s nice of somebody to make that opening on the trees just for you to photograph the farm scene. LOL. I like this. I wish there was a little more color in the scene, but I wasn’t there to know what conditions were like.
Ben,
Just a beautiful and grand scene. I think the composition is awesome.
I think Ed’s adjustments are spot on. I like the other suggestions as well in terms of re-visiting this location. I can see huge potential in the different seasons or conditions. Can you just imagine this scene in the winter with the bare trees framing a snow-laden landscape? Very cool
Another wonderful image and depiction of your home land. thanks for sharing.
Lon
@Ed_McGuirk, @Lon_Overacker, @jaapv, @Igor_Doncov, @Michael_Lowe, @Preston_Birdwell, @StevenM,
,After reading all your great comments and advice, I did the following. Turned the image. Think that gives more depth . I lighten the tree(now on the right side. I lighten the whole image a bit more using curves. Used the spotlight feature in TK7 to lighten the fog around the farmhouse and the trees in the background. To get more contrast effect in the whole image.With the help of all your critiques I find it a better image. Thank you all !!
