Ghost town - Terlingua, TX

[Chris Ober]

Was out in Terlingua last month cooking in the International Chili Championship and spent some time around the ghost town just before sunset.

3 shot HDR, processed with Nik software collection. Clouds were doing some wild things that evening.

5D Mk II
17-40mm @ 17mm
f/16

[Don Railton]

Hi Chris.. I think I might like this shot more if it was not HDR. I am not a fan of HDR because it often looks unnatural and I think this is a case in point, sorry to have to say this. There is quite a wide fuzzy halo most noticeable the top RH side the 'building' and inside the doorway which just does not ring true for me and I think a result of the HDR processing. I also think it might be over sharpened a little due to a much narrower halo around inside of the doorway and a generally harsh look...

The good bits for me is the cloud, I can see why that got you excited and the building itself is an interesting subject to include. I would tend also to include all of the rock and bushes along the RH border if possible, having the tips of the bush go out of frame takes the eye out of the frame as well..


regards

DON

[dankearl]

Over the top PP, but I like it.
Landscapes do not have to be real, obviously, they can be whatever the person imagines them to be
if they are well done and i think this one is.

[Chris Ober]

Thanks Don and Dan. I understand the feelings to the over processing and I generally agree there. For some reason, I kind of liked this one that way.
The halo on the right is in the single shots as well -- this was back lit so that may be why? I clipped the bush and can't blame it on the slide mount :) This one took a bit of hit with compression to keep it within the file size limit as well.

Thanks for the suggestions, much appreciated and I'll keep working on it!

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Chris, ghost towns are cool places to explore and photograph and the processing of this image suits it I think. Landscapes such as those with human elements in them are fun to work on with over-the-top processing. My only suggestion would be to tone down the brightest areas of the sky.

[David Stephens]

I love it. Makes me think of Carrol Shelby and his race team back in the day.

I probably wouldn't go quite this high key, but the way you've done it spells money to me. I bet this would be a big seller in the right gallery. The sky is indeed incredible and you put an exclamation point on that. Why not? What would Georgia O'Keeffe or Ansel Adams do? Probably something close to this. The way you've done it, the building turns ancillary, but you've preserved great detail and placed it nicely in the frame.