Posted by Sean Bagshaw on April 2, 2007 at 3:19 PM
I spent three days in the Steens Mountain area a couple weeks ago. I didn't get any highly colorful sunsets or sunrises as I was hoping. The first night I was there a small storm was clearing which at least provided some dramatic clouds. Those combined with the wet but cracked surface of the Alvord Desert right on the edge of the seasonal lake with Steens Mountain as a backdrop probably made the best landscape subject I could put together. To maximize elelments I did have to work with I used a polarizer to cut reflection on the wet mud and a 3-stop NG to hold back the sky. I also double processed the RAW file and then selectively blended, finshing up with some localized sharpening and slight color adjusts. Perhaps too much work for what I ended up with?
Canon 5D, 16-35mm f/2.8L, circular polarizer, 3 stop ND grad, .6 sec @ f/18, ISO 100
I like it, Sean. One of my favorite places, which I have photographed on more than 20 trips over the past decade. The luminessence of the moist foreground and patterns are used particularly well in this rendition, and the dramatic clouds over the Steens range are another strong compositional asset. Don't get stuck in that mud out there!
I like this a lot - those patterns in the ground are really interesting.... I must see this for myself soon. Your processing looks very nice, Sean... not overdone in the least from this first time of looking at it.... nice depth.
I love it. A very nice composition and of course the cracked mud gives it a very unique texture and interest. Thanks for sharing your workflow. Interesting that you used a grad and double processed RAW file.
Posted by Sean Bagshaw on April 2, 2007 at 5:39 PM
Marc, I saw a couple of your Steens prints in the cafe in Fields. Great stuff! I didn't stick around long enough to find out how to get to the Borax Hot Springs, but I really liked that shot. Is it on public or private land?
Michael, even with the grad filter I felt that I didn't have the right luminance from the foreground and the mountains were held back too much along with the sky. I opted to double process in RAW and blend to bring those features out a bit more. I guess I could have applied a selective curves midtone adjustment instead. Probably six and half a dozen but I like to think I preserved some image quality by working from the original RAW file.
Sean, thanks. That Borax shot was a part of a shoot I did for The Nature Conservacy. They own the land around there. It can be a little tricky to find though. If you're headed down again soon, send me an email. My latest, "Steens Stream Sunrise" in the recent travels section of my website will eventually replace the firey sunrise shot I have up at the cafe. I'd talk with the friendly folks at Big Alvord ranch about getting permission to wander up Alvord Creek - some great shots to be had up there.
Discussion
10 repliesCanon 5D, 16-35mm f/2.8L, circular polarizer, 3 stop ND grad, .6 sec @ f/18, ISO 100
Michael, even with the grad filter I felt that I didn't have the right luminance from the foreground and the mountains were held back too much along with the sky. I opted to double process in RAW and blend to bring those features out a bit more. I guess I could have applied a selective curves midtone adjustment instead. Probably six and half a dozen but I like to think I preserved some image quality by working from the original RAW file.
- pradeep