Three Faces of Bridal Veil

Image Critiques
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Three Faces of Bridal Veil
Three Faces of Bridal Veil2000×947 467 KB

Critique Style: Standard

The photographer is looking for thoughtful feedback on the image as a whole, especially around the areas noted below.

Feedback Focus: Artistic + Technical

About This Image

Like everyone else on this trip to Yosemite… we filled our cards with many similar images - especially the waterfalls and locations like Tunnel View where vantage points are tough to be unique. So rather than post another image of a waterfall (heck I already posted 2 from this location!), I had some similars that I thought might make an intersting triptych. A three-fer

I don’t remember who mentioned this, but the winds were creating many different opportunities with the falls and spraying water every which way; including way to the left, and then flip to the right… it was fun to watch! This captures several of these moments

Feedback Requested

What I’m attempting to show with this triptych how the waterfall and spray shifted left, right, and center. These three frames all happened within just a 5 minute period.
Helpful viewing hint. Check out the snag at the bottom of the frame. The water line spits the tree in half with all the spray and flow going to the left. The center image has the flow down the middle actually going on both sides of the center line. And on the right, the water and spry mostly to the right.

Not sure if any of that makes this compelling in any way, or just some intersting captures of timing.

Technical Details

All images NIkon Z8, 28-400mm f/8 iso 800
Left - @170mm 1/2500 sec
Center - @150mm 1/1250 sec
Right - @165mm 1/800 sec

Processing. Oh my, I gave up on color. It’s one thing to process a single image and much easier to make decisions on color, luminosity, dodge/burn, etc. etc. I pulled my hair out trying to make them close. The trouble was that the sun (yeah, we did have some sun a the very start of the trip and the very end.) the sun was going in and out of the clouds which made all the exposures slightly different (as noted also by the shutter speed. I typically shoot in aperture priority)
So, I went black and white. That proved just as difficult!
I’ll be curious if these all work together both in terms of just the triptych, but also the processing.

As always, all comments and questions welcome.

Finally, I want to clarify something that @Youssef_Ismail has brought up at least a couple of times. I want to clarify about the weather and conditions. I can’t speak for everyone one, but I was not necessarily bummed or disappointed with the weather and condions. YOu are right Youssef, we had great opportunity with the changing light, the fog, all of that. And you know me.. it allowed us to shoot literall from sunrise to sunset… which can be grueling. On the flip side, most of our comments can legitimately “complain” about the conditions… wet, cold, wanting a hot cup of coffee… so the conditions weren’t ideal for being there, but approaching epic at times for photography. I’d take all that again in a heartbeat!

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Lon,

Well, this must have been quite the challenge. First, the variation in how the water is falling and spread out right to left is crazy. I can’t fathom how many frames you must have taken in the 5 minute period. Which frame to choose as “the frame”, so I can understand the decision to create this triptych. Processing in B&W is understandable as well. With these two factors in mind, I think the triptych is a great way to show the erratic flow of the falls.

While I can understand the need to reframe the falls as they changed position, calling attention to that tree snag as a reference both works and does not. Did you reframe vertically as well? I don’t know if it was feasible or not, but if the tree snag was in the same place in the frame it might have served as a better reference point. I know that might not have worked as the water would have been out of frame for the left frame. I was trying to find the same rock features in the three frames and found that difficult to do, which led me to wonder if you had physically moved or just panned the camera while on a tripod. Anyway, take my ramblings as just that, ramblings. The triptych was a neat way to show the temporal nature of the changing falls.

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The middle image is my favorite for several reasons. Then the one on the left and then the one on the right. The one on the right is so similar to the one in the middle that you can’t help compare the two. The snag isn’t place as well as the one in the middle and the rock face is less interesting. The middle one could be a great standalone image. Actually all 3 are good images individually. Perhaps it’s not right to compare them to one another. Maybe I should learn to do that. Actually the 3rd one has great emotional pull. It might be the most mysterious of the three. Great job.

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Lon, a triptych is an interesting idea for a series of shots from slightly different viewpoints. The difference in the mist between 2 and 3 is very striking and there seems to be so much more water falling in 1… I do find myself wishing for more detail in the rocks in all three. The high contrast highlights the water well but I find myself looking for interest in the rocks as well as the water. The bare snag does a good job of establishing size context. After some time viewing, I found it in #1, which was a fun find. This is also a case where NPN display sizes don’t help if you want to see details.

