Hi everyone. I’d love some feedback on this image that was taken a few days ago on a crisp evening not far from my home.
The image is a composite of 2 shots; the trees/fg taken at blue hour and the starry sky a little later. Composition wise I’m a little unsure of the bush on the right of the tree grove. It seems to unbalance it somewhat but it is too difficult to clone out so it will have to stay.
Editing wise it hasn’t has a great deal with the exception on the time blend. Adjustments to tone, white balance and dodging and burning along with a grad filter to the foreground to make it less dominant.
What a gorgeous scene, Chris. Yes, the image is perhaps a little stronger without the “bush” (looks like a tree behind the hill?) but taking it all in, I am not too bothered by it. Without it, you might need another tree to fill the gap, too… which gives another idea, what about cloning in a tree in front of the bush taller than it? Seems like it will make the bush less noticeable.
This is a nice image Chris. The blend and processing looks very well executed, and the end result is both pleasing and natural looking. I am not bothered by the “bush” background tree, I like how it kind of separates the far right tree from the rest of the trees. I like that you kept the greens in the grass both cool in tone, and low saturation, it does a better job of conveying a blue hour / nighttime mood in the image. No nit’s from me, I like this image as presented, great concept and processing execution on your part.
Thanks @Ed_McGuirk. I was mindful that a saturated green wouldn’t fit with the cooler blue tones so dragged as much colour out of it as possible without it looking grey.
@Dave_Douglass now that is an issue that I can solve quite easily!
I would crop off some of the top for a square image. That would result in a layered composition which would work nicely. It feels a tad unbalanced at the moment.
I just think this is great! Well executed in post. The cloud layer above the treeline adds a perfect amount of atmosphere. The bush helps link an otherwise isolated tree to the others, but I can see where its absence would be aesthetically pleasing as well. i sure don’t think it’s a deal-breaker for the image taken as a whole. I think @Igor_Doncov may be on to something, but I’m concerned a square crop would make the stars too minimal in the scene. Is there a comprimise?
Thanks @Igor_Doncov and @Jim_McGovern I take your point about it being slightly unbalanced although this was kind of what I was aiming for. When I shot the scene I had this vision of a big open sky that fades from lighter to dark with the stars glowing over the grove of trees. On their own they seem fairly dominant in the scene but almost pale into insignificance when you start throwing some space into the mix. The 4x5 crop was a compromise. It was originally even higher into the heavens
