First, thanks to all of you for taking the time to comment. But let me jump back in now to make sure the nature of the image is clear, so that no one feels misled. It is a composite, and it has been my intention from the beginning to describe its genesis, after letting you take a look at it first. I thought there were clues in the image that might lead some of you to that conclusion. But in the end, I would like to ask how much does it matter, for what reasons, and to whom.
Degrub is on the right track with “looks straight out of science fiction”. So are Slobodan and Kent with their references to forest fires. The forest fire smoke-filtered image of the setting sun was captured recently in central Oregon. As I looked at it, I was reminded of images I have seen of rather dim red stars in other solar systems. I wondered if I could construct an interesting picture along those lines from images already in my collection.
I came up with several candidates, but one old Kodachrome of a misty evening at the Grand Canyon really seemed amenable to my vision. So that is what you see here, a reworked version of that slide and the smoky sun combined to bring the vision to life. Rather other-worldly, but on the edge so as not to be completely separated from reality. With the larger-than-life sun being both an enhanced visual element, and a clue that it may not be a “straight” photograph.
I knew I was taking a chance by posting it here, but this is the User Critiques section after all, not the Landscape Showcase. The main question I want to address is, is the image visually interesting and/or pleasing? If not, let it fall on its merits. If so, does it matter how it was made, so long as it’s not represented as a photographic record? That is a question I’ve been asking myself. The overwhelming majority of my images are straight photographs. But more and more, I am attracted to building images that occur first in my head, by whatever means necessary.