Posted by Kalin Wilson on March 23, 2012 at 3:13 AM
I quickly revisited my fall shoot of Capitol Peak this evening and worked on a sunset shot that caught my eye. I've got some scans that I'm working on but I hadn't really done anything with the digital shots, this is the first.
I'm not done with this. I haven't even brought it into PS yet for some luminosity mask magic. But I'm kinda liking where it's going and I'm looking for some feedback.
During the shoot I was hoping for some color and light on the bottom of the cloud layer, but we were lucky to get some spotlighting on the peaks. The dramatic mood contrasted with the color of the foliage and light is what I'm liking.
I've got a few ideas of what I might still do, but I thought I'd get some ideas and feedback from you guys. Tell me what you think.
Thanks in advance for any feedback. If I'm slow to respond it's because I'm out of town this weekend.
Large Image is linked.
Posted by Jack Garrett on March 23, 2012 at 10:23 AM
The only thing I'd like to see is possibly a little more orange/red to the mountain tops..it looks a little pale to me Kalin..otherwise an excellent shot.
What a fantastic comp, Kalin, and awesome conditions! This is up there with the very best I've seen from here. It does look a little bit magenta to me, especially in the clouds. If it were mine I'd probably work to emphasize the blue/yellow contrast between aspens and spotlight vs clouds. I can definitely see working on the mountaintops more like Jack suggests, but I'm not sure I'd call them pale. I like them as is, but it would be worthwhile to experiment with other takes. The pines in the right valley below Capitol look a tad lighter and bluer than those up the left valley, and the difference is a little distracting to me. Did you lighten a rough circle around Capitol? If so, I might revisit that dodging, do it through luminosity masks instead. Finally, the aspen slope on the left seems a trifle dull compared to everything else: I might burn it just a hair and work with local contrast and saturation in that area.
Dramatic light and comp for sure!
Since you asked, If it were mine, I would lessen the contrast in the clouds a bit and lighten them up a bit. I find the darkness to be a bit overwhelming.
Posted by Kurt Bowman on March 23, 2012 at 1:08 PM
I ditto Don's statement, otherwise all I can say is awesome!
You captured an incredible moment here for sure. This is quite beautiful!
I and others are seeing a disparity between the dark foreboding clouds and the lighter areas of foreground.
I happen to like the clouds a lot and think they fit well with the peaks.
I might suggest darkening the pines and aspen slopes just a bit instead to better match the rest of the brooding scene.
I could also see a slight saturation bump on the sunlit peaks, but that's a matter of taste.
Looking forward to seeing what you finally decide, if anything.
Posted by Bill Pelzmann on March 23, 2012 at 2:38 PM
A superb image to fine tune.
I agree with darkening the pines under Capitol Peak to match those to the left.
Maybe a bit more saturation on the peaks for printing.
The balance between the dark sky and foreground is a matter of taste. I could go either way.
But I would add a light vignette to create even more of a spotlight effect.
I'm looking forward to seeing this in the gallery.
I haven't been around much but this is such a fantastic shot I feel I have to comment on it. The light is gorgeous as are the colors of the whole scene. A few things that I think would make it even better. Darken the trees in the right hand corner slightly. The sky is to foreboding and competes with the rest of the image. I would soften it a bit so it blends better with the overall image and maybe lighten the darks a bit. Wow, great image Kalin!
Posted by Kalin Wilson on March 23, 2012 at 9:18 PM
Thanks everyone. I appreciate the input and ideas. Now I'm looking forward to working this when I get home. Its sure nice to tap into the great talent here. Thank for taking the time to critique and suggest.
Posted by Paul Martin on March 23, 2012 at 10:31 PM
Hey Kalin -- this looks mostly good to me too. I totally agree with John about the pines, I think they could go a little darker and really push the attention back to the peaks and clouds. Just a few tweaks and you are there!
As on who took some images here last fall, I really can appreciate this image. I didn't fair to well with lighting and the aspens were still quite green.
Of the comments made, I would agree that the spruces below the peak seem a bit too blue. However, I actually do believe, from my recollection, that is exactly what they did look like. So, it would be a matter of taste whether you change that or not. I also wonder why a little warming would do for the whole image. However, you may have wanted the image to portray a cooler feel as winter approaches. In regards to the pine trees, the area at least had a larger percentage of green trees that hadn't been killed by beetles.
Other than that, nice image!
Posted by Dan Walters on March 25, 2012 at 8:52 PM
Beautiful image. Really like the clouds. Very dramatic.
Discussion
11 repliesI'm not done with this. I haven't even brought it into PS yet for some luminosity mask magic. But I'm kinda liking where it's going and I'm looking for some feedback.
During the shoot I was hoping for some color and light on the bottom of the cloud layer, but we were lucky to get some spotlighting on the peaks. The dramatic mood contrasted with the color of the foliage and light is what I'm liking.
I've got a few ideas of what I might still do, but I thought I'd get some ideas and feedback from you guys. Tell me what you think.
Thanks in advance for any feedback. If I'm slow to respond it's because I'm out of town this weekend.
Large Image is linked.
Can't wait to see your final version!
Since you asked, If it were mine, I would lessen the contrast in the clouds a bit and lighten them up a bit. I find the darkness to be a bit overwhelming.
I and others are seeing a disparity between the dark foreboding clouds and the lighter areas of foreground.
I happen to like the clouds a lot and think they fit well with the peaks.
I might suggest darkening the pines and aspen slopes just a bit instead to better match the rest of the brooding scene.
I could also see a slight saturation bump on the sunlit peaks, but that's a matter of taste.
Looking forward to seeing what you finally decide, if anything.
I agree with darkening the pines under Capitol Peak to match those to the left.
Maybe a bit more saturation on the peaks for printing.
The balance between the dark sky and foreground is a matter of taste. I could go either way.
But I would add a light vignette to create even more of a spotlight effect.
I'm looking forward to seeing this in the gallery.
Of the comments made, I would agree that the spruces below the peak seem a bit too blue. However, I actually do believe, from my recollection, that is exactly what they did look like. So, it would be a matter of taste whether you change that or not. I also wonder why a little warming would do for the whole image. However, you may have wanted the image to portray a cooler feel as winter approaches. In regards to the pine trees, the area at least had a larger percentage of green trees that hadn't been killed by beetles.
Other than that, nice image!