Feng shui +repost

Gallery: LandscapePosted May 25, 2011605 views34 comments

Ok, I know what you're thinking. Who is this guy? He disappears for nearly 4 months and never seen a post from him. My apologies for my absence and lack of participation. No excuses. Just life.

Spent few days in Yosemite recently with Harley and Preston to catch spring in the valley. A great trip and so now I finally have some new images to share. This is my prize of the trip so I thought I would start out with this one.

Feng shui. The title came to me kind of in a round about way when thinking about this image and also what I think about many images that I seek out. While this particular image of the dogwood isn't original, it's been an age-old challenge to find that perfect background for these beautiful flowering trees. It's the background, the accent that got me thinking. The river is a wonderful accent to the dogwood tree and they seem to be in harmony, which led me to Feng shui. Now I won't pretend for a second that I know anything about feng shui (pronounced "fung schway" I believe,) I just remember people trying to arrange their furniture using feng shui - or something. Anyway, from the Wiki link I referenced above, this quote really caught me and I relate it to this image:
"Qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water." As it was, the wind scattered for that brief 1s needed to get this single image.

I hope to be a little more regular now that I have some new work to share. As always your comments and critique are welcome and appreciated.

4x5, Nikkor 450mm, f/22 @1s on V100
Tony's Lum and Sat masks as well his new Triple Play!

Thanks folks!
Lon

ps. a couple of notes.
-This is actually desaturated quite a bit - I'm wondering after posting if it's saturated enough? just right?
- Also, I can't believe I didn't crop or clone out the little tiny piece of branch at the very top. Certainly will when I print this.
- Lastly, just for fun, check out the tiny spider in the larger view. There's actually two, but you can spot one of them dangling from the top branch near the bottom pair of leaves. Amazing what details can be picked up from such a distance - a good 50ft or more.

sorry, been away for so long, now I can't stop writing.

Comments

34 comments

Comment posted by Neale Dyster on May 25, 2011 at 6:15 AM

That's just beautiful Lon, love your composition and what a great background. The saturation levels look spot on to me. I see the spider too. ( so you really should re-post in the wildlife section

)

Registered on February 19, 2008, 94 Posts, 738 Comments

Comment posted by Jesse Estes on May 25, 2011 at 6:22 AM

Sweet one Lon! No nits here...

Registered on April 13, 2011, 20 Posts, 174 Comments

Comment posted by Julian Barkway on May 25, 2011 at 6:27 AM

Desaturated works well, Lon. 'tis a fine image and there's no need to excuse your absence if it means you come back with quality work like this.

Registered on January 18, 2007, 344 Posts, 1961 Comments

Comment posted by Peter Richter on May 25, 2011 at 6:33 AM

Lon, already before reading your own comment, I felt the harmony in your image distinctly. For me it is made possible by the different diagonal elements, the stream of the water leading me downwards and the twigs leading upwards, they are perfectly balanced to my eye.

The saturation of the background is perfectly all right in my opinion. I could only imagine the green of the leaves a bit brighter, but this might be just my personal point of view.

Peter

Registered on November 10, 2010, 218 Posts, 2723 Comments

Comment posted by Kah Kit Yoong on May 25, 2011 at 7:30 AM

Funny that the two spiders seem to create a certain symmetry of their own! I can see why this one is your 'prize' of the trip. The yellows are a nice foil to the green and blue and naturally the overall fengshui is cool rather than warm.

Registered on September 27, 2006, 636 Posts, 10682 Comments

Comment posted by Robert Stough on May 25, 2011 at 7:41 AM

This is a real beauty, Lon, very nicely balanced with lovely color and details. As you said the composition is quite basic, but that is no bad thing with work of this quality and your invocation of feng shui describes it very well. Not sure about the saturation levels as I'm looking at this on an old laptop but in any case this is an excellent shot.

Registered on November 20, 2010, 26 Posts, 273 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Anderson on May 25, 2011 at 7:55 AM

I like it Lon. Maybe a tighter crop on the branches, but still, a real keeper!

Registered on September 6, 2007, 346 Posts, 2696 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on May 25, 2011 at 8:11 AM

This is just awesome! The saturation looks perfect to me as does your comp. A real joy to look at.I just love this. Beautiful work, Lon.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments

Comment posted by Stuart Williams on May 25, 2011 at 8:37 AM

yep, perfect harmony. well done! on my monitor (thus to be taken with a pinch of salt), i'd bump the warm sats a touch.

