Swans + redo

Gallery: AvianPosted October 19, 2016210 views8 comments

Lake Junaluska, North Carolina
10/19/2016 – 8:52:06 AM
Canon EOS 7D EF400mm f/5.6L USM
1/320 sec; f/7.1; ISO 640
Manual; Spot metering
LR5, PS6, Topaz DeNoise, Topaz Detail, uncropped

I'm visiting my sisters and my son in North Carolina, and I went to do some photography this morning at Lake Junaluska. I saw these two swans, and I turned around and parked and sat on an otherwise unoccupied small pier for maybe 30 minutes.

I'll post three or four pictures of them as the fog lifted and they separated and swam toward me until they were too close for my lens for anything but a head shot, which I don't know how I feel about, but I got some, and then they climbed out on the rocks beside the pier far enough away to get them in the lens and I took some more shots.

This is the beginning, so the heaviest fog, so the black and orange colors are very muted by the fog. I don't know if this is too much fog for an image. I also don't know if and where to crop an image with two birds facing two different directions. I do like this pose even though their bodies are like they are, because it seems graceful to me.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on October 20, 2016 at 10:22 AM

Barbara:
I think this is a nice image. The fog adds a nice mood. I do wish you had left more room up front to complete the muted reflections. That is far more interesting that anything in the background that received more room in the frame. The water line in the back gives the illusion that the image needs to be rotated clockwise, but I don't think it does based on the position of the reflections and the swans.

Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments

Comment posted by Peter J. Morrissey on October 20, 2016 at 12:25 PM

Hi Barbara
It nice to see Swan's give you some thing to have fun with.
Peter

Registered on July 3, 2011, 188 Posts, 969 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on October 20, 2016 at 12:32 PM

I like the fog, Barbara, though I find I prefer the smaller image, which probably means the fog is a bit too much for my taste. You can help reduce it's effect simply by adding a levels layer and pulling in the black and white points (and sometimes playing with the center point) until you get just the effect you want. Sometimes I'll select just the birds and adjust them separately from the bg so they appear slightly less foggy than the rest of the image. All of this is just a matter of taste. The centered composition works nicely with two birds in these positions, though I think a little off the top would make a slightly stronger presentation. Very nice work and I look forward to the others in the series.

devil

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on October 20, 2016 at 4:59 PM

As Keith suggests, the image would be slightly stronger with the full reflection in the frame, but well seen and well captured, regadless.

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by Barbara Graham on October 20, 2016 at 9:14 PM

Keith and others, I wonder if the reflection isn't completed, going back the positions of the swans' heads. I think I see orange for both beaks in the reflection.

I'm going to work on the other comments now.

Registered on July 27, 2010, 1310 Posts, 5035 Comments

Comment posted by Barbara Graham on October 20, 2016 at 9:29 PM

Okay, here is a redo with a Levels layer and a Vibrance layer to add a little orange and black back in.

What do you think? Thanks!

Registered on July 27, 2010, 1310 Posts, 5035 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on October 21, 2016 at 2:26 PM

Excellent job on the redo, Barbara. Just the right amount of emphasis for my taste.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by David Schoen on October 21, 2016 at 7:03 PM

Second image is considerably better with a little more definition and that makes the image for me. Nice work.

Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments