Many of you have been posting some very creative ICM and abstract images here lately and it got me to get off my keister and go try some of this. So, I went to an areas that I thought might work for some of the shots I had in mind. It was a lot of fun and boy, can you come home with a ton of images to cull through, Not fun. But in the end, it taught me what to look for and what type of movements and shutter speeds create the effects I was looking for so it was a really good learning experience as well.
Specific Feedback Requested
I know this is not terrifically balanced. Does that ruin the shot?
That upper right corner doesn’t have much going on. Does it pull the eye? What can be done about it.
Do you know what this is?
Technical Details
Z9, 100-400mm lens @ 190mm, ISO 100, Shutter speed 1/8th, f/20, single shot
Minimally processed in LR and framed in PS.
Well, it looks like you’ve gotten the hang of ICM, David! This is very cool. My guess as to subject is the base of a tree, eucalyptus maybe?
I can see the Gotham City high rises in all those radiating verticals. Maybe accentuating those would enhance that impression. And, you’re right, it does feel unbalanced because of the URC brightness/lack of detail. So, I thought about how to do those two things. I cropped a bit off the top and right (to +/- keep the long vertical aspect ratio). And then I brought up the shadows in the bottom and darkened the top, and added a bit of dodge/burn to bring out the verticals. This is a quick and dirty try - my 2 cents anyway (hope you don’t mind). It really is a very cool photo.
Great ICM, David. Wonderful impressionistic feel going on here. My first glance made me think of a rock cliff?? I do agree with the adjustments @Bonnie_Lampley has made.
Thanks for your thoughts suggestions @Bonnie_Lampley and @linda_mellor
I had another go at this to see if I could use most of what you did to make this solve the issues Bonnie. I also used the free transform tool in photoshop to bring the image further right to fill in some of the dead space in the URC. I still think I like Bonnies version better. Well done again, Bonnie.
David, great job experimenting with ICM and creating this wonderful image! Definitely reminded me of a cliff wall with some reflected light. I like the reworked version. Bonnie provided some excellent feedback on corrections to the image. And yes ICM can take quite a bit of storage but it’s so much fun to play and experiment in the field.
This is so cool, @David_Haynes ! What I see is a deep peering into some precious gems or crystals. Highly reflective and shiny, some geometry, with some colors and mystery deep within. I think this is fantastic ICM!!!
Thanks very much @Mark_Muller, and @Alfredo_Mora. And for everyone else curious about what this is, @Bonnie_Lampley , @linda_mellor , @David_Bostock , @Ola_Jovall , @AndreDonawa , it’s actually a Eucalyptus Tree with leaves and bark along the bottom in a messy pile of debris. Bonnie nailed it. Well done.
EDIT: One more thing…this was done by panning up and down while also zooming out on a zoom lens.
Very Cool! I think Bonnie nailed it for me when she used the term “Gothan City high rises in all those radiating verticals.” I do get that sense - even has a 3-D look to it.
For me, the bottom is a little confusing - but shouldn’t be given this is an abstract??? But I really think the edits are a nice improvement. Just love that vertical motion and impression of “radiating verticals.”
Thanks @Lon_Overacker. Yes, that bottom is confusing and very much, “What the heck is this,” sort of feeling. It looked like Gotham City when I first laid eyes on it which is why I titled this one, Gotham City. To me the bottom looked like a mysterious, dark, and foreboding city with all the chaos that is the mess at the bottom. I think Bonnie nailed the improvements that this needed. It really helped pull this one together. These are so much fun to shoot and you never really know what you’re going to get until you look at the camera screen. It’s like opening a box of cracker jacks and wondering what you’re going to get inside.
I knew there was a mess at the bottom of the tree and tried to incorporate it but I had no idea that this is what would come out of it. It’s a very weird image. Thanks for your comment, Lon!
