I normally stick almost exclusively with one aspect ratio 3:2, and very rarely crop for creative effect. It’s just the way my brain is wired, even if limits some creative possibilities. I went to shoot sunrise at an overlook in the Quabbin Reservoir area of Massachusetts. There were no clouds, but some really nice fog in the valley below. I loved the way the fog was threading it’s way through the trees. This image is a crop of one shot, and not a composite pano. The original image had more of the yellow sky, but I knew that I wanted to minimize it, so that the color wouldn’t compete too much with the fog. I actually considered cropping this into 3:2 with just a small amount of yellow sky. But I kept finding myself not wanting to sacrifice that much of the trees and fog, since they were interesting across the entire frame. So I said, why continue to fight it, and just chose to present it as a panoramic aspect ratio.
Then I considered another version without the yellow sky. So I am also looking for which version you prefer, the one one with or without the yellow sky?
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
Any critique or comments are welcome
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
This is a crop of a normal image, not a composite pano.
When I first looked at the small images, I was thinking keep the sky. After looking at the larger ones several times, most definitely I prefer the no sky. It really conveys a great dreamy mood that goes away with the sky and the subtle colors in the clouds really come alive without. If you decide to keep the sky, I would suggest a bit of a CCW rotation. I quite like this one.
I prefer the one with the sky, but if you raised the blacks in the lower area to give the trees greater definition I would probably like the skyless one more.
Ed,
Both versions are lovely and present different moods to me. The one with the yellow sky is more upbeat with the beginning of a new day while the one with no sky is more moody and mysterious with more of an emphasis on the swirling fog. The processing looks great and I like the fact that I can see hints of the trees toward the bottom edge of the frame as it only intensifies the mood. No suggestions from me.
I really enjoy the one without the sky. They’re both very nice captures of the scene, but the simple focus of the second version really catches my eye. Cheers
@Harley_Goldman@Adam_Bolyard@Igor_Doncov@Michael_Lowe@Ed_Lowe thank you for your comments, there is a clear consensus for sky-less, and I agree. This spot is one of my favorite sunrise locations (with a number of other views and background mountains that line up well in other months of the year. So I go there with the preconceived bias of wanting to shoot sunrise. When posted the sky included version, almost as an afterthought I had the idea to seek input on a skyless version too. I’m glad that I did.
I find both versions equally pleasing. If I was considering a print I’d probably print the no sky version first. I think the pano aspect works well here
These are both beautiful Ed. My preference is to include the sky because I like the added layer with the warmth in the sky. I will be interested to see others’ thoughts.
