Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Landscape & Nature Photography => Topic started by: maddogmurph on March 20, 2016, 10:39:06 pm

Title: Stormy Tree
Post by: maddogmurph on March 20, 2016, 10:39:06 pm

Just because I love you guys...

Pulling into Torroweap during an incoming lightning storm is pretty scary. Even with a solid 4x4 if it rains enough you can get stuck out here until the clay hardens. We barely made it out as this storm came in, but we were able to get some shots before becoming too uncomfortable with the wind and lightning. The North Rim of the Grand Canyon is incredible, it offers a huge amount of opportunity for fascinating light, weathered trees, grand vistas, and maybe even a rattle snake while you're shooting.

This was a shot I snapped off right upon arrival, took two brackets, one for the sky and one for the foreground, and blended them just a touch to bring out the details in the darker parts of the image. I didn't realize at the time how spectacular the light was coming out of this hole in the storm clouds, and I've debated whether I should crop into this many times. But I sort of like it how it was originally composed, and so I've left it as I shot it here.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: Eric Myrvaagnes on March 21, 2016, 12:19:19 am

Fine one. It has a sort of Hieronymus Bosch feel to it.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: petermfiore on March 21, 2016, 08:14:27 am

Something serious is about to happen...it may not be good.

Peter

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: francois on March 21, 2016, 08:24:09 am

I like the "end of the world" mood of this one.
Bravo!

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: Bob_B on March 21, 2016, 09:03:29 am

Wonderful. I agree that this does look like doomsday. I particularly like the complementary hues, and your blending was spot-on perfect.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: Paulo Bizarro on March 21, 2016, 10:18:59 am

The sky is very good. for my taste, I find the shadows a bit lifeless/dull, and there is a hint of na halo around the rocks? But indeed, what a situation.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: thierrylegros396 on March 21, 2016, 02:01:54 pm

Amazing sky  :o :)

Thierry

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: maddogmurph on March 21, 2016, 10:12:19 pm

Quote from: Paulo Bizarro on March 21, 2016, 10:18:59 am

The sky is very good. for my taste, I find the shadows a bit lifeless/dull, and there is a hint of na halo around the rocks? But indeed, what a situation.

Yeah that halo's a bitch, although so slight it's not really noticeable even at high res.  And the lifeless was a choice in my processing, I actually wanted it lifeless just like you said to express the barren nature and to draw attention into the light, but part of me things maybe I could do more as the photograph generally wasn't very well received in some of my other circles. I also thought about maybe this crop. I don't know, regardless I'm not really feeling this one too strongly.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: Jens Peermann on March 22, 2016, 10:19:19 pm

Great how the tree connects the rugged landscape with the wild clouds by reaching into the sky. The cropped version gives a nice detail but pales without the tree.

Title: Re: Stormy Tree
Post by: the_marshall_101 on March 25, 2016, 04:49:34 pm

I can imagine it was a dramatic scene in real life but for me it doesn't translate. Shooting into the light means it will never look very real when trying to heavily brighten the foreground later and therefore the result isn't very pleasing to my eye, sorry :(