Registered on December 7, 2007, 247 Posts, 4792 Comments

Comment posted by Robert Dayton on May 25, 2011 at 8:58 AM

I've been looking for your posting for a long time. You've come back strong.
This is lovely. The background is very complementary.

Registered on November 11, 2008, 281 Posts, 3958 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Chambers on May 25, 2011 at 9:25 AM

Welcome back Stranger! I like the comp a lot, and the chosen shutter speed. For my tastes, it does look a bit undersaturated overall though. I might also consider a minor crop off the right side (5%) to remove the darker area in the extreme right center. I love the patterns and streaks in the water - would look lovely with just the water by itself for an abstract.

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

Comment posted by Harley Goldman on May 25, 2011 at 9:59 AM

Very sweet, Lon! Looking good on your return.

Registered on November 19, 2003, 586 Posts, 11271 Comments

Comment posted by Nicolaus Wegner on May 25, 2011 at 10:10 AM

Welcome back Lon. The title fits this piece perfectly.

Does not seem to be lacking in saturation to my eye. Very fine processing. I'm always amazed at what you can do with film.

Great composition and those spiders are an excellent addition to the photograph. I'm sure a large print would be awesome.

Registered on February 21, 2010, 133 Posts, 1509 Comments

Comment posted by Justin Reznick on May 25, 2011 at 12:37 PM

So great to see a post from you Lon! You came back strong with one of my favorite photographic subjects in the world, such a classic scene. My only critique would be the subtle distractions in the background in the lower half of the image. The transition in colors to the blue works great, and then the patches of browns tend compete with the dogwoods. I still love it and can't wait to see more! It killed me not to make it down there this year, hopefully next Spring!

Registered on November 24, 2009, 79 Posts, 515 Comments

Comment posted by Vijay Raj on May 25, 2011 at 1:17 PM

A very fine view of a master craftsman at work. I like the crispness of the overhang contrasting with the silky flow behind. I would personally crop the small twig. I could see one spider if I was seeing two then I would blame my drink.

Registered on November 22, 2010, 29 Posts, 100 Comments

Comment posted by Kyle L. Krause on May 25, 2011 at 2:04 PM

Hey Lon, this came together so beautifully. Your composition flows nicely. For my taste, I'd like to see just a tad more saturation. Great find, Excellent work.

Registered on June 15, 2010, 29 Posts, 605 Comments

Comment posted by Reno DiTullio on May 25, 2011 at 2:26 PM

Excellent, Lon, the blues/yellows/greens are gorgeous

Registered on November 14, 2003, 130 Posts, 1644 Comments

Comment posted by Gabi Lach on May 25, 2011 at 3:03 PM

Beauty, Lon! It look so smooth and perfect... love this very much!

Registered on May 1, 2007, 101 Posts, 3187 Comments

Comment posted by Nancy Lea Sandy on May 25, 2011 at 3:23 PM

Fits your title. Beautifully balanced--warm/cool, static/movement, concrete/abstract--all in perfect harmony. This is a real joy to view.

Registered on January 24, 2011, 576 Posts, 6942 Comments

Comment posted by Helmut Steidl on May 25, 2011 at 3:33 PM

Hello Lon

Perfect Composition .... i love the moving water, and the mirrored colors from blue to yellow ...

Best Regards from AUSTRIA
Helmut

Registered on May 18, 2011, 17 Posts, 67 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Overacker on May 25, 2011 at 3:40 PM

Thanks for the responses and feedback folks, I really appreciate it. Kinda figured the saturation question would be a mixed response, which tells me I think it's pretty close. I did some minor tweaks and hope this is an improvement, all be it, subtle. I clone out the top piece of branch. I played with saturation and hues a little to bring out the gold and also bring up the green, although there's not too much difference. End result too is that this is slightly brighter overall and I like the result. The last thing I did was shave off a tad from the left for no other reason than a format comfort zone for my tastes. I appreciate the comment about perhaps cropping from the right to eliminate the dark area, but I chose to leave the blossom in tact in the URC and live with the dark area below.

Thanks again! Great to be back.

Lon

oh, it would help if I attached the repost.

