Laguna Beach Canyon

Obviously more hand of man than nature here, but this is an image I envisioned using as a cover shot for a book I’d like to put together someday. I thought it would be a nice way to give a sense of place to the So. California beaches of Laguna and Corona del Mar. That mock lighthouse is actually a vent from an old water treatment plant and a bit of a local icon. I thought it added a little character and made for a unique and nice point of interest. I’d be curious to hear how others respond to this image… particularly in terms of my intended use.

Cheers!

~Eric

Hey Eric. The light is fantastic, though I'd have to admit the scene itself is not really that appealing even from a travel photography perspective because the parking lot dominates the scene. i think if the focus were more on that highway with the car lights whizzing by, then it would have more marketability.

Just my two cents.

Gosh, I really like this perspective here, Eric. I guess for me it is the different look from what we all normally see and shoot too. As such it gives us a fresh look at what all is out there to take in and capture as images to be shared. I will say, if I scroll down just slightly passed the rock in the LLHC it gives us a perfect bird's eye cropped view of the area & this becomes an excellent scene IMO.

The empty corner in the lower left is really bothersome, imo. And I feel like the parking lot dominates the image. Great light though.

I'd crop out the bottom with the large rock on the left. Then I like it.

- Dan.

I, too, must say that if your intended use is for a beach theme, there is no beach in the scene. The parking lot, homes, and traffic on road are the subject here. The bottom area need to go, as well.

Very nice Eric! I too agree about a crop off the bottom. It seems a bit out of place, and cropping would seem to strengthen the balance between the line of the road on one side, and the sunset on the other (I really like that balanced comp btw).

Thanks all for the much needed feedback... that's exactly what I was looking for. I always find it interesting to hear what others have to say in regards to an image of mine... particularly from other photographers. I'll be curious to hear how others who live in this area respond to the image. It'd be an interesting comparison.

I did take a few shots without the sandstone in the fg, but it just didn't feel right to me compositionally. I guess I liked the way it made for a nice diagonal counterbalance to the high contrast of the setting sun in the URC. I tend to do similar compositional adjustments by placing plants in the lower corners of images at work. I guess I'll have to rethink this technique, or just accept it as a element of my photographic style.

I'm glad to hear no one questioned the validity of this image, for it's actually a composite of two exposures. I generally don't like much cloud movement in the sky, so I had to merge an exposure a few minutes latter to get the motion blur of the automobile lights yet retain a crisp detailed sky. I was worried that might problematic or too jarring for some.

~Eric