After our fall 2018 fires some areas were seeded with grasses and wildflowers, which turned into an abundance of growth the next spring. There was one landowner in particular who seeded red poppies, which were quite striking against the waves of tall grass, as were the burnt manzanitas.
Specific Feedback Requested
Any critique welcome. There are some burnt limbs at odd angles, but I didn’t bother to clone them out. Making photographs that spring was more therapeutic than artistic in many cases, and I can tell I was not feeling optimistic because my original processing was quite dark. This is a rework, looking more like the spring scene it was.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
a7, 190mm, f/16, 1/200s, ISO 1600
Bonnie, this is really beautiful. That grass catches the light beautifully, and the way you captured the layering of those grasses is just great. The small splashes of red flower are an added bonus.
The only thing I might consider is cloning out the thick vertical branch up top, just left of center. That one really breaks up the arching flow of the branches for me, and it keeps pulling my eye up there.
I’m glad you were able to make such a beautiful image from such a destructive event.
I love this little scene. The softly lit grass with the scattered red flowers. The stark reality of the burned trees. Your use of them as a natural frame is perfect to illustrate the regeneration effort going on here. So I just couldn’t resist bringing this into Photoshop for a little touch up. I hope you don’t mind.
I cropped it a little to emphasize the strong framing elements, did a little healing and cloning with the dark vertical branch and also a TK Lights mask to tame some of the highlights in the flowering grasses and it brought up some of the golden color there.
This is a wall hanger to me. A little window of hope.
Thanks, @Craig_Moreau and @Kris_Smith for your comments. Craig, yes, that odd branch at the top needs to go. Kris, I like your closer crop and the idea to bring out more yellow in the grasses. I posted a rework with your suggestions.
Nice work, Bonnie. I like how you enhanced the color of the poppies.
Great seeing, Craig. Once I saw what you meant I just couldn’t stop noticing it. There may be other branches. The left branches don’t complement the right ones very well.
Bonnie, the slight crop and the bit of warming make a notable difference. You saw a fine mix of burnt and new here. I like the “flow” of the branches on the right reaching over to the ones on the left and the similarity between the angles of that middle branch and the grasses.
