Early in my photography career I took this photo in a Redwood forest near Fort Bragg, CA. I was a novice with a Nikon 9100 camera. I have recently edited the image and would like any input regarding composition, contrast & lighting, etc. All comments welcome!
Is this a composite: No
I could not find the details in the old file.
Good to see you back here! (Or maybe I’ve missed some posts.) I would say you started out with both feet firmly on the ground of good image-making! This is a classic view – for good reason! The one stronger/larger trunk anchors the composition and leads up to the lightest area in the image. The other trees are the supporting cast. I love the detail in the main trunk and the brush of light on it.
But I’m not even slightly a landscape person, and I’m sure you will get a lot of good feedback.
The composition is really strong. This image speaks of power and vitality to me. The contrast is pretty high in this image. I would try to raise the darks while introducing greater saturation in those areas. I would try that and see how it goes.
Hi Diane,
Thanks for your feedback! I know it is difficult to photography the Redwoods. I have been busy getting prints and framing my work to show at Studios on the Park in Paso Robles. It is a great learning experience for sure.
I do check in to read critiques whenever I can. I am thinking of you during this hot, dry fire season.
Thank you, Igor , for your comments and suggestions. I am not sure what “raise the darks” means…to lighten the darks? I’m still learning the lingo.
Sorry for the confusion. Yes, make the dark areas lighter but without losing the texture or color.
Ann, you are right, photographing in a redwoods forest is not easy. But you did a great job of organizing the chaos of the forest. And you produced a very strong and powerful composition by emphasizing one tree as dominant.
In terms of processing, I think you handled a challenging exposure situation pretty well overall. To me the most interesting things about this image are the colors and texture of the dominant redwood tree. I would suggest tweaking the processing to accentuate that tree. I agree with @Igor_Doncov that you could brighten the dark’s slightly and add a small amount of saturation. But I would recommend targeting those adjustments primarily on the dominant tree. I would go easy on added saturation, alternatively a slight increase in warmth on that dominant tree might be an alternative. For illustration, here is a rework reflecting my comments.
@Igor_Doncov , @Ed_McGuirk : Thank you both for your specific recommendations, and Ed for reworking the photo! This is very, very helpful. I am new to the world of landscape and learning this technique is great. It was a lucky shot but stood out to me as I reviewed my photos of the park.
