The evening comes early

[sdwilsonsct]

Thanks for looking. Suggestions welcome.

Edit: I have replaced the original 640 image with a 1064 version. Sorry for the mix-up, Jeremy.

[Jeremy Roussak]

It's a bit on the small side for sensible comment, Scott.

Jeremy

[Paulo Bizarro]

Wonderful composition and light.

[batmura]

Very nice. HDR?

[sdwilsonsct]

Thanks, Paulo and Murat. Yes, HDR. +4, 0 and -4, which is extreme but I wanted the sun subdued. Thanks for the "?" !

[stamper]

I'm not a fan of HDR but this looks subtle and the rendering is very pleasing. Nicely seen and enhanced.

[thierrylegros396]

Very realistic, well tone mapped 

Thierry

[batmura]

Scott, can you tell me a bit how you processed this great image? I have photomatix and have tried some + and - 2 work with horrible results. I love hdr work but only if it looks natural like your work. I have never been keen on the overdone stuff. Any help would be much appreciated.

[churly]

Scott,  I've come back to this one a couple of times.  The composition works well but the light just doesn't feel right to me.  I'm not sure why but maybe because there aren't any distinct shadows and the foreground grass seems to me to be too bright. Not sure.

Or maybe because I should be squinting looking directly at the sun and I'm not.    Or maybe because dead tractors in the grass make me sad.

Chuck

[brandtb]

Scott - like this image but maybe it's more of an editorial shot?...you have some really great farm images btw. Some thoughts, bring up the blacks a tiny bit...and with a Wacom pen perhaps go in and "surgically" bring up some of the highlights on the back part of the tractor...the areas that are taking the light from the sun...enough so they pop a little bit...not so much that it seems fake. This will help separate the dark fg a little from the radiant light in the bg.  basically an idea from the world of film lighting...add extra lighting even if it couldn't naturally occur, but it works because it seems "motivated" (the film term) by a light source within the frame.

[sdwilsonsct]

Murat, I aimed to reproduce what I think I saw.

17 mm t/s lens on a tripod, mirror locked up, focussed in live view, 2 s shutter delay. ISO400, f/11, 1/50, 1/400 and 1/6. High ISO because the tripod was on thick grass and potentially wobbly. I took several series until the sun was no longer blown in the shortest exposure.

Processed in Photomatix. I used tone mapping, adjusting strength and smoothing to taste, quite high values. I find these are the most important for getting a more-natural look. I often do not tone map, I decide after looking at both fusion and tone mapping options.

Then a slew of fine-tuning in Aperture.

[sdwilsonsct]

Thanks, Stamper and Thierry. Glad you liked it.

Chuck, the sun is behind thin clouds, there are no shadows. I'll try and find a happier tractor next time.

Brandt, yes, this isn't too profound. I'm just here for the tips! Thanks for yours, I will look into them.

[brandtb]

Scott...didn't use word editorial to mean in anyway "less than"...(Sebastiao Salgado shot editorial work) /B

[sdwilsonsct]

...perhaps go in and "surgically" bring up some of the highlights on the back part of the tractor...

OK: done, along with a few more tweaks. Thanks for this, Brandt.