This is another comp from the same visit back in October. It is a blend of 2 shots for water/plant movement. Since I have been here multiple times and this being the most recent that I have worked on, I am wondering if this is a stretch of a comp. After reading Alex Noriega’s comments on why he has switched from large landscapes, I can definitely see why. There aren’t many areas that I can reach that I haven’t been to multiple times.
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
If you would like your image to be eligible for a feature on the NPN Instagram (@NaturePhotoNet), add the tag ‘ig’ and leave your Instagram username below.
You may only download this image to demonstrate post-processing techniques.
I really like how the fallen leaves on the water lead your eyes into the scene, Greg. I think the composition is very effective. Two suggestions: One would be to burn the highlights on the foreground ferns on the left. It is a minor distraction to otherwise a very beautiful leading line. The other would be to tame the highlight on the water in the FG. Love the color rendition you make here.
I’m on the fence regarding this comp. The leaves and the lead up to the falls are great but the pool reflecting the sky in lower left hand corner and the mossy rock just above it take up more visual space than the falls themselves.
Have you tried a crop to a 4:5 ratio to remove some space from the bottom?
Beautiful early fall shot. The sparse autumn leaves are a great lead-in as Adhika says. I very much agree with @Nathan_Klein’s comments that the foreground pool reflecting the grey sky does little to add to the image and much to distract. I was wondering how to manage it by burning it down as Adhika said, but Nathan’s comments of the crop seals the deal for me. While the pool does help to bring the viewer to the LLC and helps to fill the frame with visual elements, I think you could well accomplish this with the fern in the LLC. Doing a rolling crop on screen would suggest this wont’ create too many additional issues.
Thanks @Nathan_Klein, @Adhika_Lie, @Jim_McGovern for your input. I have addressed the comments and came up with two options below and am interested in which one you like better. I first of all burned down some of the highlights as Adhika mentioned. That pool in the LLC surrounded by the 2 rocks with ferns etc. is what drew me to this comp. But I have to admit that I wasn’t very fond of the pool after working on the shot. Before I posted it the reflection was pretty extreme. So you guys saw the burned version. I actually highlighted the ferns to help draw the eye away from the pool. But actually created two distractions instead of one. I tried Nathan’s suggestion and played with the crop taking out the little rock, 1/2 the rock etc. and settled with the post below. But I am curious to see what everyone thinks of what I did on the other alteration, ethics aside. I have also included a post of my comp from here in the spring which led me to ask the original question about even keeping this post. The spring post is definitely not lacking on leading lines.
Hi Greg,
I agree with the others on the lower left corner. I think the crop is an improvement but I find the “Spring” posting to be a much stronger composition and overall image.
Hey @Dave_Dillemuth ,
I totally agree. I had the dilemma with this comp because of the spring shot and one I took a couple of years ago. Both better. Knowing that I have 2 better shots than this one is my dilemma whether or not this is a post-able shot. I guess my solution is to find new places to shoot. Problem is that I can’t find them.
@Greg_Stokesbury I think that this is an excellent comp. Nice foreground interest, lead in and subject. I love wide angle vertical comps.
My only input would be that I would have tried to polarize the water a bit more to remove some of the reflection of the sky, especially in the lower left side.
Wonderful comp and I think the best feature for me is the combo of the greens with the oranges of the autumn leaves; it begs the question, how can it be that spring and fall exist at the same time?
Agree with the discussion that in your original the brightness and reflection of the bottom water detracts from the overall impact of the image. Your first repost does a good job of minimizing it, although a little eye pull still remains. I think you could crop just a little bit off the second repost to just above the brightest green leave in the LR and have a pretty good compromise - but hard to see at this size and darkness how good the cloning is down there…
Most certainly a scene worth tweaking and a place you should return to often if possible to work on the possibilities. One of the most redeeming aspects of this location is the good fact that there isn’t blank, bright sky above the falls!
Thanks @Lon_Overacker for the input. I have received a lot of good input on that LLC and am putting it to work. And am anxious to finish it up. Actually Lon these colors are fairly true to the original image. This was taken in mid October and everything here is still pretty green especially with the fall rains. The ferns, shrubbery etc stay as is until it gets colder. And those maples start turning sometimes in early September. Again thanks for the feedback.
Greg, It’s great that you have the opportunity to make repeat visits to the same location. I like the deep DOF you have here, yet wonder if this is not more than one image. My view is just one personal take and is not a negative criticism of this composition. To me the back half of this image is where all the action takes place. Does the foreground back to about the top of the moss covered rock on the left distract from the real action in the image? I suppose the answer is in the message you are wanting to communicate.
Thanks @Larry_Greenbaum for taking the trouble to work the image. I know what you are saying about all the action on the back half, but for me I have to have a leading line. If not I won’t take the shot. When I hit stream level I didn’t think the leaves were strong enough of a leading line because of the number and the glare on the water. So I picked the rocks with the foliage and the channel of water leading to the leaves as it’s anchor. Unfortunately the reflection was extremely bright and it became a distraction. When I crop it as I did above, to me, I lose my “anchor” . So I decided to darken the pool to keep my anchor as suggested by @Adhika_Lie, @Gary_Randall. So once again thank you for the input.
NIce work. Best with the bright pool cropped off, concur. Wonderful scene. Trick is to bring the eye to those leaves. dodge a little to increase brightness, of use the color chanel sliders on them? Having the lens nearer those leaves would have done it. So often we cannot visualize all this in real time.
The attention has been transported back to the falls. Excellent work Greg.