The pier at Santa Monica: Mustang near Subway: Click for big. Re: the 'Stang - I don't usually do a lot of jigery-pokery with my pictures, but this one sort of begged for it
Here's a couple from the weekend up on The Roaches in Staffordshire. It was a beautiful evening, but I didn't get the shots I went there for. There was only cloud to the north and north west, not to the south as I had hoped for and the wind was blowing from the south east, so no chance of the clouds coming over. The sun wasn't going to set in quite the right position either, so the cliffs would have had no definition or shadows - I'll be going back there again when it's snowed in the winter, when the sun will set much closer to the south-west. This was a fairly good back-up spot that I'd researched the last time I visited this location (without a camera), but wasn't a first choice for this occasion. Nothing beats getting to a location well in advance and then simply waiting for the light... this burst of light lasted a few minutes at max after waiting around for a break in the clouds to the west for 25 minutes or so. I reeled off another shot to the right of this a minute or so later (below). I'd considered a horizontal composition to include both of these compositions in a single image, but after reviewing the image on the back of the camera, I decided that the feeling wasn't quite right and the eyes weren't at all drawn to the beautiful fields of heather on what would've been the right hand half of the horizontal image. The both images are almost straight out of the camera - I've only a minor curves adjustment to bring out the pointing rock image... no saturation adjustments were required. The rock is pointing at the trig point on top of The Roaches. The second image also had a minor curves adjustment, but the rest was as-seen by the camera. 5D Mark II, TS-E 24mm F/3.5 L II, 1.5 degrees downward shift, Lee ND grad 0.9 HE filter.
Guess where I was this summer: This last one was taken through a window. I would totally have bought that picture if the gallery was open.
Haha, thanks - your work is improving significantly, so I suggest you do keep at it. I found as soon as I started to slow down and consider my options a bit more, the images started to improve. I don't post many images online, but I've shot over 10,000 images on my 5D since getting it in November - I make a lot of mistakes, but I'm trying to learn from those mistakes as I go along. That's an awesome picture. I have no idea where the other two are from though!
This is a very nice photo. It's abstract and colorful, and there's a strange feeling about it; and otherworldly quality about the micro-landscape created within the frame. I like it. The first one is nice, Tim, and there's nothing really wrong with it taken on its own. However, there's nothing in it that really sets it apart from all the other quality landscapes you've done. I will say that I like the subtle orange highlight that follows the left edge of the rocks. The image above is the one I prefer. I think it has a warm, painterly quality that reminds me of a certain landscape painter whose name escapes me at the moment (no, it's not Kinkaid). I know you said that the images were basically straight out of the camera, but did you apply any sharpening at all? For some reason both pictures look a little soft, and I'm used to the long depth of field in your other landscapes. Oddly enough, I think the softness actually works in the second image as it lends an impressionist feeling.
I'll have to double-check, but I think you're right - I've forgotten to add my typical High Pass sharpening filter to both images. I tend to spend a lot longer mulling over a photo before I upload it to the 'net than I did with either of these and, yes, now I look at the high-res JPEGs, they're a little soft.... not massively so, but enough for it to be noticeable. Focus appears to be fine though, so it's a case of it not being sharpened as you suggest. I do prefer the second myself, but it's a little different to my normal stuff that tends to be full of bold shapes and lines. It does look a little impressionistic like you say.
Sooo, nobody noticed the foot? The two serious nature photos was taken near a town called Geysir. The last was taken in Reykjavik, all in Iceland. I think they are quite good, considering they where taken with a Sony DSC-T900 and no "polishing" afterwards.
I've re-uploaded the images with the high pass filter applied... I don't think they look so soft any more, but I'm keen to hear your thoughts
Tim I think they look better with the filter applied, but I don't know much about photography so im talking as a member of the public who likes pretty pictures
They look better with the filter applied. With the size, I can't really tell how sharp they were, but the original images just looked a little under saturated TBH. Pentax K-x, Sigma EX DC Macro 18-50 A couple from a walk to Lelant.