Mono Craters

Gallery: LandscapePosted January 22, 20161,684 views8 comments

The Mono Craters taken in October from the north side of the lake, mid morning. The sun was mostly hidden behind the clouds but the diffused light added to the many shades of gray along the cinder cones. I smiled to know that the craters have been dormant for many many years, but the right burst of light and some hanging vapors seemed to bring them to life anew. Comments and critique appreciated. Thanks for stopping.

Nikon D7100, F16, 1/250sec, 70-300mm @ 145mm

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Roel Wijtmans on January 22, 2016 at 11:46 AM

Excelletn light! As you said, it is perfect for adding feeling to those mountains without overdoing it. Love the bleak atmosphere of the photo as well, fits the theme of volcanoes. Nice job taming the DR as well, looks perfectly natural.

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

Comment posted by Dave Dillemuth on January 22, 2016 at 12:58 PM

Stephen,
Very dramatic. Love the compressed telephoto effect. If it were mine I think I would boost the contrast slightly.

Registered on December 10, 2015, 104 Posts, 1112 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Teller on January 22, 2016 at 1:48 PM

Great light and a very dramatic sky. I like the composition but might think about cropping the water at the bottom. It doesn't add much to the image. But I works well the way it is.

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

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on January 22, 2016 at 5:37 PM

Stephen, This is really nice! I especially enjoyed the larger version which brought this scene to life for me. For me the water adds a nice touch to the scene and I love all the elements this has in it. Nice job capturing this wonderful landscape.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

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

Comment posted by Lon Overacker on January 22, 2016 at 8:47 PM

Stephen,

Two images of the Mono Craters in a row! A first I'm very certain of that! Dave's is unique and I think yours is too; a different and refreshing view from the Mono Lake basin.

The sky, clouds and light really make the story with this image; creating scattered, dappled light throughout and even providing some nice light and tones on the lake's surface. That must be the South Tufa's over there? A very subtle point, but I'm liking those 2 pines on the left above the lake. Such a small imprint on the scene, yet I'm drawn to them.

Hard to suggest much here, but you might consider a very slight increase in the contrast. Many different ways to accomplish that, but I could see the black point (input on curves) being increased 5-10 points. A minor and subtle change and so it falls in to the realm of personal choice of course.

Regardless, I'm loving this view of Mono Lake and the Mono Craters.

Lon

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

Comment posted by D.A. Edwards on January 23, 2016 at 12:50 AM

It's a Mono-fest in here cool

Great work on the DR on this and the contrast looks fine to me. Love all of the detail on the cones and the tufa on the water's edge. Long ago I spent a hot, windless, sleepless night on the top of the cone on the right due to no tent with hordes of mosquitoes.

Registered on October 8, 2014, 226 Posts, 1187 Comments

Comment posted by Chris Chamberlain on January 23, 2016 at 2:32 PM

Really nice! Love the drama and the subdued color here. Saw these in similar conditions a few years ago when they were also covered in snow. But was not in a location to take advantage.

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

Comment posted by Harley Goldman on January 25, 2016 at 5:55 PM

Real nice cloudy scene. Might be fun to see how it works in B&W, as it seems to have a lot of the elements that would work in a conversion. Nicely done.

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