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Lon, I think all three images would work well as stand-alone images. I particularly like the second and third images. For me, they’re not working as well as a tryptich, in part because the second and third images are so similar.

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I say, well done on this aspect. You definitely get to see the same waterfall with spray blowing in all different directions. Mission accomplished.
The snag (I’ll post an image of this snag that you’ve seen Lon) imparts both scale and the direction that the waterfall is blowing. Good use of that tree top.
I think that because the snag is barely visible in the far left image and the pine tree is center cut on the waterfall, it has a different feel to it than the other two do. It also appears to have a lot more water in the left fall but we know this isn’t actually true. It just appears that way.
I think the center image as a stand alone is my favorite. I like the side light hitting the main fall lighting it up quite brite. I also love the balance of the rock granite rock walls and the tree is center cut and very noticeable and you know how I like that little tree.
I love the bottom of the far left image with the pine tree center cut in the fall. The gentle arc along the bottom of the frame in that image is really captivating. Too bad that the little tree is on the edge of the falls and the rock face. I love the idea of this and I think you pulled it off.

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LOVE the idea of a triptych. I’m probably biased because I was there and watch these swings in real time, but this does a swell job of capturing that variation. Amazing how thin the stream is in the center image, and how it fans so wide in the left image. Your processing looks marvelous.

One tiny thing that would have helped tie these together a tad more would be if the snag in the left image was a little more backed up by the falls. (I honestly can’t remember if it was even possible to move that far to the right, and I’m guessing you weren’t thinking triptych at the time.)

My favorite is the right image, for the mysteriousness mentioned. I think it hits the sweet spot of variation in the waterfall.

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Then there were Three. Perfect in B&W. I can see his on a wall hanging together as one. Great Tone and Composition !!!

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Thank you @Youssef_Ismail , @Igor_Doncov , @Mark_Seaver , @Don_Peters , @David_Haynes , @John_Williams @Gill_Vanderlip for your responses.

While I guess it was just a fun exercise, it probably wasn’t the best idea for posting for critique. I had already posted a couple interesting spray patterns from the same time/location earlier. And honestly, the “left, right, center” spray position and certainly the “snag” at the bottom were convenient after thoughts. I never intended to include the trees at the bottom. But after the fact, the tree only provided a reference point.

Beside the timing of the wind/spray, it was mostly the zoomed focal length that changed, although I can’t honestly say if I moved the tripod between frames - likely not. But again, I was literally just snapping pics to hope and catch some cool patterns in the water. I wish I could say I planned it all out as a triptych.

Actually, there were only 4 frames that included the trees at the bottom. All told, 25 images in a 30min period while hanging out with the guys at this location. And actually, I also made a fast trip around the west loop and stopped at the Northside drive vantage point before completing the loop again - to find parking!

I think the OP should have learned… :upside_down_face: :roll_eyes:

Agree Don. My thinking was purely analytical - not artistic. Spray left, spray center, spray right. that’s it. I should have put more thought into it.

Yes, please post. Everyone will be amazed at the prowess of the 600! :grin:

Thank you for chiming in. Apologies, I think I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Not sure if I’ll redeem myself with the next post, we’ll see.

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I would like to change my mind about what I wrote and be with agreement with @John_Williams choice. I like #3 the most. Initially I liked the tonal richness of the rock face of #2 but now I like the more subtle treatment of the face in number 3. Although I still prefer the string of white brightness in #2. In a way each is different. I think what makes this triptych successful is that the same subject is shown in slightly different ways. And when you look closely at the differences you become amazed at how the same think can look so differently. If that makes sense. It’s actually about perception. How things change during viewing.

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Thanks Igor

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Hi Lon,
A triptych is such a wonderful way to show variation in a single subject. In this triptych, we are engaged directly with the water and how it shifts. I wish the snag in the left image were not quite so “on the line” of the water’s edge in that image. It’s the only thing that keeps me from perceiving this as truly the same location with shifting water. Do you have a different frame for #1?

Of course, we are picking nits at this point. Each image is interesting on its own, and the series is a delight to experience.
ML