None of our sunsets in the Badlands produced much color, which was a bummer, but has the upside of getting to bed relatively early since there was nothing to hang around for. While waiting for the color that never turned up, I played with sidelight and the sinuous shape of this green little valley. The single tree was just a bonus and I tried to work the landscape to show a leading line and the vastness. Since the sky wasn’t doing anything great, it was a perfect opportunity.
Specific Feedback Requested
I’m open to ideas for improvement. Does it look too desaturated? I didn’t push any sliders up since it seemed to be at odds with the evening feel.
Technical Details
Tripod
Lr for basic RAW stuff - brought down the exposure, flattened the tonal range a bit, some texture, clarity, sharpening & nr. Sky mask with dehaze, but not much. Photoshop for a lot of work with various masking techniques so I could use them as stencils to paint through with dodge and burn and other adjustment layers. Particularly to add more 3-dimensionality to the landscape which it really needed. Added a curves layer to mess with mid-tones and the darker areas for more contrast. Lifted the shadows in the deepest part of the valley. Also ran a clarity action and confined it to the mid-tones with a mask. Back in Lr I added a radial and gradient filter to even out the far background and to lower the exposure on the rock in the LRC. Phew!
No, it doesn’t look too desaturated. It looks good and, as you said, it fits the evening feel. Interesting valley with lots of detail to explore.
Reading your list of post-processing steps, I wonder if I would recognize the scene if I ever visit the place
Kris, the single tree was a hidden plus to the grand vista view overall. Along with the very distinct BG multitude of layer lines this had to be a wonderful site to see in person. Only change might be for some more contrast. However, it’s always to ones discretion on post processing looks in the end…
Thanks @Paul_Breitkreuz & @David_Bostock - contrast is one I vacillated with for this one. I’ve put a second image up in the OP - curves adjustment with two masks applied. The linear gradient in the far distance brought down exposure, but not in the lightest parts. A radial gradient in the deep valley to bring up exposure and shadows very slightly. Does that work?