Registered on November 24, 2006, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments

Comment posted by Dietrich Gloger on May 25, 2011 at 4:01 PM

Great to have you back Lon! I agree this is not the most original - you have done it before, and others too. BUT I think this image shows how an idea can mature and how one can reach perfection. I think it is one of the strongest of this kind. The backdrop works so great - the color gradient is wonderful. Very elegant and classy!

Registered on January 26, 2007, 360 Posts, 9876 Comments

Comment posted by Scott Smorra on May 25, 2011 at 5:19 PM

It's great to see a new image from you Lon. The repost is outstanding. The blue and gold water is the perfect backdrop for the green and white of the dogwood. The details (spiders) in the large version are a nice touch as well. This is going to look very nice as a big print.

Registered on November 2, 2009, 161 Posts, 2143 Comments

Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on May 25, 2011 at 5:30 PM

I think this is gorgeous. The repost does have a slight edge on 'pop'. I'm looking forward to seeing a print of this.

We did have a good time, as always! I'm looking forward to seeing my efforts, and more from you and Harley

Beautiful work, Lon!

--P

Registered on November 1, 2003, 471 Posts, 5188 Comments

Comment posted by Chris Chamberlain on May 25, 2011 at 10:38 PM

So, my first thought from the thumbnail was that I've seen that too many times before! But to my surprise, I have not seen it done so well before. I know from trying, that this is a lot harder to pull off than it would seem. There's a lot of work involved in finding just the right branch hanging in the perfect relationship to the water. In that respect, this might be the finest comp of this subject I have seen. Beautiful light, and beautiful processing as well. Welcome back

Chris

Registered on March 13, 2007, 500 Posts, 8365 Comments

Comment posted by Eva McDermott on May 26, 2011 at 12:08 AM

The repost color does pop a bit more Lon. Beautiful scene overall. The moving water and color serve as a fantastic backdrop to the dogwoods.

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

Comment posted by Tony Kuyper on May 26, 2011 at 12:40 AM

I really missed you and your images, Lon. Light and comp are perfect here. I'm not sure if there is a bit of a waterfall here in reality, but in the image, the water appears to be falling as it approaches the bottom of the frame. Makes for a very nice effect.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 364 Posts, 22328 Comments

Comment posted by Floris van Breugel on May 26, 2011 at 1:21 AM

The oranges and blues in this are just magical; what a gorgeous palette of colors. The flow of the Dogwood is perfect too. One of, if not the, best Merced Dogwood shots I've seen!

Registered on December 19, 2008, 306 Posts, 4840 Comments

Comment posted by Paul Duval on May 26, 2011 at 9:06 AM

Lon,

I mentioned you had some keepers at the processors and this is exactly as you described it even if you lamented not getting the best spot. I think it was the "best" spot for you. Really sweet way to comeback into the gallery. As for the comment about it appearing like a waterfall, it has that feel and I think that has allot to do with the lens angle and the fact that the Merced was roaring at this time. Yosemite is a place of wonder, but you don't get to fully drink from the well until you been there many times. Here's too many times, Lon .

Paul

Registered on June 30, 2009, 508 Posts, 1907 Comments

Comment posted by Scott Day on May 26, 2011 at 11:25 AM

Fung shui is an appropriate name. All is in balance. I don't think it needs more saturation.

Registered on August 5, 2008, 25 Posts, 173 Comments

Comment posted by Youssef Ismail on May 26, 2011 at 3:12 PM

Beautiful work as always Lon. The repost does have a slight edge over the original. Don't know what more I can say that has not already been said. Looking forward to more.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 474 Posts, 5555 Comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on May 26, 2011 at 4:17 PM

The good news is if these people forgive you for being gone for 4 months, I'm a cinch for only missing 2 months!

This one absolutely rivets me and then wrings emotion from me. Phenomenal image.

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

Comment posted by Anil Rao on May 27, 2011 at 11:02 AM

Very, very nice! What a gorgeous take on this familiar scene. One of the best ever, in my opinion.

I love the softer colors and contrast of the original version.

Looking forward to seeing more of your new work.

Registered on November 15, 2003, 234 Posts, 4923 Comments

Comment posted by Mohammad Hosseini on June 21, 2011 at 10:27 AM

Wow, Wow, Wow. I just love this Lon.

Registered on May 16, 2011, 15 Posts, 301 Comments