Debbie DeLong
October 2020 - Channeling Ansel Adams
Original
About the Image(s)
I was supposed to be doing a Grand Tetons workshop last week, but unfortunately the Covid made the leader cancel it. Because my husband and I had already made plans and reservations, we decided to go on our own. So it is ironic that while we were there, Greg became ill and tested positive for Covid. We had to cut our trip short because we were not able to fly, so I have spent many days driving home. On our last day there, I drove to this spot and took this photo. I put it through Topaz Denoise, and used ON1 to apply a B & W filter. This is my first attempt at this and I used the actual photo he took of Snake River as my guide. I wish there had been clouds in the sky for drama, but I’m thankful that I was able to capture a similar photo. A friend that saw this photo pointed out the profile of a face, which I had not noticed.
Taken on a Platypod tripod with my Sony a7Riv and 24-105mm lens @ 45mm. ISO 50, f10, 1/60.
This round’s discussion is now closed!
14 comments posted
Sorry to hear about the Covid, hope everything will be fine. Being your first attempt in B&W, you are doing well. The composition has a distinct foreground, middle and background. The main area of improvement is to give the image more contrast. If you darken the slope in the middle and the dark parts of the mountain, a lot will be achieved. I feel that the mountain top "hits the ceiling". If you extend the sky and crop accordingly at the bottom, I think the composition will be better. If you want to go on with black and white photography, I will recommend that you look into using luminosity masks that makes dodge and burn easier. Posted: 10/11/2020 01:54:24
Thank you Arne, Greg is feeling back to normal. This image was not cropped at all, so there is no more sky to be had. I did crop slightly on the bottom and sides. Not having much knowledge about dodging and burning, I took a crash course on it over the past few days. I will add using luminosity masks to the list. Posted: 10/20/2020 11:03:39
I hope Greg is feeling better, Covid can be a really nasty! I can definitely see the face profile, once you mentioned it. That's pretty cool. I agree with Arnie's comments about allowing a little more room at the top and boosting the contrast between the middle dark part of the mountain and the rest of the image. The image also appears a little soft to me. You can fix that by selectively applying some sharpening to the foreground foliage and perhaps the mountain itself. I do like your choice to use B&W. It lends more drama to the image. Posted: 10/11/2020 22:43:16
Thank you Bill! Once the face was pointed out to me, now that is all I see when I look at the photo! I did increase the sharpening a bit. Posted: 10/20/2020 11:06:08
Very sorry to hear about your husband and the difficulties of travel and hope you are staying well. Image: I like the way you captured a foreground, middleground and background and the position of the mountain in the image. I agree with some of the comments above except I am not uncomfortable with the amount of sky above the mountain. Some suggestions to consider - if you have the NIK collection, definitely use SilverEffex to convert to B/W. If not and you did it in LR, go to the HSL sliders and darken the blue which will make the sky much darker. Add some clarity and sharpening to the mountains. Increase the tonal range (a la Adams) by making sure the histogram goes to total white and black - this would add a lot of contrast to your image. I would consider cropping up from the bottom just slightly but not cutting off any of the river. Finally, the bright leaves in the bottom right are a bit of a distraction so I would consider just darkening those. Posted: 10/12/2020 08:13:17
Thank you! I have been spared the dreaded Covid, for this round anyway. I took your advice and downloaded the 30 day trial of NIX and used SilverEffex. That program is amazing!! I paid attention to my histogram and added a few of your other suggestions including darkening the sky. Posted: 10/20/2020 11:15:05
Please keep us informed on Greg's progress. I hope all comes out OK as soon as possible.
I'm not terribly bothered the the amount of sky at the top especially since the sky is just blank. I don't feel you need a lot of blank empty sky. However, I feel you may have a bit too much forest at the bottom. I've attached a sample crop that turned the river into a stronger leading line, see if you like that any better. As others have mentioned this is about creating contrast---lots of it. Think about getting some true blacks and some true whites. I feel the image could also use the sharpening. Rugged scenes like this, at least to me, cry to be really sharp. Posted: 10/12/2020 13:29:56
I'm not terribly bothered the the amount of sky at the top especially since the sky is just blank. I don't feel you need a lot of blank empty sky. However, I feel you may have a bit too much forest at the bottom. I've attached a sample crop that turned the river into a stronger leading line, see if you like that any better. As others have mentioned this is about creating contrast---lots of it. Think about getting some true blacks and some true whites. I feel the image could also use the sharpening. Rugged scenes like this, at least to me, cry to be really sharp. Posted: 10/12/2020 13:29:56
Thank you for the kind words about Greg, he is doing well and actually on his way to a bird hunting trip with his childhood friends! This leaves me with several days to work on my photos undisturbed. You said that you posted my photo with a crop, but I can't see it. Can you post it again? Posted: 10/15/2020 15:34:45
Sorry, here is the crop. Posted: 10/15/2020 16:46:50
Debbie, glad to see Greg is recovering and is planning another trip. I'm not going to add much to what the others have said. I like Larry's cropped photo a little better. It's a more balanced photo. Posted: 10/18/2020 18:23:58
Thank you, I like the cropped version as well. Posted: 10/20/2020 11:15:50
Well ... here is my attempt at incorporating everyone's ideas. Thoughts? Posted: 10/20/2020 10:45:05
This looks like a good improvement to me. One more suggestion - in the color image I would darken the blue in the sky (HSL panel luminance and saturation in LR) In LR or Silver Effex for the B/W conversion go to the color adjustments and move the blue slider to darken the sky. That will give you a nice dark sky to contrast with the snow on the mountains. Posted: 10/20/2020 12:01:34
Just for fun, I extended the sky and used luminosity mask to darken the dark parts of the mountain and the slope in the middle. Without using the luminosity mask, it is difficult to hit the exact areas to darken or lighten. It is just to go on practising, no-one has started as experts. Posted: 10/20/2020 12:37:34