While taking an early morning drive this atmospheric opportunity presented itself. The sun had risen high enough to start cutting through the fog. I stopped several times in different locations to take advantage of the light and convey the energy I was feeling after a very subtle predawn shoot along the shoreline of Lake Superior.
Let me know what post processing comments you may have. More or less contrast? More dodging/burning?
Thanks for posting Randall and I’m like you and am a sucker for atmospheric tree images. There are always so many ways to go with these images it can be daunting and difficult to decide on a final version.
In the end of the day there are really only two ways to go:
1: Process it the way you think most people will like it, by making it impactful and powerful.
2: Have the image ask you where it wants to go to reflect the experience and the emotions it brings out in you.
I don’t feel images like this really need dodged and burned in a traditional sense. Fog diffuses contrast and by adding contrast you are negating the very thing that attracted you to the scene in the first place. I’d suggest more often than not, less is more, negative dehaze better than positive dehaze.
The warm tone works to convey a strong sense of energy and I’d be curious how a slightly cooler white balance would feel. The other thing that is always an issue in these is the edges.
Where to crop the bottom looks challenging and I am still not 100% on where it could be cropped to improve it. The little tops of trees always feel a little intrusive to me.
I really love the beams coming in and they feel like the epicentre of interest. Not sure why, but the image also feels a little soft, as if it is a big crop or handheld any a long focal length. That could just be jpeg compression?
Loads of energy in this scene, which is unusual for early morning fog, but it works for sure.
