# Some colour issues (maybe)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Image Critiques\ **Tags:** landscape\ **Created:** [December 14, 2020, 10:26pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672 "2020-12-14T22:26:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2020, 10:26pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/1 "2020-12-14T22:26:00Z")
Righto, I am 95% happy with this image but I feel that there is something missing. I think it’s the colours, so thought I’d see if there was an opinion on them? I also think that I am starting to see things in the colours that are not even there. I had a bit of an issue with greens creeping into the highlights and think I have adressed that. Any other areas of critique you may notice, I’m happy to hear Sony A7ii | Canon 16-35mm f4L 17mm | 25s | f/16 | ISO50 edited on a screen calibrated for print ![tryfan_v1](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/6/a/6ad51c34b35caedbe1ea24e23df6ed2f198f5623.jpeg) @eugene\_theron\_photography ---
**Author:** ![ryan3](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@ryan3](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/ryan3)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2020, 10:43pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/2 "2020-12-14T22:43:57Z")
Colors look ok to me. But i am not looking at it on a color monitor at the moment. A couple of things that do stand out to my eye. I think a little more Separation between the foreground grass and the tip of the mountain reflection would be nicer. The mountains in the back right center of the frame with the bright spot in it does pull my eye a little and doesn’t really add to the image in my opinion. Possibly a time that a square crop might work. And since the light on the mountain and the reflection are the main parts of the image i wonder if darkening the shadows a bit more would put more focus on them. Overall these are minor critiques. It is a great image. Just some thoughts Ryan ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2020, 11:34pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/3 "2020-12-14T23:34:47Z")
Hi Ryan. Cheers for leaving some comments. I do see what you mean about the separation between the mountain and the grasses. I agree here. To be honest it was a bit of a compositional compromise I had to make to get the rest of the scene in the way I wanted. The bright central right light hadn’t bothered me until now, but now I can’t unsee it. I have another shot taken a few secs later that has darker background peaks ans more separation to the main subject. I’ll investigate. As for the square crop. I think that may harm the foreground too much for my liking here. Especially the lake but I’ll have a play. Thanks again for the comments. Really appreciate the feedback! Eugene ---
**Author:** ![Ian\_Cameron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/ian_cameron/32/583_2.png) [@Ian\_Cameron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Ian_Cameron)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2020, 11:50pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/4 "2020-12-14T23:50:55Z")
Hi Eugene Colours look about right that is certainly true of what I am seeing on the mixed heather and typical moorland grass in Scotland. The mountain could go just about any colour but it looks natural enough. It does seem a little dark and a little contrasty making the sky look slightly unnatural. I like the shot well enough it certainly has an un-mistakeably Scottish flavour to it. ---
**Author:** ![Bonnie\_Lampley](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/bonnie_lampley/32/4825_2.png) [@Bonnie\_Lampley](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Bonnie_Lampley)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 12:10am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/5 "2020-12-15T00:10:48Z")
What a gorgeous scene. I love the sensuous line of the edge of the tarn and it’s glassy surface contrasted with the rough grasses. I’m with Ian on the darkness of the sky. I thought that perhaps just a bump up in the lights of the blue sky and tarn to give more depth to the scene might be nice. Here’s my idea (also brought up the highlights in the grasses and burned down the LRC light spot). I don’t think it wrecks the mood too much. ![tryfan_v1-copy](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/1/f/1f77d4c79ca248afa21b755c7cd8d8f02a3d02d8.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Igor\_Doncov](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/igor_doncov/32/579_2.png) [@Igor\_Doncov](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Igor_Doncov)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 1:42am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/6 "2020-12-15T01:42:53Z")
The light is gorgeous here. The tarn works wonderfully as a foreground for the mountain and really does deserve the space allocated to it. I like the dark version of the sky as it gives the image more drama. I think the weakest part of the image is the dry grass in the fg. There’s too much of it and it’s fairly flat. I made a small crop and added some texture just to it to introduce more contrast to give it visual light. I, personally, don’t think it should be lightened. ![tryfan_v4](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/d/8/d877acf3e85243d49c0d3e1bdd237747bd19b06f.jpeg) Hmmm… I think I might like your original composition more. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Greenbaum](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/larry_greenbaum/32/14487_2.png) [@Larry\_Greenbaum](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Larry_Greenbaum)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 5:43am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/7 "2020-12-15T05:43:07Z")
