I made a quick run to the desert with my sister last week. It started with “Hey, I got a tip about a prairie falcon nest. Wanna check it out?” to a full blown hike, wandering and getting lost in the process. Thank goodness for GPS. Thank goodness for the 300PF. Had I carried the 500, I would have died in the process. In short, no prairie falcon, but at least I’ve got some badlands…
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
Two horizontal panorama merged in LR and then cropped accordingly. On hindsight, should have been able to do this from one single exposure. Oh well!
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@adhikalie
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Adhika, I really love the scene, almost looks like an aerial. I’m wondering if a bit of a crop from the top would work. The larger formation on the right that’s clipped seems a little awkward, just a thought.
Adhika, I really like this scene and the hazy subdued presentation. For me the top right large mountain is grabbing my attention from an otherwise enjoyable search of the patterns. I tend to agree with Bill that a slight crop from the top will give this an even stronger abstract quality.
Nicely done!
@Bill_Leggett and @Alan_Kreyger, many thanks. That mountain on the UR area is the bane of my existence. If I include that in my composition, from my vantage show, it would show the wash beyond the badlands which I think detract from the abstract quality of the image. I need to go higher, but I was already at the highest point in the trail, so I really need to go aerial to get this composition. My thinking in the field was that if I chopped it off, I might be able to get away with it, sort of the cinematic way. Posted a revision on the OP.
This is good. There’s a warm gentleness to this interpretation. The composition is complex yet sound. It holds together quite nicely. I suppose the rework is a bit better than the original, although frankly the mountain didn’t bother me. I don’t know. The original has a broader more complex composition which has been lost in the rework. But the rework has a more purposeful composition. I’ll go for the OP I guess.
BTW, it helps to put the rework in the original post as a second image. That makes it easier to compare by flipping back and forth.
Thanks, @Igor_Doncov. I can frankly go with either composition. In the process of re-cropping, I desaturated the top as well to further separate the layers. I think if I am going for the wider crop, I will leave the desaturation in tact.
PS. I have added the image to the original post. Thanks for the tip!
I like this one. You captured the image at a nice moment of light that really emphasizes the shape of these badlands.
The thing that catches my eye in this image is a “Z” shape of light and badlands that runs through the image. I downloaded the jpg and added a bit of dehaze, cropped, vignetted (I feel like a broken record here in my critiques lately, sorry), and did some sloppy dodge and burning to try and emphasize that Z. I also added a bit of blue to the shadows, and made the image slightly more magenta overall (again, broken record, sorry). I added some midtone contrast too which may have been the most useful adjustment in my opinion. I’m not sure if it’s better than the original, but maybe it’ll give you some ideas.
Adhika, I really like the badlands capture. I did some scroll cropping, then saw Brent’s rendition and really like his crop idea. I think his other changes work well, but so do your original presentations. The mood and look of the image change significantly with the Brent rework, but I like both versions a lot. Hard to go wrong. Very nice image however you do it.
Brent, I LOVE that crop. Thanks for sharing that. I am gonna steal that. As for the tonality, the lower, more subdued contrast is what I envision but I also like your interpretation of the scene. I think somewhere in between is a good balance. Thanks for sharing! I personally consider an image that can be interpreted in more than one different way a successful one. Let me work on this a little more. I am so excited for this new crop.
@Adhika_Lie, I also vote for Brent’s crop, as it’s more like what I was trying to convey. His crop diminishes that tall portion so as to be more consistent with the rest of the scene.
I like Brent´s crop, but I think I prefer the original processing, the first one. Fine mood. The second is too subdued for me. If I wanted a change in tonality from the first one, I would go for Brent’s version. Although he more or less created a new scene.
Bill, I think this is exactly how I feel about that crop, too. I couldn’t see it until I saw it on @Brent_Clark’s crop. This has been a very useful discussion.
Han, there shouldn’t be a major change in tonality between the two although when you scroll one to the other it looks like the second is very much subdued. But if you click through them after enlarging one of them, it should be pretty similar (Thanks @Igor_Doncov for the tip!) .
I have made a second revision that I am very happy with. In addition to the crop, I added a very slight vignette and deepen the magenta although not quite as much as what Brent did. I want to stay with subtle. I have edited the original post for that.
Adhika, I’m late coming on this, but like Igor said, I like how this is complex, yet it still holds together very nicely. I think that @Brent_Clark has nailed it with it with his suggested crop, it does a great job of dealing with the bane of your existence.
While I like Brent’s crop, I prefer the processing of your original. If I had seen @Brent_Clark re-work first without having seen your original, I would have commented that I liked it. But having seen your original, I prefer the lighter feeling that it has. I think you could still increase mid-tone contrast a bit in your rework without losing that lighter feeling. I used a TK Midtones 2 selection on a curves adjustment layer set to Soft Light blend mode to generate what I have in mind…
This is one of those images that you could process and crop different ways and still have a winner, Adhika. The lighting is superb and I love all those wonderful shapes and textures of the dunes. FWIW I like @Ed_McGuirk’s rendition best because I think it strikes a perfect balance with the processing.
The revised crop is fabulous! The image is transformed from a grand landscape to more of an intimate landscape (despite the great distance and scale.)
Initially I thought this looked a little hazy and lacking contrast (expected given the distance, atmosphere, etc.) And I really like where Brent took this with the “painting with light.” Upon further review and comparing the large versions, I think your revised version is spot on, given all considerations. Well done!
As for the tonality, the lower, more subdued contrast is what I envision but I also like your interpretation of the scene. I think somewhere in between is a good balance. Thanks for sharing! I personally consider an image that can be interpreted in more than one different way a successful one. Let me work on this a little more. I am so excited for this new crop.