The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
On a whim, I decided to take a quick trip to Death Valley a few weeks ago because I kept hearing about the newly formed, “Lake Manly.” California had a hurricane come through in August of last year which dumped enough rain to fill the bad water basin with a couple of feet of water and there have been atmospheric rivers that have added to the lake so there was sill plenty of water. I was only there for about 24 hours (I arrived around 2pm on a Friday afternoon and left Saturday morning around 11am). My plan was to go straight to bad water basin to take in the lake and see what I could make of it but since it was late afternoon and I was looking into the sun, well, let’s just say that I decided to shoot mud tiles instead of grand landscapes.
Mud tiles were everywhere so I had a great time for a couple of hours before sunset. My plan was to wake early and shoot Bad Water basin the following morning and then quickly head up to Dante’s Lookout before having to leave. Dante’s View is always spectacular but with the basin full of water it was mesmerizing because of all of the abstract formations that had formed. This image is from Dante’s View and it’s a salt flat that is merging with the lake water. The upper right portion of the image is the uncovered salt flat and the water is the rest of the image.
Technical Details
Z8, 100-400mm lens @ 400mm, ISO 400, f/8, 1/1000, hand held
I am attracted to this image as an abstract. Color and light are the main elements of the image that you managed well; the pastel colors work and blend well. I would not have recognized water if you hadn’t mentioned it in your explanation. The grain or noise in the image is a positive here, adding texture. While I see the “shore” where the salt flat and water meet, I view it as a nice artistic abstract. Glad you favored the intimate scene over a grand landscape. Ironically, the image is cool in one of the hottest places on earth.
As with @Larry_Greenbaum , I regard this as an abstract because, without your description, I really wouldn’t know what it is - rock, sand, sea, salt … Be that as it may, I love this image. The colours, light, and texture are wonderful and the whole moves elegantly from bottom left to top right. As usual, your work in post is spot on - very subtle. This is the type of image I would place in my meditation space and look at often.
I like the hues here as they blend into one another. I seem to be attracted especially to the greens. It reminds of surf coming in from the upper right corner.
This is a gorgeous abstract landscape David. I am loving the pastel colors; especially the green; as they transition across the image. I hope you have some more from your trip. No suggestions from me.
Thank you for your comments and positive feedback on this image @Larry_Greenbaum, @Kerry_Gordon, @Diane_Miller, @Igor_Doncov, @Mark_Muller, @Ed_Lowe, @Michael_Lowe. I almost threw this one into the abstract category and on second thought I probably should have but it wound up here in Landscape. A couple of you mention the graininess of the image. I believe it’s the salt both above and below the surface of the water. To my eye when looking at the full size RAW there is no noise in the image but there is lots of what I believe to be salt grain/grittiness. Not sure if that explains it but you guys are right…there is a look to it that suggests grain/noise.
Diane,
Dante’s View/Lookout is above 5000 feet and it basically looks straight down onto the Bad Water basin. If you have a long lens, 400mm to 800mm you can get some really terrific abstract images from the salt plain below and with all of the water, it’s even more interesting. This image was shot around 10am Saturday morning right before I left so the light is fairly high above although there were lots of clouds and some of the dark splotches in the water are actually cloud shadows. Hope that helps.
Thanks for taking a look at this everyone. I really appreciate your thoughts on this. Oh, and yes, I have LOTS of images from this very short trip and will certainly share a few of them here.
Landscape or abstract—well, OK. It may be abstract, but whatever it is, it is stunning. I would be happy to make space on a wall for this gentle view of nature.
