Gaetan Manuel
August 2026 - Lonely Tree
About the Image(s)
The photo was taken in December 2023 during a visit to Haworth, UK. The sky was cloudless, but it had been raining earlier. There were contrails in the sky and I managed to have one together with the tree and the small hill in the same photo. Photo taken at 78mm with a 28-300mm Nikon lens at f/32, 1/30s and ISO 160.I have done much processing with the tones, sharpness and finally conversion to black/white.
4 comments posted
Gaetan,
This is a strong minimalist concept that has a sense of solitude and isolation and considering the subject matter your choice of monochrome is excellent.
I also think the image contains four strong visual elements that compete with each other for attention-the tree, the hill, the bright sky, and the aircraft contrail that diminish the cohesiveness of the image.
In my visual feedback I eliminated the contrail and the tip of the telephone pole and the telephone wires running across the top of the hill that weren't apparent until I enlarged the image.
The sky occupies a lot of real estate, so I cropped down to eliminate much of the featureless sky and cropped up and in from the left and right to place the tree to the left of the rule of thirds vertical. I thought that forced the viewer to engage much sooner with the tree and the hill.
I also opened the shadows and added texture and clarity to the hillside and to the small hill to give it greater detail and more presence with the goal of keeping the viewer focused on the two primary elements, the tree and the adjacent hill.
Posted: 08/01/2026 14:34:44
This is a strong minimalist concept that has a sense of solitude and isolation and considering the subject matter your choice of monochrome is excellent.
I also think the image contains four strong visual elements that compete with each other for attention-the tree, the hill, the bright sky, and the aircraft contrail that diminish the cohesiveness of the image.
In my visual feedback I eliminated the contrail and the tip of the telephone pole and the telephone wires running across the top of the hill that weren't apparent until I enlarged the image.
The sky occupies a lot of real estate, so I cropped down to eliminate much of the featureless sky and cropped up and in from the left and right to place the tree to the left of the rule of thirds vertical. I thought that forced the viewer to engage much sooner with the tree and the hill.
I also opened the shadows and added texture and clarity to the hillside and to the small hill to give it greater detail and more presence with the goal of keeping the viewer focused on the two primary elements, the tree and the adjacent hill.
Posted: 08/01/2026 14:34:44
You have presented us with a low contrast image. My first impression was too much sky. The I noticed that Bruce had submitted what I would have cropped, and added some contrast. But it does not feel as lonely as your presented image. Lonely is hidden and lacking contrast to me. I think yours would win more prizes with the right judge. I am torn between your rendition and his. Posted: 08/06/2026 00:27:56
The lone tree does create a sense of loneliness. I like the lines in the land below the tree, especially the ones going in different directions. The lines and the slop of the land that the tree is on draws the eye into the image. The hill area to the right of the tree could be a stopping point. i don't care for the light hitting the right side of the hill. My crop leaves in the area below the tree and create what I think is a stopping point for the eye. What do you think? Posted: 08/17/2026 20:45:16
Thank you all for your useful suggestions. I will keep this photo for competitions. Posted: 08/18/2026 02:57:32