This month I'm presenting an image that is just simple design with no hidden meanings. On a beautiful sunny afternoon in the Galapagos last month, the crew hoisted sails on our small vessel, Samba. There were 12 photographers, 6 crew, and a great guide onboard for the 10 day trip. This was a relaxing time as we sailed between landing locations on rarely visited Marchena Island. A Nikon Z7 camera with 14-30 mm f/4 S lens was used at 14 mm, 1/320 second, f/16, ISO 200 for the capture. In post processing, Transform/Skew was used to level the horizon and tilt the sails a bit more to the right for a more dynamic appearance. The sun star is the result of the small f/16 aperture. I am amazed that modern lens coatings have contained flare so well.
This round’s discussion is now closed! 6 comments posted
Stephen Levitas
(Group 32)
Great shot, Karl. And so instructive for me, because I have some partial-sail shots from a tall ship cruise on Lake Washington in Seattle from June, and I have been struggling to crop a final image. Posted: 09/03/2021 20:18:43
Lauren Heerschap
Wonderful. I grew up with a boat in my life every weekend, and love to sail. Perfect f16 star. You have a slight refraction curve to the right of the white sail, FYI. Or is that a plane contrail? Perfectly cropped! Love the geometry and balance of this image...wish I was there. Posted: 09/10/2021 10:45:59
Peter Newman
Karl, What a dynamic graphic. I like the way the curves of the sails interact with the straight line of the rigging. The red, white and black of the sails gives a neat combination of ying-yang against the blue and white sky while providing a soft complimentary look with the same elements. I suspect that if you cropped horizontally to eliminate the bow, you would have a more mysterious image. But that is strictly an artist's choice. Posted: 09/10/2021 19:08:20
Judith Lesnaw
Wonderful image. The play of light on the water and the sun star (redundant I know) take my eyes to the distant island. The simple color pallet and the presence of both abstract and real elements holds my attention. I can feel the motion of the boat in those choppy waters. Did you use a polarizing filter? Posted: 09/16/2021 16:08:28
Karl Leck
A polarizing filter helped with saturated color and protection of the lens front surface from salt spray. The faint refraction curves may be caused by reflections in the filter since the 14-30 mm S lens has Nikon's best coatings. Karl Posted: 09/17/2021 09:52:51
Freddie Kelvin
Love this image...water shots always hold my attention, and this one far more than usual. There is something magical and unique about the angle of the sails and the adjacent sun star. I can't think of anything you could have done to make a more compelling image. Posted: 09/22/2021 17:28:41
