Withered trees standing out in the middle of forest dominated by big and green trees, shrubs, etc. The canopy covered well the surrounding and force me to slow down the shutter. Anything I can learn more in capturing these kind of scenes? Thank you.
I want to know if I compensated deeply the exposure down to -0.7. Thank you.
Aperture priority, 74mm, f/8, 1/6 sec, ISO200. Post-processed in Capture One 20.
What a beautiful shot. I like the way the image draws you in right down the centre, you have done a great job of composing the leading lines and then the entire frame is tack sharp so you can explore around. The exposure looks perfect to me, there is even a little detail in the dark shadows. I would love to know where this is? Thanks for posting.
Thank you Charles for the kind comment, I really appreciated & I’m flattered. It was taken in 2020 @ the place called Split Oak Forest, Orlando FL. It is a conservation area managed by 2 counties ( Orange & Osceola) where the forest lies right at their border. It’s takes me about 10 minutes to drive and it is the place where I practice photography. One day if you around the area, let me know I will show you the best area in the forest to shoot. Best regards.
What an interesting forest - you’re lucky to have it so close to you. I love the subdued light, it’s very moody. On my screen, the shadows look a bit blocked up (especially in the large tree frame left), but I can see a bit of detail.
You wouldn’t want to brighten it up too much, though, because it would spoil the dark mood. I actually find this disturbing (and I mean that in a good way - you got a reaction from me). That one straight reddish tree looks like a dagger plunged through the heart of the green forest. And then you have those pointy reddish plants coming in from the LLC and poking up from the bottom. It feels sinister.
Thanks Bonnie , I will try to go back this coming weekend ( Friday forecast - night rain). Hopefully the old trees still there. I planned to crop on location with my camera the LLC but got a second thought , I might lost a lot of light on that side. Got an assignment , I will share what’s the outcome. Best regards.
If you want the withered trees to stand out even further, I would use the elliptical marquee tool (or the equivalent, outside of Photoshop) to create a sort of inverted vignette around those trees. In other words, brighten that general area up a bit! From there, you can easily darken the overall image using curves or the like in order to boost that contrast even further. In an image like this, you don’t have to worry so much about the shadows being blocked up; that’s not near as important, in my opinion, as ensuring the trees are the main subject.
As it stands right now, there’s a bit too much chaos going around - too many bright areas which compete for competition. It’s a really nice composition but would benefit from a bit of work.
Thanks so much Cody for the input/suggestions/critique. I never learned how to use Photoshop or equivalent. I will try to use the inverted mask in Capture One to see if works. Best regards.
Hi Dante! I think this is a really cool scene with a lot of interesting elements, and you’ve arranged it in a way that makes some sense of the chaos, which is tough to do in the forest!
I think @Cody_Schultz is right that a lot of bright elements are competing for attention, so it hinders the overall effective structure of your composition.
The most prominent of these “offending” elements is actually the “dagger” Bonnie referenced above, in my opinion. I really don’t mind the gnarled finger-looking tree in the center, but the straight diagonal line is pretty distracting. It would be a huge chore or maybe even impossible to clone out, so I would go the route of darkening it and shifting its color more toward green so that it blends in better. There are also some other less important but still distracting elements: the yellowish plant in the lower right corner, the red ground in the lower right corner, the patch of sky along the upper right edge, the tiny bright leaves at the bottom-center-left edge, and the brightest green plant in the lower-left central area of the frame.
I also think there’s a natural symmetry to the frame that looks a little off-center to the left, so it could benefit from a slight crop off the right (and you could squish the whole thing back into whatever aspect ratio you need for printing).
Lastly, some of the greens are a bit oversaturated, I think (but it’s only apparent when you view the full file, as these smaller NPN thumbnails look less saturated overall).
I’ve attached a version with the bright elements darkened by selectively masking in curves adjustments, and the distracting orangish-red elements painted more green (with a color-mode blend layer in PS), as well as the other adjustments mentioned. I think it allows you to focus on the primary subject matter better than before without having so much competing for your attention:
Thank you so much Alex, I’m overwhelmed, I will dissect carefully your critique, comment, advice, etc. I know it will be a long journey for me and tons to learn. Can I keep the attachment ? I want to print and study more diligently. I will not call (yet) myself Nature Landscape Photographer because I realize it is not easy was to become one. I really appreciated your help and other.
Many thanks too to Cody, Bonnie, & Charles . I will open my eyes and learn more from all your works. Best Regards,
Dante
