Once in a very blue moon. Rain falls so heavily that it catches out the folk that monitor the water levels at the Glen Affric Dam and a photographic treat materialises. The level of the water in the lochans at the perimeter of the woodland areas completely floods and the lichen covered birch trees become partially submerged. On a still day the tree trunks and autumn canopy are reflected in the wind protected pools and the fallen birch trees float upon the surface like golden confetti. The bonus on this occasion was the lightly falling rain which glazed the water surface softening the reflections to a surrealistic blur of colour. A rare visual treat.
Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, 0.3ND soft Grad, Polariser, (50% strength), f22, at 8 Seconds, Fuji Velvia 50. Scanned Nikon 9000ED.
This is a visual treat Ian. It’s almost high key in nature. What great luck for you to be here on the day that the Glen gets flooded. A treat indeed. I love the lichen covered bark of the trees, the yellow, Fall colors?, and floating leaves in the foreground. The shadowed tree trunks reflected in the water are a nice treat and really to balance this image particularly with that long shutter of 8 seconds which sets the mood for the whole scene. The color pallet is pleasing although there may be a greenish tint overall, maybe??
Beautiful image Ian.
I think it was about a half stop over exposed to be honest. Ironically i do have another vesrsion which I think is exposed correctly but the luminence was just slightly less so I opted to scan this one instead.
I love this, Ian. The color palette is nicely muted but still luminous, and the reflections, clear in some spots and blurred in others, are just fantastic. I can look at this for hours. I’d be interested to see a less green version, but to be honest, I like the greenness of it all here. It adds a sense of calm and a dreamy quality. Are the trunks too green? Or are they merely reflecting the green reflected in the water, etc. It’s all quite lovely.
I have always loved your work and this photograph just adds to that admiration. Your placement of all the trees, or I should say where you placed yourself, such that each tree stands on its own gives my eye the ability to jump around the scene. The variation in the water surface also adds to the mystic of this photo. One last point, I am still impressed that you are still using film. I too am trying to stay with film, but it’s hard with my failing scanner.
Yes I still love film admittedly I now use my Fuji GFX50S much more now, but photography is about enjoyment and I still get a huge kick out of opening up an envelope with anticipation of the contents contained within reference the Velvia transparencies and of course the very measured approach to the image making procedure and the niggling doubt that always comes with the exposure of the transparency. I did have two Nikon 9000ED scanners I sold one for several hundred pounds more than I originally paid for it.
Gorgeous image Ian. The shades of green and yellow, the reflections and leaves in the water, the positioning of the trees all come together to make this a wonderful image to explore. I think the touch of magenta works well. There is an area between the two dark trees on the left that I would reduce the exposure a small amount and maybe add a touch of contrast. Wonderful image!
Love this image. I prefer the original. The green cast binds the image together: trees reflecting water reflecting trees. It also gives the shot warmth.
