Lake Martin historically has been one of the most active rookeries in the U.S. But aside from all the wading birds that nest there it’s also a beautiful place at different times of the year.
Shot early morning April 2014 in light haze, and I liked this for its simplicity. I basically only boosted the saturation a little but invite all comments, such as exposure and comp.
Olympus E-5 ZD50-200 @96 on tripod, ISO 100 1/80 f/5.6 0.0EV
Great scene!
Did you consider a longer exposure to smooth out the water? Maybe 5-10s.
I personally would have stepped back slightly and allow the reflected try to fit with in the frame.
I like this framing better👍
Nathan, you may have a point about the option of smoothing the water. In order to do that I would have needed about 6 stops of ND, which I don’t have. I personally like the delicacy of the reflected tree trunks. I could smear/soften other parts of the reflection if I wanted but I’d rather keep it as is. As to your second post “I like this framing better”, I’m sorry but I don’t understand.
Bill, the light here is very soft, it creates a very calm mood in this image. I like the shutter speed as shot, a longer exposure would have taken away the slight ripples in the reflection which I like. I also like how this is mostly a mirror image reflection, but you made it less static and more dynamic by going slightly off-center. I like the splash of red color in the upper right corner too. This is a very pleasing image…
Bill, really enjoying the tree, trunks with the warm light and of course the reflection - just the right amount of ripples too. The haziness detracts a bit for me, but not much can be done about that; we can never do anything about the conditions or weather. It does help to allow the stand of trees to be separated though.
Simple indeed. Too back being a rookery and all, that there weren’t a dozen egrets posed… 
Lon
Simple and sweet, Bill. Great reflection! No suggestions here.
I like the overall light ambience that this image gives off. A very small thing: it would have been nice if the top of the trees didn’t coincide with the top of the bg trees. There is good separation between the two here so it doesn’t matter as much.
I also feel that a bit more negative space would have been nice here, both in the water and the sky. It would be in tune with the sense you’re conveying.
Beautiful, Bill. Nicely framed and wonderful soft light. I might experiment with dodging the cypress to gain a touch more separation from the background and put more emphasis on the tree.
I like the overall feel of this shot. It’s always interesting to me how different we can all see the same image. I personally like the haziness as it contributes to the mood in addition to separating the subject. It’s a nice shot.
As a side note, if this is Lake Martin in LA I am hoping to get down there late winter to do some photography from the kayak. It’s a place I’ve been trying to get to for a few years!
Thanks for your comments and suggestions. To @Lon_Overacker, the haze is something I probably could tweak in Photoshop if I only knew how. To @Ed_McGuirk, I was attracted to the calm, and I considered the delicate reflection the major player, so I liked the “jagged” look of the trunk reflections. To @Igor_Doncov, you have some good points. My height of eye was ten feet or so above the lake. Certainly a lower POV would work for that. Your idea for more negative space is an easy thing with content aware crop, so I’ll give it a try. To @Terri_Barnett, you’re quite correct, it’s one and the same close to Lafayette and Breaux Bridge (which is closer). I never took my canoe there, but it’s a perfect paddle sports platform to sneak around that I’m sure you’ll enjoy. Send me an email if you have questions.
