Swamp painting

[David Kenny]

I took this shot of a swamp with some flowers (not sure what type). I used a slower shutter speed (1/4 second) and moved the camera when it was on the tripod to get a painting effect. I know it is not a new idea but it was my first attempt at this technique.


- Dave

[Cheryl Slechta]

Hi, David, welcome to OOTB:S3: I love blurs and this is a good one. I like the colors and flow. You might want to tone down the lower right trunk just a little bit but it's fine the way it is. Sometimes, even if I've done a long exposure that I want to have a soft look I will do a very slight sharpening. If this is your first attempt, I'm impressed. Keeper rates aren't high with blurs but they are addictive and the good ones are worth it. I hope we see lots more of your images here.

[Diane Miller]

If this is a first attempt, you're already on third base! Very nice!!

I love the flowers and the interest of the lighter trunks in the center.

I like the idea of introducing some variablilty in the frame, such as selectively sharpening an area in the center, or adding contrast to it, or darkening the edges, or the like. Lots to play with here! Keep posting!

[Dennis Bishop]

Very nicely done. I agree with Diane's comment about the lighter trunks being a good element. In addition, it's well-composed, and the amount of blur is good. I hope we get to see more of your images here.

[Nancy Bell]

Hi Dave. This is a great OOTB first post! I really like the soft blur of the purple flowers and the contrast of the whitish tree trunk. Very nicely composed. Keep 'em coming!

[David Kenny]

Thank you everyone. You are right with the ultra low keeper rate with this technique. I think out of over one hundred photos I came up with 4 or five I liked. I made a promis to myself to experiment more this year with this technique and try to incorporate it into other areas of my photography.

- Dave

[Paul Lagasi]

David welcome, blurs are funny you can take hundreds of them and as your going through your images one will just jump out at you, as the keeper.
Very nice work above, nice color and crop....keep them coming

[Jackie Schuknecht]

The colours are beautiful, I think it may be purple loosestrife. I like the idea of darkening the edges a bit. Easy to do if you have NIK Color Efex Pro 4.

[Anita Bower]

You did a great job.