I spent a few days camped on a remote beach of Baja California that had a long gentle slope and a mild swell. I became intrigued with the sand patterns with this one being the most abstract of the bunch. It was also the last shot of that session.
I made almost no processing changes here except to actually declarify the image. I didn’t think the subject called for contrast. Unlike most sand grain images I was also very hesitant to over sharpen this one.
Nikon D810, Tamron 24-70@56mm, iso 64, f/16, 1/5 sec
A really intriguing pattern Igor, your composition is very effective at moving the viewers eye across the image. Without knowing what it was, I might guessed that this was a snow or ice pattern and not sand.
Igor, excellent find here. The missing or lacking pattern and lack of any distinguishable scale makes for the perfect abstract. Here is a prime example why looking down at times can really payoff very nicely if skillful attention or observations are tuned in correctly…
This is exquisite, Igor. I like the lack of scale in the scene along with the patterns in the sand as they take you across the image. The processing looks great; I have no suggestions.
Outstanding Igor. Perhaps one your best posted here, if not my favorite. No suggestions what so ever, just enjoyment.
Only other comment would be to comment on your comment. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on processing approach. It’s most certainly a learned one - kudos.
@Anil_Rao. I normally use TK web sharpening. In this case I compared my TIFF file with 30%, 15%, etc sharpening and the Tiff gave me what I was after. Sharpening is essentially adding micro contrast and it was noticeable in the overall image. Sharpened sand grains often have that wonderful mosaic quality. But here I wanted to downplay that.
The other thing I wanted to touch on is abstracts. I find good abstracts to be rare and pretty hard to pull off. There was a time when I thought I had easily mastered it by creating solid compositions that have no touch with reality. Those are virtually everywhere. But these days I’m of the mind that a good abstract strongly suggests something other than what it is. It has more to say than a pleasing arrangement of lines, colors, and shapes. And what it states needs to have an emotional pull of some kind.
I spent 3 days camped on this beach and also took plenty of panoramic postcard images for my friends who want to know what it’s like out there.
@Anil_Rao. And while I’ve got your ear I wanted to let you know that I thought of you and your work during this trip. From the shoreline bluffs I looked below and saw virtually your rock compositions of San Mateo. Hot diggidy! The mornings had the wonderful coastal light that makes rocks almost glow.
Next morning I worked my way down the cliff to the rocks below. I made a few weak compositions to sort of get into the flow of things. But it never happened. Nothing came together. I started working harder but came up with junk. And I knew it was junk. Finally I settled for junk. I told myself the junk was good even though deep down I knew it was just junk. I moved rocks to create compositions and ended up with contrived images.
But all was not lost. All that work was not for naught. Without being aware of it I was starting to see better. And on the way back to camp the compositions started to appear in the sand. I had broken through. It’s always this miracle of perception that intrigues me. It comes of its own volition when it wants and you’re never sure when it’s really there.
There have been many fine articles written here about finding your vision and avoiding cliche images. But nobody tells you how to do it. It would be helpful if someone could provide a workflow. Of course I wouldn’t read it. It’s the journey of discovery that’s been so precious.
Igor, it’s interesting to me how this interprets. Without the title it could easily be taken for a foamy seaside of a gentle wave. And for that reason my mind wants to see brownish tones. To me it also looks like a B&W with some cool color toning. I completely agree that images like these one can avoid sharpening. Abstract images like this can speak in many languages, depending on the viewer’s interpretation. (One can also see a cloudscape too).
Wonderful, Igor. Based on what you’ve said, you have fulfilled your vision. Congratulations on a fine piece of work. It is certainly an image that I could spend a lot of time with.
@Lon_Overacker, I thought about your work when I was processing this image. The composition reminded me somewhat of your grass images. I think both subjects try to achieve a similar emotion in some way. Anyway, I just thought I’d share that with you.
Thanks for answering my question regarding sharpening.
I also appreciate you sharing your thought process as you went about making this image. I enjoy learning about how an artist works because it allows me to interact with their work in a deeper sense.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on processing approach. It’s most certainly a learned one - kudos.