Karen Davis  

Shady Sojourn by Karen Davis

July 2024 - Shady Sojourn

About the Image(s)

Camera: Canon R5
Lens: EF24-105mm
Shutter Speed: 1/60
Aperture: f14
Capture Date: 6/24/2024 (Hot off the press - or the memory card!)

This was taken at Middleton Place in Charleston, South Carolina. We were visiting with friends who retired to Charleston because they loved the area so much. This was her favorite plantation mainly because of the beautiful gardens and live oak trees. Little did my friend know (until we started strolling through the beautiful grounds) that my camera club's next assigned subject was... TREES! Boy, did I stumble into a gold mine! I had an image in my mind of a huge live oak, isolated in a wide open field with tendrils of Spanish Moss trailing down. Jackpot! And there was the Ashley River flowing by as a bonus. And a serpentine path! And a bench! The only thing missing was a beautiful young girl sitting on the bench. (My friend declined to pose - darn!)

This is a panorama (since the tree was so large) with some extensive Lightrooming and Photoshopping to remove some leaves in the foreground and above the tree to the right, brighten the bench, and even out the light on the tree. I would love your suggestions and feedback.

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

Tom Brassil   Tom Brassil
Hi Karen Spectacular tree how could you not photograph this. Effective edits and cleaning of the image. Can I suggest as an experiment trying to bring the moss out a bit more, mainly in the shadows, making it the feature of the tree, just as an experiments.   Posted: 07/05/2024 04:41:47
Karen Davis   Karen Davis
Hi Tom,

Great suggestions. I have some time before the image is due next month, so I'll see what I can do to brighten that beautiful moss.

Thanks for the feedback!
Karen   Posted: 07/29/2024 03:49:45
Gregory Waldron   Gregory Waldron
Hi Karen,
A very interesting subject. I like Tom's suggestion. You may want to give it a try.
Best regards,
Greg   Posted: 07/06/2024 02:06:48
Karen Davis   Karen Davis
Hi Greg,

I certainly will!

Thanks for the feedback!
Karen   Posted: 07/29/2024 03:50:20
Darcy Johnson   Darcy Johnson
Hi Karen - What a magnificent oak tree! The Spanish Moss seems to like it as well and adds interest to the tree's appeal. Tom's suggestion is interesting - worth a try to see if it enhances the image further.

As a side note, I have a couple of photographer friends that have "their tree" they photograph all seasons of the year. Perhaps you have found one to photograph each time you visit.   Posted: 07/08/2024 04:03:06
Karen Davis   Karen Davis
Hi Darcy,

What a great idea. They are special friends, so this would be a great excuse to re-visit "my new special tree"! I wonder if they get much snow in Charleston. Wouldn't THAT be stunning!?

Thanks for the feedback!
Karen   Posted: 07/29/2024 03:52:57
Erin Browne   Erin Browne
Wow what a stunning tree - I think you did a great job with the edits and stitching them together. This would be a fun tree to come back and photograph in another season!
My only suggestion is that the cloud to the upper left appears more grey than the others and seems to darken the corner of the image.   Posted: 07/15/2024 12:45:12
Karen Davis   Karen Davis
Hi Erin,

Yep, that grey cloud has been bugging me - along with the "too blue" sky below it. I have more time, so I might "re-panorama" (if that's a word!) it and see if I get a better result.

Thanks for the feedback!
Karen   Posted: 07/29/2024 03:55:32
Ingrid Lockhart   Ingrid Lockhart
Hi Karen. I attended a photography workshop in Charleston, SC many years ago and Middleton Place was one of my favorite spots. The tree you picked is magnificent, especially with the spanish moss. Your exposure and focus on the tree is great. My only suggestion is to try to add some texture to the clouds, which appear to be blown out. When I have this problem, I look for an image that has clouds that are properly exposed and clone their texture on to the blown out clouds at a low opacity. Thanks for sharing this, and bringing back some happy memories for me!   Posted: 07/15/2024 17:27:56
Karen Davis   Karen Davis
Hi Ingrid,

Don't ya' just love Charleston?! I'm sure we'll go back again.

Great suggestion on those clouds. The good news is that in our "Assigned Subject" categories, our club allows any and all edits. As we say, "the sky is the limit" for editing and even combining multiple images. So, maybe I'll just try a whole SKY replacement!

Thanks for the feedback!
Karen   Posted: 07/29/2024 03:58:50