Westwind (Winter Theme)

Gallery: FloraPosted February 16, 2011128 views14 comments

I have been shooting grass in the snow on and off for years without producing something I liked. This year I made some exposures with exquisite detail in the textures and twists of grass stems, but it took a huge print or an extreme crop to see it. This week, seeing Morris McClung's beautiful minimalistic snow and grass shots made me realize that my obsession with macro details was making me miss the whole scene. One of the things I like is the windblown look, but I have been shooting only on calm days (duh). So Monday afternoon I headed out onto the windy sand dunes to capture the wind instead of avoiding it.

I shot this view with bursts at 11 different shutter speeds to get just the amount of blur that I wanted. As it turns out, my favorite was the very first exposure, showing blur only in the tips of the grass.

My other objective was to capture some of the rippled texture of the snow in the soft twilight. I can't get completely away from my macro-detail obsession, I guess, but I did wonder if I could produce a print with more "feeling" so I made a "computer watercolor" version and posted it in Photo Art today, too. If you are inclined to take a look, I'd like to know which version you like more, if any.)

Morris -- Thanks for helping me see the whole image, and not just the light.

Canon 50D
Sigma 150 mm. Macro
1/200 sec. @ f/6.3; ISO 200
Tripod with home-made frisbee snowshoes

Comments

14 comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on February 16, 2011 at 2:50 PM

That's very kind of you, Wayne, but you need no help with your vision as an artist. Your shots from landscapes to intimates, to your flora work is all outstanding.
I really like this, of course I would, and think your shutter speed was just right for a touch of the wind. Even your title, "Westwind" is perfect because we usually think of north as being up top, and coming from left to right would be from a westerly direction. Minimal yet highly effective and beautiful. Love it!

Registered on May 7, 2007, 670 Posts, 19650 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on February 16, 2011 at 3:09 PM

Wayne,
this image really gives me the feeling of the wind. Beautiful texture too. Sometime the whole is better than the particular.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Oscar Dewhurst on February 16, 2011 at 3:31 PM

Very nice - really get the feeling of the wind, and the texture on the snow is great

Oscar

Registered on August 6, 2009, 85 Posts, 502 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Windom on February 16, 2011 at 4:03 PM

I think I prefer this version to the one in Photo Art but it's a tough call for me. Have you ever tried applying some negative clarity to give a little softer look? Regardless, very nice image....the subtle hint of motion (wind) is terrific.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 176 Posts, 2302 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Lowe on February 16, 2011 at 6:02 PM

Wayne, both are fine, but I think I actually prefer the one in PhotoArt. I like the softer look of the snow with it's lesser detail.

Registered on February 11, 2004, 777 Posts, 5252 Comments

Comment posted by Albert Darmo on February 16, 2011 at 7:13 PM

Hi wayne

I love all minalistic work.!! Yours is no exception. Beautifully composed and crafted. The windy mood is perfectly captured

Albert Darmo. Canada

Registered on November 25, 2008, 1386 Posts, 11978 Comments

Comment posted by Lorna Taylor on February 16, 2011 at 7:18 PM

Wonderful winter grasses shot Wayne, you can really feel the cold and the wind in this one!

Registered on November 12, 2010, 254 Posts, 3083 Comments

Comment posted by Pat Sampson on February 16, 2011 at 7:58 PM

Great comp Wayne and I really like the textures in the snow. Texture is one of my arbitrary elements of a good image, so I prefer the image you've posted here. I like the blue cast in the PA version however - maybe better than this one - not sure. The image here is hard to improve though as posted.

pat

Registered on May 19, 2007, 953 Posts, 15989 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Chambers on February 16, 2011 at 10:53 PM

Beautiful shot Wayne - very graceful and elegant.

Registered on April 10, 2005, 753 Posts, 21216 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Yeoh on February 17, 2011 at 4:20 AM

Wayne:
Both images are fine but I like this marginally more with the texture. The blur at the grass tip is just perfect to show movement. Masterfully crafted

Registered on September 1, 2009, 588 Posts, 8184 Comments

Comment posted by Bob Duff on February 17, 2011 at 2:26 PM

Like the comp and can feel the wind blowing through. The motion is there along with the dust/dirt specks on the snow you get with high winds. Your objectives have been achieved Wayne.

Registered on April 21, 2010, 160 Posts, 1675 Comments

Comment posted by Eva McDermott on February 18, 2011 at 12:12 PM

Beautiful simplicity Wayne. The grass stalks in the wind make this very dynamic with a sense of motion.

Registered on January 4, 2009, 1015 Posts, 13229 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Fach on February 18, 2011 at 9:01 PM

Wayne: Marvelous scene and terrific execution. I think I do like the photo art version a touch more but both of these are superb. I'll have one of each!

>=))>

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments

Comment posted by Krunal Janani on February 18, 2011 at 11:56 PM

Very nice Wayne

Registered on September 16, 2010, 60 Posts, 1370 Comments