Jewels of Cerro Torre

Wow--this is just magical! I think this is right up there with your very best. The exposure balance is perfect--you really nailed it; the ice is complex, but keeps me interested, and the mountains are just jaw-dropping! Nice!!

Stunning light and colors here Mike. It seems like it is a little soft to my eyes, but that could just be the web version.

Sweet view! My only processing suggestion might be to darken the center of the reflection slightly and dodge the upper left hillside - appears too dark compared to the lower portions-maybe a cloud was blocking the upper area? Comp. is stunning. Also a little red fringing on the let peeks-maybe from compression. I might expect that if the sun were rising behind the mnts. not from sunrise.
Regards!

Amazing capture, Michael! Lovely light and colors going on here. The floating ice is very nice too. You didn't mention any GND. If none was used, it seems the 5dll has a lot of dynamic range. Excellent!

Chris

This is wonderful, Michael. The soft light on the peaks and the beautiful reflections in the water are great elements here. Love it!

Thanks for the critiques!

Chris, I did actually use a 2 stop Hard Graduated Neutral Density Filter- sorry forget to put that in the EXIF. I'll add it now.

Koveh, you're right, it is a touch soft here. The actual file is super sharp (no wind which is amazing for Patagonia!). I may need to do go back and do a little more sharpening for the web. Thanks for catching that.

Harry, thanks for catching the red fringe- I hadn't noticed it. I will go back to the large file and see if I can fix that. I've also tried to burn the central reflection a bit, but it turns a bit too grey for my tastes- it's reflecting that big white glacier in the background so it's tricky to tone it down. I may do another RAW process at a lower exposure and blend that in there. Thanks for the ideas. I appreciate the input!

-Mike

Very nice, Michael. The ice on the lake makes the reflection even better.

Beautiful image. The lighting is great.

Another "Jewel." The colors are straight from gems again. Gorgeous image. These sharp eyed critiques do help us all improve our final results. You have done great justice to this amazing place.

Wonderful and beautiful symmetry here Mike. I love the mix of golden light in the reflection and the blues in the ice. Fantastic capture.

What lovely light you got on this morning Michael! Aside from the seeming softness that Koveh pointed out, the mountainsides on the right and left seem a little too dark compared to the reflection. I would either lighten them a touch, or darken them in the reflection just to help balance this a bit more. Compwise, in a perfect world, I would desire a bit more breathing room for the peaks up top, but not a deal breaker by any means. Some stellar work you've been posting lately

That golden light is indeed magical. No nits here!

This is great the golden light on the peaks and in the water are just magic.
An amazing place.

Pretty amazing scene man. Those colors are nuts. Think the peaks/glaciers could be toned down just a touch as they seem a bit hot and my eyes get stuck up there. Way to stick it out for the week :)

aF

A great shot indeed! I feel it would be good if to leave a bit more sky on the top.

Amazing composition Michael. The thumbnail simply does not do this justice. Knowing that you used a GND, I could see opening up the shadows a bit more on either side in the darkest areas for balance. I could also see darkening the highlights in the water a bit. Awe inspiring scenery - maybe one of my all time favorites from you.

Michael

Mike, I'm curious why you didn't use the HD2 & 35mm ?
Personally, I'd do a reverse S-Curve on the Blue channel (Yellow) to get some contaminant color into the blues and a smidge out of the concentrated yellows, hence toning them down very slight. I like the open of shadows from the grad pointer as well. Two minor tweaks for a very nice image.
What a view!

Didn't read the other comments so forgive me if I repeat something that's already been said. Compwise this is excellent, I really like the ice on the lake and the ruggedness of the scene. My only nit is with the reflection being lighter than the actual mountain/sky. I think a 1 stop grad would have rendered the scene a little more realistic. Since this is a single exposure you could try processing the RAW file a little darker and then blend in this exposure in the reflection only. Or process brighter and blend the lighter mountain/sky into this shot. The image appears a little soft as well, probably due to web compression. A few minor tweaks and this image will really shine.

This is beautiful as always. What an incredible scene

This really is a beautiful scene. I love the reflection and the wonderful colors! Very nice Mike.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

Wow, I love the way the light catches the ice. Gorgeous image my friend!

perfect light Mike

That sure is awesome light, Mike, and an awesome shot! The ice in the water has a wonderful glow about it, and the intense yellow light is just magical on the peaks and reflection. A fabulous capture.

This has it all Mike. The sharp cyan vs. gold with the more subtle backdrop of the magenta is beautiful. The comp is very compelling, especially the way the ridgelines lead in the reflection.

An astounding array of colours Mike topped off with a wonderful composition.

Michael,

Yet another gorgeous landscape, or in this case a reflectionscape. Beautiful light on a Grand scene and grand scale.

This however might be the first image that I've ever considered a nitpick. for me, I find the reflection a skosh brighter than what I might expect and also the shadows in the reflection seem "rescued" if that makes sense. In other words, the shadows seem to be pulled up in the water or maybe I'm just looking for a tad more contrast in the foreground reflection. Minor thoughts, but thought I would mention them.

Your imagery is always a joy to view and I'm glad you have some images to share.

Lon

you certainly should have been high-fiving your shadow! perfect conditions but you sought and found a great composition. our viewing pleasure might have only been enhanced with - slightly sharper rendering, a large version and, not being the demanding sort, a large print to view ...!!

Beautiful! As has been mentioned, the reflection looks a little to bright compared to the background, but otherwise, it is gorgeous.

Absolutely amazing!! You are just knocking these out of the park!

Another WOW image! What a fantastic reflection and that light on the peaks is freakin nuclear.

Gorgeous!