Wonderful image! I really like the comp, and the contrast in texture and color between the beautifully reflected mountain, sky, and foreground works really well. I like what @Igor_Doncov did with the foreground. This is a winner, Eugene. Thanks for posting it. ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 11:48am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/8 "2020-12-15T11:48:13Z")
@Ian_Cameron @Bonnie_Lampley @Larry_Greenbaum Thanks to you all about the comments and feedback. @Igor_Doncov Thanks very much. I think the texture adjustment on the grasses had hit the nail on the head. It’s brought it all to life a bit more. I also think I prefer the original composition too. It has a bit more breathing room between the edge of the water and the edge of the frame. Thanks for the comments about the sky @Ian_Cameron and @Bonnie_Lampley. The sky was actaully a lot darker and more dramatic than it is in this image. I have toned it down from what I felt on the day as i thought it was a bit overkill. I have reduced the clarity in the sky a bit just to soften it up a bit more. @Ian_Cameron yeah the grasses do go that really deep brown/red colour at this time of year. Just like most of the highlands. This is actaully in Wales though but the mountains respond in a similar way here ---
**Author:** ![Ed\_McGuirk](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/ed_mcguirk/32/30542_2.png) [@Ed\_McGuirk](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Ed_McGuirk)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 12:56pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/9 "2020-12-15T12:56:15Z")
Coming in late here, but here goes. The light here is really gorgeous and is the “soul” of this image. As a result the light and colors have a lot of immediate impact for me. I like the original composition, with it’s extra foreground breathing room. Getting the whole of the tarn is critical to the composition, so for me a crop is out of the question. I think the rework by @Bonnie_Lampley helps, I like what she did in the sky (it adds more drama for me), and the dodging of the grass. My only suggested incremental tweak would be to burn down the highlights in the two mountain ridges in the far distance, placing more emphasis on the main peak. Here is a rework that starts from Bonnies version. ![tryfan_v1-copy_copy](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/7/6/764738e9211b1e795a335c4ff1934e2b9f230a7b.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:03pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/10 "2020-12-15T18:03:17Z")
Yeah, I’ve been thinking about @Bonnie_Lampley suggestions more and more today. I think she makes a good point. I am reticent to play with the sky too much as it was quite dark on the day but also think the adjustments add to it. Those back highlights are bothering me too more and more. I have brought them down a bit more but it all got a bit funky. I have another exposure of the scene where they are less dominant that I’m going to edit up and see. It’s almost identical but it was taken a step closer and 1mm wider. Thanks so much for the suggestions ---
**Author:** ![Bonnie\_Lampley](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/bonnie_lampley/32/4825_2.png) [@Bonnie\_Lampley](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Bonnie_Lampley)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 7:45pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/11 "2020-12-15T19:45:58Z")
> [@Eugene\_Theron](#): > > I am reticent to play with the sky too much as it was quite dark on the day but also think the adjustments add to it. Maybe keep the original dark sky and just bring up the lights in the sky, without brightening it overall? ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 8:16pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/12 "2020-12-15T20:16:42Z")
Thanks again everyone. The re-works are subtle but think they work. - Added some texture and a small dash of white to the foreground grasses. - dodge LRC - increase/lighten blue luminance a bit. Makes the sky look a bit less heavy - Lights burn to the mountains in the background - dropped the intensity of the oranges on the peak (this is still a mental debate) - 6 purple saturation See original and re-work. Comments always welcome ORIGINAL POST ![tryfan_v1](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/6/a/6ad51c34b35caedbe1ea24e23df6ed2f198f5623.jpeg) REWORK ![Tryfan_v2](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/a/2/a24012a440d05d0ab3697f0a71556ddf0b4007d1.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Nathan\_Klein](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/nathan_klein/32/2063_2.png) [@Nathan\_Klein](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Nathan_Klein)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2020, 3:24am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/13 "2020-12-18T03:24:21Z")
I’m late to the party and I agree with a lot of what has been said. But to answer your questions about colour and I think that colour is very subjective. But I would tune the colour to have a touch less green in the mix using a curves layer with less green in the mid-tones. For me it allows the blues and reds to pop more. ![tryfan_v1-edit](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/f/e/feffcdd80bf54e8efe0c001ee0563993ad121e00.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_Theron](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/eugene_theron/32/6620_2.png) [@Eugene\_Theron](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Eugene_Theron)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2020, 11:33pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/some-colour-issues-maybe/18672/14 "2020-12-20T23:33:54Z")
Thanks Nathan. I think you’re onto something here. I had some issues in printing it with excessive green coming through and toned them down specifically for that. I’ll have a look at the master file in the way you suggested. Thanks very much for that