Luminous Landscape Forum

The Art of Photography => Landscape Showcase => Topic started by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 17, 2022, 07:40:50 am

Title: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 17, 2022, 07:40:50 am
Phew! What a trip!

2000 miles driven, 15 days in Italy, one in Slovenia, 18 days on the road - 1400 shots!

Two workshops, one in Abruzzo, a mountainous region, the other in Tuscany, both expertly led by LuLa's forum member Hans Kruse (https://forum.luminous-landscape.com/index.php?action=profile;u=4258)

This is an ongoing thread. I will be posting day-by-day best pics as I slowly plough through the 1400 shots in Lightroom.

This is day 1, Abruzzo:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 17, 2022, 07:42:13 am
Day 2

What does it take to catch pre-sunrise, twilight colors in the sky? Getting up at 5am, driving 50 to 100 km to an interesting viewpoint, climbing a steep mountain path in total darkness the next 20 minutes, catching your breath and hurriedly unpacking a tripod and other equipment... then waiting for the nature's spectacle of colors...
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: David Eckels on November 17, 2022, 10:18:08 am
Great idea, Slobodan. I'm going to do something similar in eastern Oregon, first half of December.
Looking forward to the rest of the series; I see some interesting differences viz your usual style. I envy you your workshops!
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Eric Myrvaagnes on November 17, 2022, 12:14:41 pm
Thanks for these, Slobodan!
Glorious stuff!
Eagerly waiting for more...
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 17, 2022, 12:55:04 pm
A few more from Day 2:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: MattBurt on November 17, 2022, 05:58:46 pm
Very nice. Looks like a great trip!
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Rajan Parrikar on November 19, 2022, 03:36:14 am
Enjoying the series. The second set is lovely.

I wish LuLa has a slideshow option where you could cycle through images instead of individually clicking on each. The forums purporting to cater to photographers have some of the worst interfaces.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Bob_B on November 19, 2022, 06:35:43 am
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. While I enjoyed all your photos, I really like the third one in the second set, the abstract one.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 19, 2022, 09:53:36 am
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. While I enjoyed all your photos, I really like the third one in the second set, the abstract one.

Thanks. Yes, the area offers a lot of opportunities for abstract details. Two participants had 100-500 zooms, two up to 400mm, and that long end worked very well for them. I was with a 70-200, and did what I could with it.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: John R on November 20, 2022, 05:51:55 pm
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. While I enjoyed all your photos, I really like the third one in the second set, the abstract one.
I agree. But I lean toward no-2 in the third set. Really like how the soft glow of the landscape rises to meet the pink-blue sky.

JR
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Paulo Bizarro on November 22, 2022, 03:49:47 am
Some great photos.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Hans Kruse on November 29, 2022, 08:45:28 am
Thanks Slobodan and I see that you are missing Tuscany in the series  :) I only saw this thread now since I do not often look at the forum posts on LuLa any more.

The photo referenced several times, the abstract one, is not from Abruzzo. It is from the Montesibbilini National Parc in Umbria. In the past before the big earth quake in 2017 when the village Castelluccio in the area was destroyed as well as Norcia when we stayed in a hotel during the workshop. So this time I decided to take the group up there to see since even in the middle of the day there were some nice shooting opportunities like e.g. the abstract that Slobodan showed.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 29, 2022, 10:22:34 am
Thanks Slobodan and I see that you are missing Tuscany in the series  :)...

Wait, I am only od day three at this point... Tuscany starts on day seven  :D
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 29, 2022, 10:23:48 am
Day 3:

Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: David Eckels on November 29, 2022, 10:43:49 am
Oh wow! The castle--classic. Keep 'em coming!
PS the B/W has great presence. Love the toning.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: MattBurt on November 29, 2022, 11:09:51 am
Oh wow! The castle--classic. Keep 'em coming!
PS the B/W has great presence. Love the toning.

+1
Really nice.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 30, 2022, 09:23:26 am
Day 4:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on November 30, 2022, 09:25:02 am
More from day 4:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Chris Kern on November 30, 2022, 07:11:02 pm
Remarkable series.  And you're only up to day 4 of 18?

Keep them coming.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on December 01, 2022, 02:07:54 pm
Day 5... still in the Abruzzo region:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: PhilippPalada on December 03, 2022, 03:53:57 am
Dear Slobodan, these pictures, wow! Now I can see what you have taken from our trip with Hans.
All the best
Philipp
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on December 04, 2022, 03:02:09 pm
Incredible Earth Patterns - Day 6 of a two-week photo shoot in Bella Italia in October/November. This is Abruzzo, a mountainous region in central Italy.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on December 04, 2022, 03:02:46 pm
More from Day 6:
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Chris Kern on December 04, 2022, 07:53:51 pm
More from Day 6:

The third in this series is an exceptional composition.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Arlen on December 04, 2022, 09:03:33 pm
The third in this series is an exceptional composition.

Agreed. It's my favorite so far.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Dave (Isle of Skye) on December 05, 2022, 02:59:56 pm
I personally like this one and how you have processed it Slobodan  :)

(https://forum.luminous-landscape.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=141654.0;attach=228517)

Very few people seem to be creating B/W images these days and I cannot understand why, because it is such a good way to show off the drama and detail in a shot - but then again, what do I know??

Dave
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Arlen on December 05, 2022, 03:29:54 pm
I personally like this one and how you have processed it Slobodan  :)

Very few people seem to be creating B/W images these days and I cannot understand why, because it is such a good way to show off the drama and detail in a shot - but then again, what do I know??

Dave

Yes I agree. I missed that one in my initial perusal.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on December 06, 2022, 08:37:18 am
I personally like this one and how you have processed it Slobodan  :)
...
Very few people seem to be creating B/W images these days and I cannot understand why, because it is such a good way to show off the drama and detail in a shot - but then again, what do I know??

Yes, Dave, what do you know  ;)

Joking aside, thanks!

I often at least check what a b&w version would look like... so easy these days, just press the letter "v" in Lightroom, for instance. I often resort to fiddle further with a default conversion in cases like this, when the color is not to my liking. There is a particular sunset/sunrise orange shade that annoys me, either because it is too cliche, or turns into a dirty orange, often due to a pollution haze that lingers even at high altitudes.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Dave (Isle of Skye) on December 06, 2022, 12:42:41 pm
There is a particular sunset/sunrise orange shade that annoys me, either because it is too cliche, or turns into a dirty orange, often due to a pollution haze that lingers even at high altitudes.

I know it well Slobodan, it's a sort of a dirty orange grey colour that just doesn't look real somehow like a bad HDR effect. Although it can sometimes be corrected by isolating just that colour onto its own layer and then warming it up slightly and perhaps also adding a little bit of light to it, by using the screen blend mode and then using the opacity slider.

Dave
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Eric Myrvaagnes on December 06, 2022, 07:25:56 pm
Great set, Slobodan!
Keep 'em coming!
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Slobodan Blagojevic on December 07, 2022, 08:30:14 am
Day 7 - we are in Tuscany now!
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: Eric Myrvaagnes on December 07, 2022, 09:01:18 am
Lovely set, Slobodan.
Title: Re: My Italian Trip - Abruzzo & Tuscany - an Ongoing Thread
Post by: MattBurt on December 13, 2022, 03:13:31 pm
Yes, the second one of the last set is particularly nice with that soft light.