Posted by Marc Adamus on April 13, 2006 at 12:14 PM
Got bored and going through the Velvia archives again. I've done better shots, but also worse. I wonder what you guys think of this one. This was taken back before I knew how to get the shadow details out of the big rocks, but I also don't think the heavy contrast is too much of a detrement to the image. EOS-3, 17-40, 5-stop Singh-Ray soft grad.
Posted by Richard Wong on April 13, 2006 at 7:34 PM
This is pretty good dude. No complaints about the the contrast. I think the foreground could have a bit more space. It looks sort of cut off.
I dunno Marc, I'm having a hard time with the deeeeeeeeeeeeeeep black rocks in the background. Bring some detail into those and I'd be all over it. The sky rox and I'm liking the rock in the lower right hand corner.
A digital blend maybe??
Posted by Marc Adamus on April 13, 2006 at 8:02 PM
Yes, today it would be a simple digital blend. But back when this image was taken, it would have never occured to me, nor would it have been possible without two or more scanned images. The back of those rocks were covered in bird sh*t anyway. I do think strong contrast is somewhat of a lost element in images these days. Before PS and blending this would be accepted more readily. Not that it couldn't be made better with tools today - I believe it can. But when I look back through the archives of some true masters like Wolfe and Rowell I see lots of images like this with large portions of pure blacks, grad lines, uncorrected distortions, ect. All accepted then but rarely now.
Posted by Curtis Knight on April 13, 2006 at 9:54 PM
Well I'm a sucker for high contrast sunset/sunrise shots so this is very appealing to me. my only nit is that the foreground rock feels a bit cut off and there is just a tad more sky than necessary.
I don't think its true that dark blacks or lack of shadow detail are necessarily out of date. Its just that most photographers now have a means to bring out shadow detail in their photos and more often than not when I see the resulting detailed images they don't really impress me because they seem so documentary in nature - almost to the point of being illustrations.
In this particular image I don't really need to see the fine detail in those distant sea stacks. Sufficient information is already being provided by the detail you have revealed in the foreground rock and I prefer the rest to be left for my own imagination. After all, you are providing a seed for my mind to pick up and carry from there onwards. In that respect, I think this is a very successful iamge. At least in my book.
I don't think its true that dark blacks or lack of shadow detail are necessarily out of date. Its just that most photographers now have a means to bring out shadow detail in their photos and more often than not when I see the resulting detailed images they don't really impress me because they seem so documentary in nature - almost to the point of being illustrations.
In this particular image I don't really need to see the fine detali in those distant sea stacks. Sufficient information is already being provided by the detail you have revealed in the foreground rock and I prefer the rest to be left for my own imagination. After all, you are providing a seed for my mind to pick up and carry from there onwards. In that respect, I think this is a very successful iamge. At least in my book.
Posted by Marc Adamus on April 13, 2006 at 11:04 PM
I agree about the rock guys. Wish I had found a similar spot where there wasn't a collection of other rocks attached dictating the slightly 'cut off' comp.
Posted by John Lehmkuhl on April 14, 2006 at 3:25 AM
I like this a lot. I love high contrast and don't really miss anything in the BG rocks... black works well for me... I think your skills have bumped up just a little bit from this image from the past - but it is still a presentable keeper in my opinion....
I know Galen has numerous images with silhouettes. I think it works well here as well with many of his images. I don't need detail throughout every image.
A graphical quality that is sometimes lacking in many images.
I'll lean on the side of: I like the darker silhouette in this one. It compliments your portfolio with a skosh more variety. Alone, and seperately...compared to your cauldron or ethereal images with more light on the rocks...I would probably pick one of those over this...but still, this is a seriously moody and cool image. The silhouetted rocks loom like Giants...and it is that quality that lures me in. This image would be hard to print and hang unless it is in a seriously lit room.
Discussion
10 repliesA digital blend maybe??
I don't think its true that dark blacks or lack of shadow detail are necessarily out of date. Its just that most photographers now have a means to bring out shadow detail in their photos and more often than not when I see the resulting detailed images they don't really impress me because they seem so documentary in nature - almost to the point of being illustrations.
In this particular image I don't really need to see the fine detail in those distant sea stacks. Sufficient information is already being provided by the detail you have revealed in the foreground rock and I prefer the rest to be left for my own imagination. After all, you are providing a seed for my mind to pick up and carry from there onwards. In that respect, I think this is a very successful iamge. At least in my book.
I don't think its true that dark blacks or lack of shadow detail are necessarily out of date. Its just that most photographers now have a means to bring out shadow detail in their photos and more often than not when I see the resulting detailed images they don't really impress me because they seem so documentary in nature - almost to the point of being illustrations.
In this particular image I don't really need to see the fine detali in those distant sea stacks. Sufficient information is already being provided by the detail you have revealed in the foreground rock and I prefer the rest to be left for my own imagination. After all, you are providing a seed for my mind to pick up and carry from there onwards. In that respect, I think this is a very successful iamge. At least in my book.
A graphical quality that is sometimes lacking in many images.