Desert Drama (or Fortissimo)

Gallery: LandscapePosted September 30, 2013931 views21 comments

I hate to beat a dead horse...but yes this is in fact the iconic overlook from Dead Horse Point State Park near Moab, UT. Hopefully the dramatic storm light makes this one somewhat unique even if I was standing in well worn tripod holes.

This was my first foray into the desert Southwest and it was enjoyable. I was thankful to be there as a low pressure system was moving through to create the dramatic storm lighting here.

All honest comments and critiques are welcome.

21 mm
f8; 1/10 sec
ISO 100

Processing consisted mostly of TK's luminosity and saturation masking. I am striving for a natural look here so please feel free to let me know if this feels over-cooked. The sunset light was definitely vibrant but it's easy to get carried away with those sliders.

EDIT: I had been thinking about titling the series of shots that I took leading up to this as Crescendo so it seems appropriate to call this one Fortissimo since it is the climax of that crescendo. I think I like that better.

Comments

21 comments

Comment posted by Richard Teller on September 30, 2013 at 8:45 PM

The light really sweet. I like this view from this look out, instead of the head on look at the river. Clouds add a lot of drama to the scene. Fine image. My take on shooting iconic places is if it is a good image, it is a good image no matter how many times it has been shot.

Registered on August 23, 2010, 1162 Posts, 6692 Comments

Comment posted by Eva McDermott on September 30, 2013 at 9:05 PM

Excellent atmosphere and drama Brian. I just wish there was a little bit more light on the pine in the foreground to counter balance the darker areas in the mid ground. The sky is marvelous.

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

Comment posted by Mark Brodkin on September 30, 2013 at 10:12 PM

Beautiful colour. Great shot IMO.

Registered on July 15, 2013, 24 Posts, 28 Comments

Comment posted by Peter Cross on September 30, 2013 at 10:35 PM

I don't think you overcooked this, Brian. I do think the overall scene looks quite natural and the light hitting the rocks on the left seems quite true. What I'm wondering about is the overall hue to the land not in the direct light. From most of the images I've seen from this point, the landforms have a very much reddish hue. This seems to be lacking here so I'm wondering if something needs adjusting. Nice image regardless.

Registered on April 3, 2010, 271 Posts, 1342 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on September 30, 2013 at 11:04 PM

Thanks for the comments everyone. Eva, I see what you mean about that tree. I have some other images taken prior to this with better light on that tree (as well as in the canyon) but this is the peak of the color in the sky. I do plan on working up those other images as a series.

Peter, while I'm not sure I think that the difference in hue may be due to the fact that I took this at sunset. At sunrise this area definitely takes on more of a reddish hue. But on this night there was a lot of golden light as I remember it. The sun was setting just out of the frame on the right hand side. In addition to the golden light you see in the clouds here there is actually some even more intense golden light in the clouds out of frame and to the left. I believe that the canyon is mostly being illuminated from the reflected light off of these clouds. Perhaps this accounts for the difference in hue that you see here.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Reed on September 30, 2013 at 11:17 PM

Brian, Wow. Love the colour and movement in the clouds. The darker area in the canyon doesn't really bother me. I feel there is enough detail in there.

Registered on September 19, 2009, 198 Posts, 1074 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Metternich on September 30, 2013 at 11:29 PM

Nice drama and scene here!

Registered on June 19, 2009, 276 Posts, 6240 Comments

Comment posted by Paul Breitkreuz on September 30, 2013 at 11:35 PM

Very impressive and dramatic take on this often shot locale, Brian. Heck, I've got a couple from here too.

Although the drama in the sky is nothing like this capture. Some amazing storm clouds hovering over the entire area. What a site to have witnessed first hand.

Was this taken with your Nikon 800E you're selling?......if so, it looks like it pulled off some really nice work here.

Registered on February 25, 2006, 525 Posts, 8448 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Gavin on October 1, 2013 at 1:52 AM

Richard is right on. No matter how many photographers photograph the same location no two will be alike. There is always something unique about each. Many time photographs of this area contain something distracting from the whole scene. There is nothing here that does that. Well done.

Registered on August 14, 2008, 293 Posts, 1250 Comments

Comment posted by Harry Lichtman on October 1, 2013 at 6:34 AM

The processing looks pretty natural to me Brian. The lighting is very dramatic and I think a touch of contrast to the entire image might give a little pop to the shot without touching the saturation. The bend gets a little lost in thin the image due to the uniform tones, but not much you could do about that. Very dramatic shot, especially those clouds. The only way to improve this might be to have had the side lighting accentuating the textures of the more distant rock formations - maybe another time. The left corner looks a little soft on the large view, but only a minor point.

Registered on September 17, 2010, 304 Posts, 3507 Comments

Comment posted by John Jeevaratnam on October 1, 2013 at 10:09 AM

Beautiful light and composition.

Registered on July 29, 2013, 112 Posts, 229 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Reid on October 1, 2013 at 12:05 PM

Wonderful sky and nice tones in this Brian. Very natural look to this with nice processing. Well done.

Registered on January 27, 2013, 65 Posts, 2460 Comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on October 1, 2013 at 12:53 PM

A beautiful grand landscape, Brian. Excellent control of exposure and the pp looks very good! Well done, my friend.

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

Comment posted by Jeffrey Sipress on October 1, 2013 at 1:07 PM

Fabulous image, Brian. Good as is, but I'd like a bit more highlights in the canyon areas and the very dark cloud is a bit dark nearly looking like the cliffs themselves..

Registered on February 17, 2004, 236 Posts, 1197 Comments

Comment posted by Karsten Wrobel on October 1, 2013 at 4:16 PM

great comp, light and sky... your processing looks natural to me... I only wish there was a bit of light on the distant rocks to better distinguish them from the rest of the image

Registered on November 1, 2008, 117 Posts, 851 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on October 1, 2013 at 9:01 PM

Thanks for all of the encouraging feedback - I really appreciate it!! You've given me a lot to think about and I will continue to work on this taking into considerations your feedback.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Nancy Lea Sandy on October 1, 2013 at 10:52 PM

Terrific sky. Lots of drama and great light. No nits from me, this is nicely done, indeed.

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

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on October 6, 2013 at 10:35 AM

A great looking shot Brian! Beautiful light and I love that dramatic sky. Nice work.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

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

Comment posted by John Williams on May 9, 2014 at 3:24 AM

I missed this one when posted Brian. Sweet light to catch this vista from!

Registered on September 6, 2007, 221 Posts, 5985 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on November 19, 2017 at 6:29 PM

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Doug Koepsel on November 20, 2017 at 9:18 PM

Hello Brian,
Even with the repost, I would be inclined to select the bottomland and give it a good dose of NIK tonal contrast. Nice clouds and the left side cradles the image well

Registered on April 1, 2010, 196 Posts, 1592 Comments