Hoopers Island, MD

[fgorga]

Hello,

I am a long time lurker and learner here. This is my first post of a photograph.

It was made on a short trip to the Eastern Shore of Maryland:



Comments and critique appreciated.

--- Frank (www.gorga.org/blog)

[fike]

Good work. That is a tough landscape to capture because it is so flat.  It demands an interesting sky which you got here.  I think the foreground is a bit darker than I would like, but overall it is balanced and interesting. I am not sure a black and white treatment is needed here, but that would depend on how it looks in color.

[francois]

Welcome on the forum!

I like this image just as it is. The sky is wonderful. As for a color version, as Fike wrote above, it all depends on the colors of the vegetation.

[fgorga]

Thank you both for your comments.

I think that the flatness of the Eastern Shore is what interests me... it is so different from my home territory of New Hampshire.

Here is the color version:



--- Frank (www.gorga.org/blog)

[fike]

Both are nice.  You have a nice white-point in the sky creating a snappy dynamic range.  The foreground lacks the snappiness that a good white-point would give. I would look at doing a localized adjustment layer (with either a painted mask or a gradient-fill mask) and use either levels or curves to lift the bright areas to create highlights that are closer to white.  For example, if you look at the reflections of the clouds in the water (a great detail) you will see that they look quite gray.  They could be made closer to the white versions in the sky and really enhance the overall effect.  Also, the local contrast in the grass would be improved with a bump to the highlights. 

Another great area nearby to Hooper's Island is Blackwater Refuge.  Very scenic.  Lots of eagles, osprey and all manner of flying critters.

[fgorga]

Sorry for the delay in replying... sometimes life gets in the way of photography!

I was already treating the sky and foreground differently so it was easy to apply my foreground mask to a levels layer as you suggested.

Here is the result:



What do you think?

Also, thanks for the tip about Blackwater NWR. We took a quick drive through while we were in the area, but did not have time for a lot of photography as we had my elderly parents along. I have never seen so many egrets in one place before! I am definitely planning to head back at some point in the future.

[francois]

I prefer your last version. The lighter tones in the grass bring out texture.