This image is from January in Death Valley. We hiked out to an area of the dunes to shoot sunrise that we scouted the night before, as the light started coming above the mountains behind us I could see the sand bowl on the left was going to catch the light nicely. There are so many shapes, lines, patterns, textures and light in this area that I couldn’t spent all day but as we all know the good light fades quickly.
What technical feedback would you like if any?
I love the contrast of the shapes and lighting but I can’t tell if the dunes on the right side are too close to the edge of the frame. I generally crop for 4x5 but the light was moving so fast that I cropped too tight in the field for that.
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
Any is welcome
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
Single exposure, converted to BW in Lightroom, PS to dodge and burn.
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Nice Black and White conversion Andrew. Was this a long lens? I don’t see any specs on this image. It looks like the foreground is fairly soft or wind blown but the mountains appear to be very sharp making me think this might be a long lens. I love the different textures with the bottom right gritty and grainy, the bottom left soft and dappled, the midground high contrast and smooth, and the mountains beautifully dappled in morning light. I also like what you did to the sky to make it more monotone and dark so the eye doesn’t go right to it. I also like the inclusion of the Mesquite mid frame. I don’t think that the dunes are too close to the right edge of the frame. They nicely balance the dune leading out of the left side of the frame. I totally agree with you that being out on the dunes is like a kid being in a candy shop. You can spend all day and there are so many compositions, curves, light and shade, twists and turns that it’s difficult to pick something out. Very nicely done.
Nice, Andrew! That was an awesome morning for sure. I got a few images that I like from that day. I like your black and white processing on this a lot. The composition looks great, nothing too close to the right. Nice work!
This is a very powerful B&W conversion Andrew. My comments essentially mirror those of @David_Haynes. I love the darker tonality you have in the sky, it does a great job of accentuating the light on the mountains. Even with the sweet light on the dunes, you have managed to make the light on the mountains an important element within the scene. The processing here is right on the money, it’s very well done. My only technical comment is the softness in the foreground dune noted by David. Perhaps focus stacking could have gotten more depth of field if this was a telephoto shot.
I do not think the dunes are too close to the right frame edge. To me the most interesting aspects of this image are in the center, ie the mountain, the U shape of the 2 large dunes, and the Mesquite. The proximity of the smaller dunes to the right frame edge kind of serves as a “guardrail” that keeps the viewers eye from moving out of the frame to the right, and focuses attention on the center of the image.
Thanks so much @David_Haynes, I appreciate your thoughtful feedback. Yes, this was taken with my 70-300mm lens at 84mm. I didn’t want the eyes to focus to long on the ridge on the lower right side so I made sure it was a little soft. While I love it here on the screen it’s proving to be difficult to print, but that’s part of the fun right? I can’t wait to go back when the temperatures allow, an adults playground. Thanks again!
Thanks @Dustin_Waits, I got excited and shot it a little tight so it doesn’t really work as a 4x5 but oh well. We’ll just have to go back and try again.
@Ed_McGuirk thanks as always for your thoughtful feedback! It was a longer focal length and i purposely left the sand dune/ridge in the lower right a little soft. I did not want the viewers eye to fall there too long, they know it’s a dune and I wanted them to move right on to the meat of the image. I do have a focus stack frame that I played around with but in the end I just didn’t like it all sharp. Thanks for noticing the mountains, I worked extra hard on making sure the light and detail is there. I think they are a very important piece of the image. Thanks again, I appreciate the feedback.
Wonderful tonalities and vibrant curving lines. I like the darker sky, also, to keep a context but keep attention in the dunes. The edges work for me. It looks like you hiked in quite a way to find this composition free of footprints.
Thanks so much for the feedback @Diane_Miller, I appreciate it. We did hike a good ways in from the car but I think more importantly it was midweek, helps when you don’t have to fight the weekend crowds.
I also like this a lot. Really enjoy the comp. My only addition is that I’d consider going a bit darker in the darks on the dunes–although, I am very prone to going with too much contrast, so take that for what it’s worth.
Thanks @Lyle_Gruby, the image on screen is much lighter. In print the shadows are much darker almost too dark but I like it. Thanks for looking and comments.
Very enjoyable dune image Andrew! I’ll echo that I love the mountains and the way they back up the dunes; that’s not always easy to do.
I agree that the proximity on the right is not a big deal. I tad more room might be optimal, but if you hadn’t brought it to my attention I don’t think I would have thought much about it.
I hear what you are saying about the focus in the lower right, but there is a pull in my mind that OOF either need to be a dramatic bokeh, or the image needs to be tack sharp. For some reason my subconscious mind hints at error when it is subtle like that, even if the effect was intentional by the photographer. My personal approach would be to de-emphasize that lower right corner by giving it a bit of a vignette effect, trying to gain the eye draw you were after by lighting instead of focus. That’s a personal choice though, and I respect yours since in the end the most important photographer to please is the guy behind the shutter!
