Rock from the Garden +RP

Every photograph, to some extent, calls for a suspension of belief. Personally, I think every photographer has to ask, "Is the suspension of belief successful?" So, the viewer has to think "This nature image looks natural." I think, in my view, you have succeeded here. A bit pale, perhaps. But legit, certainly.

Looks natural to me Russ. I know from experience that this rock is a bit pale anyway, and I like the pink color cast that appears in your photo. The blend was very well done. I think the image might need just a bit more sharpening, but otherwise it looks great to me. Nice, and unique, representation of a Colorado icon.

I think you got the color right. Winter light often seems pale and the pastel sky attests to this. Love the upward sweep of this image. Very nicely done

Russell,

I like this very much. The colors look very good although without having been there it's hard to say really. But judging from the sky, it all look very good. In fact, I really like how the colors are mimicked between the sky and rock. I also like that you've zoomed in on this prominent rock feature; the sky complimenting the scene beautifully.

...reflecting lately on what constitutes a nature image that looks natural. What do you think, legit or not?

The $64,000 question isn't it? A great topic for the discussion forum eh?

Something I strive for - to have my images natural and/or believable. But then who gets to decide? To some, "this is straight from the camera) is "natural" while for others, it's "what I saw with my own eyes." Yet for others still, it's what "I wanted to portray." or whatever. I think a bigger question is there a difference between "nature photography" and nature photography as a form or "art?"
That is the question. But I digress. A great topic if anyone wants to propose it.

Thanks Russ,

Lon

Thanks Lon, this seems like a topic likely to provoke rich conversation, as is any where there is no right or wrong answer. I also think it good for the creative process to kick the hornet's nest every once and awhile. Just for yuks and giggles, here's a more extensively cooked version. The first one is more true to what I saw, it was just a normal winter sunset. But the second is a what I went looking for that day.