Mike Patterson  


Sheep at Dawn by Mike Patterson

October 2019 - Sheep at Dawn

October 2019 - Mike Patterson

Original

About the Image(s)

I took this photo at our ranch several years ago using my old Canon Rebel T2i. It was taken at dawn on a foggy morning and captured our sheep in the field (they’re early risers!) I’ve always enjoyed the way the sun was filtered through the fog and backlit the livestock. Shot at ISO75 with a kit 55-250mm lens at 72 mm. The settings were f5.0 at 1/1600. Basic processing and cropping was done in Lightroom. This was one of my earlier attempts at capturing images on my Rebel.


This round’s discussion is now closed!
8 comments posted




Peggy Reeder   Peggy Reeder
Very nice Mike. I really like the ghostly images and the golden light that you have created for this. My only suggestion would be to crop down from the top and make it more in the style of a long and narrow panorama. Good work.
  Posted: 10/09/2019 04:19:39



Stuart Caine   Stuart Caine
(Group 42)
Hi Mike,

I agree with Peggy. I would crop off some of the top   Posted: 10/10/2019 10:37:38
Comment Image
Peggy Reeder   Peggy Reeder
Exactly what I had in mind.
  Posted: 10/11/2019 11:34:22



Al Swanson   Al Swanson
I agree with the cropping recommendations. There's too much negative space in this image that doesn't add anything to it. In addition, I would recommend straightening the ground line that the sheep are standing on. I think that would make it more dramatic and appealing. Good fog image.   Posted: 10/11/2019 15:20:40



Marti Buckely   Marti Buckely
I'm in with the other cropping comments. I like what Stuart of Group 42 did with it. I'm not so sure about the increase in orange color. I rather like the original better.   Posted: 10/12/2019 15:53:53



Jerry Biddlecom   Jerry Biddlecom
This has a somewhat mysterious, "ghost riders in the sky" feel to it. Looking at the tree line at the top it does seem that the picture is pretty much level, so I would say the slanted hillside ground should stay as is -- in addition, the sheep seem to be in a vertical position. The light at the top, while not all that bright, still does distract the eye from the subjects. As the others have alluded to, if you cropped down from the top (maybe not as far down as Stuart's example) it would make it seem that the sheep have emerged from an other-worldly cloud and in fact might be in somebody's dream. Sort of like the ETs emerging from the ship in Close Encounters. Interesting shot!   Posted: 10/13/2019 06:00:27



Joseph J Zaia   Joseph J Zaia
Sorry, I on the other hand feel that what makes the ghostly figures stand out more is all the negative space above them. I would crop just to the edge of the sky and level it a bit, but not all. Jerry, I do like your poetic thinking.
  Posted: 10/21/2019 19:43:48



Kaylyn Franks   Kaylyn Franks
I like it just the way it is. The color is perfect, giving it a mysterious morning fog feeling. The angle of the hill they are standing on drifts gently downward to the right, revealing another group of sheep standing on a different hillside in the background. The empty space offers the mystery of where. Then when my eyes reach the top of the frame, the where is revealed. Well done!   Posted: 10/27/2019 10:57:53