Surf

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I’m really having doubts with this one. I love the all the water scenes, not sure about the sky…

Technical Details

Is this a composite: Yes
3 exposures (waves) blended.
16X9 crop

Nikon D810
Nikon 70-200

1 Like

I see what you are saying with the sky…but this one really has me thinking…It is like watching the life of a wave from beginning to end. I’m not sure if this is the same wave or 2-3 different ones, not sure that it matters either but could be cool for the story telling aspect. I like the bit of sand/streaky water in the bottom right.

I don’t really know what to say about the sky, I’m thinking the way the clouds are position along the horizon it kind of blocks out the light a bit. I wonder if a touch of Dehaze in Lightroom may have an impact? I don’t think it is enough though to “ruin” the image or anything like that, those waves do the work!

Joao, I enjoy your seaside/coastal style. I don’ think this imge is up to the quality and impact of some of the others I’ve seen here. At first glance the sky seems to be harshly cropped ( the narrower top border may have something to do with that). It’s a beautiful sky and fits well with the scene. I am wanting more of it in the image even at the expense of the shoreline . There is an equal amount of space dedicated to the backwash and shore as the sky. For me, that foreground is a different image waiting for you and your style. As a viewer, the sky and two surf breaks are enough of an image for me. If it’s not a crop I would show it as a panorama, and lighten up on the darker wave colors trying to make it similar in soft pastel tone as the sky. Just my thoughts.

Joao. What is it about the sky that you don’t like or are not sure about? Perhaps if you mentioned it we could comment on your thoughts.

Somebody mentioned using dehaze. What if you used it or clarity in the opposite direction and make it hazier. Just a thought.

Nice image. I like the layering and also the SS chosen for the wave action. My only concern is also with the sky. It seems like it’s from another image. IMHO the color balance doesn’t work with the green waves. Still a fine image.

1 Like

This is a lovely series. It would be great to see them all together. My first thought, with this one, was similar to what @Igor_Doncov suggested. I, too, would recommend trying to add a little neg-clarity, dehaze, or gaussian blur to the sky. A touch of Orton just to the mid-tones might also soften the sky and give it a bit more glow in keeping with the water.

I am quite enjoying this image. I am not sure what bothers you about the sky but it is not bothering me at all. I live a few blocks from the ocean and this looks like something I would see there.

@joaoquintela que belas cores. Gosto muito da imagem.

I kind of understand yours doubts on the sky. I like it, but it is a bit strong to me, maybe tone down the whites on the sky bit can help. But with it its a gorgeous image, movement very well captures and framed. Dynamic and pleasing.

@David_Wallace , @Kerry_Gordon , @Harley_Goldman , @João_Ferrão Thank you all for your comments;

@Igor_Doncov It’s kind of strange to verbalize why I am not comfortable with the Sky/Surf combination - it’s not the Sky itself - like @Michael_Lowe said I feel it from another image.

@Stephen_Stanton ; you probably right when you said

As a viewer, the sky and two surf breaks are enough of an image for me.

I’m thinking perhaps @Michael_Lowe is right, whats incongruous between sky and water here is the white balance. The sky is very warm, and rest of the image is cooler, especially the white water right at the sand. Maybe try balancing WB by slightly cooling the sky, and warming the rest of the image ?

I like the motion in this image as well as the vibrant ocean colours.

Like @Ed_Lowe and @Ed_McGuirk suggested the sky and ocean seem a little disconnected from a colour perspective. I think this can be fixed with some subtle colour dodging which gives the effect of the light bleeding from the background onto the middle and foreground.

3 Likes

I love the deep green, energetic waves. Your shutter speed was perfect to convey their energy. I’m with the others on the white balance/colors of the sky being incongruous with the tones of the water. I think it has too much of a purple tint. I tried adjusting the sky by cooling it a bit, changing the tint to the green end (in ACR), and desaturating the yellows and oranges. I also see some hints of the sky colors in the foreground wash of the waves, so I tried to bring those out a bit (increased texture in ACR) and warmed up the sandy patches in the foreground (with the idea that they would link to the warm sky.

2 Likes

Once again Thank you all for the comments
@Ed_McGuirk Thank for point the white balance issue (I have to check my original’s)
@Nathan_Klein , @Bonnie_Lampley you did a beautiful work here. I’ll have to work that image a little more.

Joao, I have no issues at all with the sky in this image. None. I think you are overthinking this one. The image is beautiful. I would love to see more sky included in this image as I feel it’s too small of a strip and a little out of balance with the mid and foreground weight. Maybe it should hold more weight…closer to thirds and it’s closer to a fifth of the scene right now but other than that I have no issues with this image at all.