East Point Lighthouse HDR

[Dave Woeller]

I'm moving in a new direction (for me) with some HDR landscape attempts. This is a 5 image hdr with a -2 to + 2 bracket. After tone mapping I also aded a small increase to blacks in Lightroom , and also an exposure gradient to darken the top of the sky a bit more. Thoughts and guidance are always appreciated.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Dave, I like the basic comp with the dramatic sky. I cropped the top and bottom. On the bottom I eliminated the wood pieces and moved the grass over. I also lightened the front of the lighthouse. With Nik Bril and Warmth filter I added a small touch of warmth

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Dave,
I think compositionally you did well but agree with Dave's re-post....as it further emphasized your really dramatic clouds and further tweaked the shadow details by bringing them up. Log removal was also a good recommendation. Exploring these tweaks will only strengthen a very nice comp.

[Dave Woeller]

Thanks Dave and Roman. What a difference that makes. The repost is a huge inprovement. I was afraid that I had left the grass area a bit dark but wanted to see what others felt. I definately like the crop, as it is much cleaner and focuses more on the lighthouse. Thanks again...new directions can be fun. :)

[Julie Kenward]

Boy, that repost really makes those clouds pop! It's nice to see this without the IR to get a handle on the original image. (His IR version is down in the OOTB forum - go check it out!)

That is one beautifully dramatic sky...it makes the entire image so special.

[Fabs Forns]

Very dramatic sky and great mood. I love Dave's repost, lighter and a more efficient crop. Thanks for sharing this one!