You might recognize the tree and island from my last post. Very soon after I arrived at this pond, two Vermonters showed up and launched their boats. It was interesting to keep seeing them disappear and re-appear out of the thick fog. A couple times they stopped and talked out on the lake, and this one was a very opportune (for me) place for them to stop.
5D2, 100-400 @ 200
f/8, 1/13s, ISO100
TK curves adjustments, dodging & burning
I also painted in a little fake fog at the left and right edges to emphasize the vignetting effect.
This is amazing, Craig. I think those two kayakers add to the image. I do wish the kayaker on the right and his/her kayak are of more muted colors just like the one on the left which is very harmonious to the overall image. But there is not much you can do about that. I really like how they are looking towards that tree.
You captured the mood and feel of the moment really nicely! I like the overall composition with the tules sticking just out of the water in the foreground, leading my eye through the image to the kayakers, island, and to the BG. On my monitor, the fog has a hint of a warm/pink tone to it is my only issue, but might just be on my end? Here is a version with a tweak to cool the white balance.!
Oh my, how perfect! The way the two kayakers and tree make a triangle is compositionally perfect to convey a centered stillness, while still making an interesting visual shape.
Wonderful mood to this image. Maybe the guy in red is Santa on his way to your house. Seriously, the composition, fog and elements all came together to make a great image. Glad you were there to capture it.
Really beautiful image, Craig! The canoeing folks add a completely different mood than if they were absent. I was thinking the same as @Keith_Flood about the pinkish look and I like his rework. But you can’t go wrong either way, very, very good.
Craig, I love the triangle effect in the comp too. Here’s another vote for removing the pink color cast. The cast (and light) is not strong enough for it to be obvious to the viewer that its due to color in the sky. Rather, to an unknowing viewer, it just looks like a color cast. I also think it makes the background trees look a bit muddy, I prefer the way they look in @Keith_Flood rework.
Here is a third vote for removing the pink cast. When I first opened the thumbnail the colorcast is what popped out to me the most. I just love the reeds in the foreground water and the perfect triangular symmetry of the tree and the kayakers. The moody fog just adds to the calming effect of this image. Well done Craig!
Criag, you have piqued my curiousity. When I commented abou the pink cast I was thinking it was just a white balance issue. But now that I think about it, I wonder if I were the photographer, at that time and place, seeing the scene with my eye vs. image on a computer, I might not want to change it. Maybe for me, that warm pink glow is part of what intrigued me about this scene when I tripped the shutter? So with that said the question is do YOU like the image better color adjusted cooler? Anyway, food for thought…
This is a fabulous scene and I agree with all of the sentiments about composition and mood. It seems as if you don’t include people in your photos often, and neither do I, but on a recent kayaking photo workshop I did make some images with my fellow participants in the shots. They’re among the strongest from that tour and I think it’s for a few reasons - they give immediacy and accessibility; humans just love to see themselves reflected in the environment, they provide scale and last, but maybe most importantly, they tell a story. This image certainly does that and I want to join those two in their foggy wonderland. Great capture!
