Spotlight on the Peaks 3

Gallery: LandscapePosted November 2, 2014185 views14 comments

Last week I posted a pre-sunrise veiw from Baxter Mountain in the Adirondack Forest Preserve. When the Sun rose, the best light was to the West, so I quickly headed toward the summit and found this view. Actually, most of the view I shot is in the Man & Nature Gallery, since it includes the village of Keene in the distance (just outside the frame in this crop). This is a crop from the multi-frame panorama in the Man & Nature Gallery.

CROPPING ADVICE: I am posting two broader versions of this vista in the Man & Nature Gallery today and tomorrow. I would appreciate your advice about the crops there versus this one, which does not include the village.

THANKS

Canon 5D3
Canon 24-105mm.; Circ. Pol.
0.6 sec. @ f/16; ISO 100
35 MP stitch from two vertical frames of a wider stitched panorama.

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UPDATE: THANKS for all the comments. I would appreciate it if you would take a look at "Spotlight on the Peaks 2" in the Man & Nature Gallery, and let me know which version you think is better. (Last one, I promise.)

Comments

14 comments

Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on November 2, 2014 at 5:22 PM

Nicely composed, and the light and color are excellent. I like this crop.

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

Comment posted by gary phillips on November 2, 2014 at 8:08 PM

Really nice, Wayne. It's photos like this that remind me of my east coast roots and the wonderful fall colors that I miss so much. I think the crop works very well. The Pano in MN is also very nice.

Registered on October 24, 2013, 185 Posts, 4136 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on November 2, 2014 at 8:39 PM

There is a lot to enjoy about this image with the wonderful fall foliage and mountain views. However, I think I would prefer a comp with out the foreground tree skeleton. It just commands too much attention and blocks too much of the view of the distant mountains.

EDIT: It will be interesting to see what others think. I see that no one else has mentioned this.

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

Comment posted by scott lanz on November 2, 2014 at 8:47 PM

Well composed and taken in excellent light, Wayne. The dead tree is well positioned and provides an interesting focal point. In the M&N version, however, I tend to agree with Brian. Not sure why I see the two images differently. I guess I see the M&N version as showing the grand landscape, and the bisecting tree in that image detracts from the image. Here, the image seems to be about the tree with an excellent bg.

Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Jones on November 2, 2014 at 9:15 PM

Thanks everyone. Yes that dead pine was my compositional challenge here, both in shooting it and cropping it. I think trees like this can make nice accents on the edges of a scene, but one large dead tree in the middle of a composition that is otherwise full of life was a problem. So my main problme now seems to be what to do with that deadwood, short of cutting it down. (Note that cutting any standing tree -- dead or alive -- is illegal in New York State's Forest Preserve.)

I made several crops, and I'll post my favorite in Man & Nature on Monday, but I'm still open to other ideas. With a 70 MP panorama, there's lot's of room to crop.

Registered on April 18, 2007, 953 Posts, 6435 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on November 2, 2014 at 10:24 PM

I sure do like the long view and all the colors, Wayne. I'm not a big fan of the snag...it's blocking my view.

Yes, there are some dead trees around Mammoth Hot Springs that I wish the park service would cut down to improve the views, but I'm not holding my breath.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by scott lanz on November 2, 2014 at 10:36 PM

Interesting, I dealt with my own "dead tree" challenge on my recent trip to Zion. I'll post mine sometime soon.

Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments

Comment posted by Peter Cross on November 2, 2014 at 10:48 PM

This has a lot going for it, Wayne. The somewhat vertical format is perfect for that nice old snag in the FG. Perfect place for a raptor to hang out. Colors are wonderful and well captured by your exposure. Well composed. Agree with your crop.

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

Comment posted by Pat Sampson on November 3, 2014 at 6:19 AM

Strong comp and great Fall colors Wayne. I particularly like the variety of colors in this. Colorado is mostly yellows. (smile) Love the light on the mountain. Beautiful scene and image.

pat

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

Comment posted by John&Patty Benway on November 3, 2014 at 9:32 AM

Gorgeous light and color Wayne, as for the composition, it works beautifully in my opinion. Love the dead pine, It's an excellent anchor point, and I will admit, I have a fascination for dead wood, all and all, this is a beautiful autumn scene, I wouldn't change a thing. By the way, I will give your suggestion a try. Take care.
John

Registered on May 12, 2006, 626 Posts, 8700 Comments

Comment posted by Roel Wijtmans on November 3, 2014 at 10:43 AM

This crop would be my choice so far Wayne. It's the most balanced one I think, the lrc in the larger crop is distracting for me. In contrast to others, I actually like the placement of your tree in this one, but I am a fan of dead trees.... Overall, the colors are very nice! I'm just wondering what the brighter spot on the top left of the mountains is.

Registered on September 30, 2012, 116 Posts, 2257 Comments

Comment posted by Harley Goldman on November 3, 2014 at 11:22 AM

Great color and fine image. I prefer this crop of the two. To my eye, it is better balanced. Miles of color!!

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

Comment posted by Ryan Shain on November 3, 2014 at 1:26 PM

A beautiful composed image Wayne, and wow look at all that stunning color. Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet image!!

I really like this framing the best Wayne.

Registered on February 20, 2007, 226 Posts, 4571 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Jones on November 3, 2014 at 8:08 PM

Thanks to everyone for all the comments.

@ Roel: " I'm just wondering what the brighter spot on the top left of the mountains is."
The bright spot on the left is a slide, which is a fairly common sight in the High Peaks Wilderness Area of the Adirondacks. Except for a few peaks above treeline, the Adirondacks are completely covered by forests and lakes. Over the years, a number of very wet weather events have caused huge landslides, where thousands of tons of forest -- trees, soil, animals and all -- simply slid off the steeper slopes. Here's a closer view of some of the slides in the photo above.

Registered on April 18, 2007, 953 Posts, 6435 Comments