Tieton River

We’ve had a snowy February (more than 2 feet in Yakima) and even more in foothills and mountains. Makes for beautiful scenery especially since it is very cold.

What technical feedback would you like if any? Any

What artistic feedback would you like if any? Any

Any pertinent technical details: 7DII; 100/400 at 105; ISO 320; 13.0; spot; 1/1600th. Slight cropping; Added contrast.

You may only download this image to demonstrate post-processing techniques.
1 Like

B/W version

Definitely color for me. I love the blue shadows and how they complement the sunny snow. The blue bg works for me as well. Nice, straightforward composition.

Jim, This is a beautiful winter scene. Both versions look great actually but like Igor I’m enjoying the color with the cool blue tones in the shadows in contrast with the highlighted snow. It is beautiful. Both of these would make a very nice print!

I like the color version, Jim, the touches of blue in the river and in the distant shadows add something extra in my book. Both views show off the beauty of a fresh new snow and invite the viewer to enjoy the day and the location.

One slight tweak I would go with is toning down the hillside top center background so that the eye follows the river back into the trees and doesn’t jump up at the last moment to the detail on the shaded hillside. You also have a nice flowing line of snow from lower left, crossing the river on boulders, then following the right shore line into the distance. To emphasize this, I would tone down the snowy trees on the right to mirror the trees on the left.

Beautiful winter scene. I am a B&W guy but my vote goes to the color. It has a better feel of a sunny crisp winter day.

To all: Thank you. To Rick: Thanks for the suggested tweaks.

Jim,

What a beautiful and picturesque winter scene. The flow of the river just leads the eye in to the scene to explore all the details - including all the snow muffins. the dappled light in the lower corner snow is nice too. I’d say a picture-perfect postcard view.

Color for me for this image. Well done - I have no nits or suggestions.

Lon

Jim, I also prefer the color version. This is a crisp refreshing winter scene! I really like the choice of the foreground and how you split the composition with both snow and the river, the contrast works nicely! Well done!

I would like to amend my critique by saying that the trees on both sides of the river look better, have more impact, in the b&w than in color. The lack of color just simplifies that area, I think. The thing about color is that it evokes emotions about the time of day. That’s something the other one lacks.

This is beautiful, Jim. Processing looks good to me. I definitely prefer the color version.

Thank you.

Jim, another vote for color. What I especially like here are the layers of light and blue shadow on the snow in the LLC, they create a strong entry point into the scene. To me that LLC is stronger in color than B&W. I agree with @Igor_Doncov about the right side trees looking stronger in B&W than color. In the color version I might consider burning down the snow along the right side of the river, from the spruce trees to the LRC. This might make the trees on the right side look brighter and command more attention.