Before starting on winter images I guess I felt like processing something from this summer :-). This was taken on an early morning in a Dutch beechforest at the start of last August.
What technical feedback would you like if any?
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
I was struggling with the colors here and adjusted them several times. The raw file was too green and I wanted it warmer. Do you think I dialed it in correctly? Is it too yellow, too warm?
Anything else?
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
(If this is a composite, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
D810 + 70-200 on 122 mm, with ISO 64, f/13, 3 s. Extra image with focus in the front for sharpness.
Cloned out a few smaller branches and some distractions in the front on the path.
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Ron, this is a road I would definitely like to take. The glow at the end of the road is simply wonderful. I like the greens and yellows that you have in the trees and moss, your processing of those colors looks great to me. I like this very much as presented, but if you wanted to go for a little more color contrast, I could see adding some magenta in the darker areas of the foreground (but not the road itself)
I like your Warm rendition of a green scene here. To me the warmth creates a fairytale type mood which I think is enhanced as the dark arenât too dark. I imagine the scene was a bit different in person which I think makes this interpretation surreal and interesting.
Ron, I think you did a fine job of dialing in the colors, everything works beautifully. The image has great balance. All elements compliment each other, from the sweeping branches to the curvy trunks and forest floor and roadway. A very wonderful image
Excellent work with the colors Ron. I find green an incredibly difficult color to work with, you did a great job with it in this image. Like Ed said, maybe a hint of magenta in the shadows but maybe not necessary. One thing stands out to me, the small group of lighter leaves on the middle left side of the image keep drawing my eye away from settling in on the end of the road. Not sure if you can crop those out or darken them. Other than that, lovely image.
Love this! As Harley eluded⌠the light at the end of the tunnelâŚwell, he wrote âroadâŚâ but we all get the idea.
I think youâre processing, colors, etc., are all excellent. This is not a nit or critique, but I think if you were so inclined, I think you could exploit that light⌠just at the end of the road you could selectively warm that up, boost saturation⌠AND while youâre at it, this might be a great candidate for the Orton effect⌠Of course all depending on how dreamy youâre willing to go.
@Tom_Nevesely@Harley_Goldman@Ed_McGuirk@Nathan_Klein@Stephen_Stanton@andrew_hertel@Ralph_Yakaboski@Lon_Overacker Thanks for your kind words and great input! You know, when I go back and adjust the colors 4 or 5 times sometimes I start to doubt. Always good to look again later with fresh eyes, but I was still in doubt here. I compared it with some other forest images of mine, and of course colors are different. Sometimes greener works for me, but it didnât feel right here. I guess I was in a fairytale mood . It was a beautiful morning but indeed I switched to a dreamier view in post. Forgot to mention it, but an Orton Effect was already applied âat the end of the tunnelâ
I will definitely play with the suggested magenta.
I will burn down the lighter leaves at middle left, interesting how they start to stand out extra once pointed out! Thanks!
Iâll play with Lonâs idea too, warming up the end of the road a bit more sounds interesting, maybe cooling down the tunnel itself just a tiny bit too? Iâll upload the new version here when I made up my mind.
I think you nailed the greens perfectly. The image itself looks extraordinarily good to me. All those wavy, windy lines interweaving with one another is perhaps the best part for me. Like spaghetti.
The greens look right to me too. I like the kind of dark, dusty, and hot feeling I get from this. I donât know if thatâs the feeling you wanted, but I feel that hazy heat here, not a cool summer morning or a shady forest feeling.
@Igor_Doncov Thank you! I like the spaghetti comparison This forest is known for its beautiful twisty trees. @Marylynne_Diggs Thanks! Yeah, warming up those greens surely changed the mood.
So here is a new version with subtle changes. Some magenta in fg darks, touch of blue in the âtunnelâ darks, warmed up light in the back a little, burn and desaturate leaves at the edge in the middle left. Thanks again!
. It was a beautiful morning but indeed I switched to a dreamier view in post. Forgot to mention it, but an Orton Effect was already applied âat the end of the tunnelâ 
