The way things are

[Riaan van Wyk]

Having recently moved to a new part of my province I had the pipedream of being exposed to totaly new surroundings and with that a new beginning for my random thoughts on photography. The country here is hilly and is perfect for those long lens compressed perspective shots of the folds and crags, sidelit by the setting sun, as so often seen.

So with that in mind, my first free afternoon I took a drive and ended up at a dam, which supplies the town with water. I wondered where all the water came from and noticed the lay of the land indicated the dam to be part of a river. I engaged 4x4 on my vehicle and went looking for the "river" and found this waterfall some way into the mountains, as if drawn to it like a magnet.

I spent the better part of a month waiting for decent ( well at least some) clouds for a photo here. And the long lens landscapes are nowhere to be seen. Makes me wonder who I am trying to fool. Having spent so much time next to and in a river, experiencing it's moods and feelings I guess it comes naturally to want to be next to one again. Once you fall in love it's for keeps it seems. Lightning seldomly strikes twice. 

You are welcome to critique the photo if you want even though this not being posted in the Critique section. I don't want to spoil the user critiques forum with unnescesary words, like I did here.

[JohnKoerner]

This is beautiful, Riaan.

My only complaint has to do with the phone lines in the image ... sure wish they weren't there.

Yet the image is beautiful with or without them.

Jack


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[Justan]

^what he said

[justinsloan]

I like the power lines in the image, personally. They add balance and realism, negating the surreal perspective effect. I think it's beautiful. The clouds are too red and rather dark, but that is likely from the post processing. Well done!

[louoates]

I don't like the power lines in there either. It just begs to make some conclusion about the waterfall as a power source and, for me, dilutes the beauty of the other elements.

[JohnKoerner]

I like the power lines in the image, personally. They add balance and realism, negating the surreal perspective effect. I think it's beautiful. The clouds are too red and rather dark, but that is likely from the post processing. Well done!

Negating the "surreal perspective" in effect negates the power of the image, does it not?

Also, I am not sure where power lines fit in to a "nature" photograph ...

Jack


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[justinsloan]

To each his own. A landscape photograph does not have to be a nature photograph. For instance, a cityscape with a large fountain has little to do with nature. Additionally, in my opinion, HDR and highly saturated photographs often look surreal, meaning the perspective is presented beyond what the location looks like in reality. As art, the photographer can do what they want with the photograph. It only needs to be as accurate as possible if the photograph is made for the purpose of documentation, history, etc.

So, I like the power lines. To me they add balance, drawing the viewer into the art but subtly telling the viewer that it could be real. It's like living in a fantasy. It's great.

[Riaan van Wyk]

Thanks for listening