Large scale intimate landscape. I chose to post this image after reading Alex Noriega’s great thought provoking article.
This is shot with a point and shoot canon powershot SX50 which has a 50X optical zoom so it is not as sharp as I would like. What do people think of this image. It was taken from the top of Sandia Peak Albuquerque New Mexico with summer monsoons in every direction at sunset. I did not have my long lens for my better camera that was with me. I did some editing of the raw file in Lightroom
What technical feedback would you like if any?
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
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Larry, I like the term you used “large scale intimate landscape”. I think you achieved some abstraction by being a great distance away from your subject. Yet I also like how you kept the subject recognizable. To me this image is kind of a hybrid, it has elements of an intimate scene, an abstract, and a grand landscape, all at the same time. Your processing of exposure and contrast looks very good, the dappled light at the bottom is gorgeous.
Normally I like seeing some color contrast between warm and cool tones. But to my subjective taste the cool blue colors at the top of image keep pulling my eye away from all the interesting detail, textures, and colors in the bottom half of the image. If this were my image, i think i would prefer to emphasize the bottom half by moving to a panoramic aspect ratio.
Larry,
I agree with most of Ed’s comments suggestions (with an exception I’ll not in a min). But I agree with the concept too of the “large scale intimate” - a classic use of the telephoto lens to extract more intimate landscape images from the grander view. And this is for sure a grand view! The expanse and depth are captured quite wonderfully here.
While agree that at least the very top band of muted blue with little detail is a little off and mildly distracting. I think I would go as far as cropping out that top band and leave the processing as is. I like how the pine/junipers/vegetation scattering the landscape up top has some color and slight coolness to it, contrasting slightly with the warmth in the bottom section. By cropping down to just above the two prominent shadows on the landscape, you still retain the depth and expanse as well as that warm to cool gradation.
Guess you were wishing for more pixels… 
Lon
I like Ed’s crop. The subject consists of horizontal lines and shapes so the landscape format seems appropriate.
I like this crop more than the posted version it adds a sense of mystery to the image.
Reprocessed in Lightroom and using the crop suggestion.
Hey Larry, I think I like the processing in the original a bit more but I like the crop in the second. To me the shapes, textures and contrast in the bottom half is my favorite part of the image.
