Blazing Over the Mara

[Paul Marcellini]

This was the cleanest view from our lodge on the last stop, in Masai Mara. The game drive this morning was a bit late because of this amazing sky. =)

5d2, Tamron 28-75 f2.8
Lens (mm): 32
ISO: 200
Aperture: 16
Shutter: 1/5 +1.3s

[Kaushik Balakumar]

Amazing light Paul. Lovely rendering of a gorgeous scene. Beautiful sky & I especially liked the glow off the green ground (in the 'mid-ground').

[Rich Ikerd]

Spectacular sky Paul - easy to see why the game drive was delayed. I also like that the foreground and mid-ground all retain just the right amount of detail.

[Richard Lovison]

Paul,

Beautiful sky and light. Nicely done

I've done a quick, dirty and ugly clone to illustrate a point. I wish you could have moved the composition to the left a bit as I feel the open ground on the far right leads the eye away from the center of the image and out toward the right. I understand that moving to the left could have upset the balance in the sky so my critique may be pointless. :)

BTW, why do some of you post without an embedded profile in the jpeg?

http://richardlovison.com/photos/repost-p2.jpg

[Paul Marcellini]

Thanks guys,

Richard you are right about the sky, this was the best compromise. I'm not sure what a profile does for you either. I'm pretty sure save for web strip everything to get a smaller image. I work in srgb from start to finish so my colors should be accurate on the web since most browsers assume srgb.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Paul,
Love the sky and I do realize that Africa is not the easiest for landscapes especially when you can't get out of the vehicle. I think playing around with those lower layers with either the dodge tool or screen layers will realy make those layers shine even more. I do see what Richard is talking about.....but bringing up those tips with doging on the left may balance the midtone areas. Just a thought.

[Harold Davis]

valid point by richard, but i think the sun peppering the clouds stronger on the left side balances the open ground on the right. i like the original. Just my .02. btw, love the animalscapes!!