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Piling On
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Piling On

by Lon Overacker

Gallery: LandscapePosted December 16, 2016230 views14 comments
First off, thank you so very much for the kind words and response to my previous image.  I haven't printed an image in a couple years unfortunately, but when I do I expect this will be one of them.  Thanks again!

This one here is a bit different. Different in the sense that I'm not posting for it's artistic merit, although I always strive for good compositions.  But rather the perceptions I felt while wandering this ancient boulder field near the Little Chapel.  It's such a chaotic mess, I struggled to find a decent composition.  Walking around this area was difficult. Call it ankle-breaking territory.  The blanket of leaves and needles literally covered holes and gaps where one could step unless keeping an eye out for where you stepped. It got me thinking about all the seasonal accumulation of leaves and forest litter, piled on top year after year, for eons. Decomposition below creating the nutrient rich soil for the trees and vegetation to survive... The story of these ancient boulders strewn throughout the valley; either crashing down from the cliffs above, or being drug along and deposited from the last ice age.

So I'll put this one out there for your impressions and critique.  Thanks in advance!

Lon

Nikon D800E
Tamron 24-135mm @ 60mm
3-image focus stack @f/11

edit: oops, I noticed the thin white branch in the UL I should have cloned out.  Also, a note about the granite and lichen (not the moss) Hopefully Preston can attest, but the granite boulders that were deep in the forest here that sees little direct light, had a very distinct cyan/greenish tint. They definitely were very cool in tone. I definitely backed off the blue and cyan, but did not want to go all neutral gray.

Thanks for looking!

Comments

14 comments
Comment posted by Harley Goldman on December 16, 2016 at 4:56 PM
This one tells a nice story of forest regeneration. It is a great area to explore, but as you say, it is a tough spot to find a composition. 
Registered on November 19, 2003, 586 Posts, 11271 Comments
Comment posted by Jim Gavin on December 16, 2016 at 5:01 PM
You struggled to find a good comp out of a chaotic mess but you certainly found it. I find this comp to be excellent. The leaves remind me on water cascading over and flowing around the rocks. The tree trunks anchor the entire image (if something can be anchored from the top, that is.)  You mention the thin white branch in UL and I agree, but also think cloning out the diagonal larger branch in ULC might benefit the image overall.
Registered on August 14, 2008, 293 Posts, 1250 Comments
Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on December 16, 2016 at 5:17 PM
I really like how the boulders line up and the leaves flow around them. The pine trunks in the background are excellent anchors, as Jim said, and I am happy they are prominent. I agree about cloning those branches. The lichens and moss on the boulders do have a cast, but having been there many times, it is the way this forest truly is. I think you did an excellent job finding this composition out of the chaos, and the processing looks great.
--P
Registered on November 1, 2003, 471 Posts, 5188 Comments
Comment posted by Dave Dillemuth on December 16, 2016 at 8:24 PM
I know how hard it can be to see these patterns, so congrats for finding such a strong comp. out of all the chaos. The rich greens of the moss and splashes of bright yellow are beautiful. Processing looks spot-on. Only thought would be to crop a slice off the top (maybe ~1/3 of the tree trunks) I think that it helps to further focus attention on the center of interest.
Registered on December 10, 2015, 104 Posts, 1112 Comments
Comment posted by scott lanz on December 16, 2016 at 9:23 PM
I like the foreground with the mossy rocks, pine needles and fallen leaves a lot, Lon. The detail and colors in the larger image are excellent. In fact, I think I would have preferred an image of just the leaves, rocks and needles, and I'd be inclined to crop the entire bg which I think would leave about a 4x5. However, where exactly to crop the top is a bit tricky. 

p.s., I agree that the last image really merits printing.
Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments
Comment posted by Vance Gese on December 16, 2016 at 10:13 PM
In spite of this chaotic jumble of boulders, Lon, you found a very nice, cohesive composition, in my opinion.  The array of boulders with the moss and lichen, along with the autumn leaves, leading the eye back to those trees, just flat out works (and rocks, in todays vernacular!).  To me , this does have artistic merit and is an outstanding image.
Registered on November 13, 2008, 298 Posts, 6629 Comments
Comment posted by Genny K. on December 17, 2016 at 2:26 AM
The green on the rocks helps them to show up, and they do create a nice line.  A chaotic place, as you say, but this works for me.  It perfectly fits your description of "ankle-breaking".
Registered on June 5, 2006, 132 Posts, 2001 Comments
Comment posted by Nick Bristol on December 17, 2016 at 11:15 AM
Lon, I really like what you came up with here. The pattern of the boulders covered in lichen, moss, pine needles and leaves really looks good to me, so excellent work coming up with this composition. I'm sure that wasn't easy to do here. The colors look great by the way.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI.
Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments
Comment posted by Phil Pogledich on December 17, 2016 at 2:02 PM
You've managed to pull a very strong composition from a chaotic (to use your word) landscape.  It's exceptionally well done in all respects from my perspective...it has a subtle strength and, as Preston said, tells a nice story.
Registered on August 24, 2009, 123 Posts, 3099 Comments
Comment posted by Igor Doncov on December 17, 2016 at 3:50 PM
I really have to express my admiration for this image. It's something I've seen a dozen times at the start of that trail at Happy Isles and never thought it worth my while to shoot it. It's one of those images that shows how extraordinary is something that seems ordinary. This is an exceptional image IMO. Well seen, well thought out, well constructed, and well processed. Despite being shot in the shade it doesn't have that flat look,either due to great postprocessing skill or bounce light or both. It feels like a medium format image in detail. If I was forced to give any advice it would be the bottom leaf too close to the frae? But there's leaves like that everywhere. It's pretty much a perfect image.

I like this more than your previous b&w because of it's uniqueness. I guess it comes down to this: showing someone that something is special that many have shown before is not as pleasurable as showing something special that everyone has ignored before.
Registered on November 22, 2014, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments
Comment posted by Ed Lowe on December 17, 2016 at 11:01 PM
Congrats on finding this is what I am sure was a very chaotic scene, Lon. This has a nice diagonal flow to it and the green mosses along with the yellow maple leaves add some wonderful color to this image. I like the title and the story does make you pause and appreciate the less grandiose landscapes.

Ed
Registered on February 7, 2004, 414 Posts, 7115 Comments
Comment posted by Reno DiTullio on December 18, 2016 at 12:41 PM
Lon, Preston, Harley, you guys had a very productive few days in Yosemite; all the images together would make a wonderful portfolio of Yosemite...maybe a show in the future?
Registered on November 14, 2003, 130 Posts, 1644 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Overacker on December 18, 2016 at 2:08 PM
Wow, thank you all for your comments and positive impressions. 

And Igor, thank specifically for your comments.  They are always thoughtful, engaging and constructive. So Thank you!

Interesting too that you brought up the leaf and the the tightness on the bottom.  You don't know how right you are!  Actually, in order to gain this viewpoint, I had to step back and stand atop some other boulders and leaves and shot somewhat more downward. But there was a boulder at the bottom in the way...

Here's a cropped, unprocessed corner of the original raw file.  If you draw a line from below the leaf in question, you'll see that there was still some rock.  So even with a significant crop from the bottom, there was still a little content aware cloning in that LLC. For which I forgot to disclose.... angel

Thanks all!
Registered on November 24, 2006, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments
Comment posted by Lon Overacker on December 18, 2016 at 2:50 PM
oops, forgot to attach
Registered on November 24, 2006, 521 Posts, 19147 Comments