This is a wetland field close to where I live, the wind was blowing off and on the other day, so I wanted to capture the look of the grasses blowing in the wind. I helped it along with some ICM as well.
Does the ICM technique work? Anything else
Is this a composite: No
Nikon D3400
300mm
1/15
f/32
ISO 100
Vanessa, I really like the subtle ICM addition as well as the layers. Nice image.
Thanks @Mario_Cornacchione! I’m glad you like it and that you see the layers too! Wasn’t sure if it would be noticeable.
Beautiful work. Both the intentional movement of the camera and the intentional movement by the wind, or is the wind unintentional, blend well.
Thank you @paul_g_wiegman, I’m so glad you like it and that it works! Sometimes I do think the wind intentionally is out to annoy me! But recently I decided to just go with it and started experimenting trying to show it in the photo.
So much of making memorable images is seeing what can be in places you least expect to find those images. An open field of grass is just one of those places. We pass by on our way to the grand scene, great drifts of wildflowers, the perfect spot for nesting raptors, etc.
But on the way we always need to keep an inquisitive eye open for the hidden, the elusive, the mundane, and the boring, and imagine what skills I have in my bag to interpret, craft, and create art.
You did just that.
I’m reminded of the A. Adams story behind “Moon Rise”. In short, he was headed back to where he was staying and saw the scene. It was changing rapidly, and he move just as rapidly to get his gear set up. All the while he was calculating exposures of the various elements of the scene, placing them in gray scale zones. Only a few negatives were made until the light was gone. But from that chance situation, he created a masterpiece.
I had the opportunity to see a contact print of the original negative and it’s amazing the final work he created from the original. But all the time, he had it in his mind and used his exceptional skills to leave us with that beautiful evening.
I like this scene too, Vanessa. Simple and beautiful grasses. We’ll done.
It works very well, a beautiful image. As already pointed out the layers add to the image quality. IMO you have chosen a balanced amount of bluriness.
I had the same moment of understanding turning the wind from foe to friend when shoting the image Do not fight the wind
This is pretty nice Vanessa, your ICM decision helped made lemonade here for sure. I especially like the alternating bands of yellow and green, which I think some others have called layers. They create repetition, and a sense of rhythm in the image. I also like your muted use of color here, it enhances the soft and gentle mood of the image. Great work on this one…
A minor nitpick, but my only suggested tweak would be to clone away the dark patch in the URC along the top edge, making the entire top edge a uniform yellow.
Thanks everyone @Ola_Jovall @Mark_Muller @Mario_Cornacchione @paul_g_wiegman @Ed_McGuirk for looking, your thoughts input and feedback is always appreciated! I’ve never been to any “iconic” “grand” locations, Paul, but I have always seen beauty in the world around me. Yes, Ed the “layers” are just the different parts of the grasses, I did a clone of the dark part, Ed, what do you think?…
I also, if you guys don’t mind looking, have a couple other images from the same field…
This one has no dark splotch at the top but there are some white swirls at the bottom…
I liked this because I got some of the daisies in the front of the field, but I thought overall it might be too blurred, any thoughts?….
That looks fine, it make the top edge of the image look more uniform.
Regarding your 2nd and 3rd images posted, I think the 2nd image works equally as well, or even slightly better than your original post. They are very similar images but the band of green at the bottom adds an extra layer, so that is nice and creates some depth. The 3rd image doesn’t really work as well for me. You lose the look of the layers, and to me the flowers being bright objects near the frame edge, they pull my eye away from the rest of the image. The composition is much less organized than the other 2 images, it feels more chaotic.
Thanks @Ed_McGuirk ! The second one was my favorite too! But I didn’t submit it because I thought everyone would like the original image I submitted better because it looks more uniform. Thanks for your feedback and encouragement!
I prefer your first image over the others. What I like about it is how those darker seed heads are sprinkled all over the lighter texture. To my eye the image looks flat and a bit dark for this subject. I also think the colors could be stronger. Here is a quick rework of the direction I would take this image in processing. This is just my take on things. You may not like it. In processing I like to look at the image is trying to convey and process it in accordance with that.
Thanks @Igor_Doncov for looking and your interest! I personally don’t think the original image looks dark. And I think the way you processed it makes it look like almost just one color and takes out the green stems, which I personally like, probably because I see it almost every day and know and love what it actually looks like. I just wanted to convey the wind blowing through the grasses. But hey, I guess photography is kind of like art and everyone interprets and sees things differently and that’s cool! 
