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View Full Version : Monument Valley--an unconventional view



Lyle Gruby
11-15-2013, 09:22 AM
This is probably my favorite composition I got at Monument Valley. I was driving that disaster of a road, saw this view, hopped out, and grabbed a few frames handheld. All C&C welcome.

Techs:
D3S
16-35 @ 20mm
ISO 200
f/16

Don Railton
11-16-2013, 02:04 AM
WOW...WOW..WOW.. there is nothing I don't like about this...! Great comp, love the muted footprints leading into the scene, the cloud detail and the detail you have kept on the shady side of the 'monument'.. Well done.. Is it a blend? how did you stop the sun from burning a big hole in this image??

TFS

DON

Carl Walker
11-16-2013, 04:24 AM
Super shot Lyle. I really would like to get more into LS in time. IMO I think you have done really well here and I like it a lot. Good detail all round. Just wondering did you do anything to open up the rocky areas as the sun seems to be coming from behind. A question - I have been thinking about the 16 - 35 for a while now - are you happy with its performance? Thanks Lyle great shot!

Rachel Hollander
11-16-2013, 11:19 AM
Hi Lyle - very nicely seen and captured. Great colors and comp. Only small point from me - there's a halo/bright transition line where the sky meets the ground in some places. Probably a result of the different pp to the sky and the ground. I'm really enjoying your shots from out west and they're making me want to revisit those areas.

TFS,
Rachel

Andrew McLachlan
11-16-2013, 11:58 AM
Hi Lyle, great scene and you have captured it well considering you were looking straight into the sun. Love the foreground details and the detail in the main monument. Good catch by Rachel on the halo. If only the conditions had of been right for a sunburst:S3:

Diane Miller
11-16-2013, 02:27 PM
Very nice to see a different view of an iconic place. I'm seeing a lot of contrast and wondering if there is any more detail to be pulled out of the bright area in the sky? The edges of it have the typical digital look of lacking a smooth transition. And the histogram shows a lot of blocked-up darks. With a RAW capture it's usually possible to get dramatic darks without pushing them this far.

Morkel Erasmus
11-17-2013, 01:08 AM
Love your take on this. Ditto Rachel on the halos and I feel there's just too many patches of uneven/unnatural lighting that I would try and tame (particularly on the buttes).
I would crop out the sun as is...:e3

Don Nelson
11-17-2013, 01:12 AM
Lyle
A fine image- I like how you have handled it, including the sun. No way could we have made this with color film in the 8x10 camera. its just excellent!
A perusal of the actual histograms of your JPG shows there is no problem in the black -- otherwise you'd see the vertical line at the left side, similar to the right side.
Diane may be suggesting she likes lighter blacks in the image, but they certainly aren't blocked up according to the histogram. Maybe she's thinking about that little tiny vertical line on the left that is on the steep slope of the blue channel???
here's what I see in your histogram: no pixels backed up vertically on the left hand edge (but certainly on the right due to the sun being blown out)
134800

Lyle Gruby
11-17-2013, 02:03 PM
Thanks all for the feedback. Thanks Rachel for catching those halos, I'll take care of those. This is a blend of 2 images. This was shot in some extremely strange light. It was a light overcast as you can see the sun is behind some thin clouds. I shot this as the sun started going down and the light started turning more golden. It created a really weird color cast which took me a while to get rid of, so I'm glad no one noticed that. The blacks looked good to me, but I did push them hard. I didn't push the sky as hard as I could have just so this wouldn't get over the top on me. I did burn down the right side of the middle butte after I posted this. I'm glad everyone liked this composition as much as me. I really appreciate all the feedback as I am about to get this printed.

Steve Kaluski
11-17-2013, 05:04 PM
Hi Lyle, like the image, it almost has a 'cinema' look & feel to it, if you know what I mean. The light for me, does have a surreal feel, nicely handled.

TFS
Steve

dankearl
11-17-2013, 11:55 PM
It does have a nice moody western film noir look to it.
I am with Morkel on cloning out the bright sun, I think the image would look more natural without it.

Diane Miller
11-18-2013, 11:05 AM
My working space is Pro Photo (PS CS6) so when I open the properly tagged sRGB file I get the warning message of a profile mismatch. I get the same histogram that ypu show if I answer either Convert to Working Space or Use Embedded Profile. (They should be the same.)

But when I click the warning icon in the UR of the histogram box, to recalculate the estimated histogram, I get this one, which shows some blocked up blacks.

David Stephens
11-18-2013, 12:59 PM
I love the wide angle view and the low perspective. The light on the near sand really is important to the feel of the image. I think that you got the shadow side of the monuments just right and the contrast in the clouds is dynamic. It has a bit of an "unreal" feel to it, but I like it and I suspect that buyers would like it also.

peter delaney
11-23-2013, 04:14 PM
Great image …. just a few small tweaks that have been mentioned above and you will have an awesome image. Great thinking with the different perspective…

drosskennedy
12-06-2013, 10:46 AM
Outstanding !!