Bridalveil Fall in mist

[Indranil Sircar]

Another one from Yosemite taken last week... this is the view from the south side road entering the valley. After the storm, clouds completely enveloped the fall and I took this as it was retreating. The settings were

7D, 17-40mm @40
1/100 sec, f/22, Manual, Evaluative metering, ISO: 200

For post processing, added a bit of saturation and contrast, adjusted selective colors and applied usm of the final web version. Hope you like it...

[Ed Cordes]

Very moody image. I like the strength of the falls but the suronding clouds make it different. I might eliminate the partial tree on the right frame edge.

[dankearl]

Pretty dramatic. Agree about cropping the tree out.
I think the SS could have been a bit slower but that is all personal taste.
The clouds and rock walls are really nice.
I like the fog a lot on the right side, it adds a lot to the image.

[Indranil Sircar]

Ed, Dan, thanks for the feedback. Here is the repost without the tree.



I think the SS could have been a bit slower but that is all personal taste.


Dan, I did try slower SS. With the moving clouds, I could not get it right. I did post a vertical version with slower shutter speed on the OOTB forum.

[Robert Amoruso]

Indrani,

I agree with the removal of the right tree. I also went to the OOTB image you mentioned and that is the composition I would have suggested for this subject. Please post that one straight up as a new post here.

Regarding the shutter speed here and as a matter of personal taste for really fast moving, "full" falls, I prefer faster shutter speeds to freeze the motion - even faster then what you used here. Slower and you end up with just a carpet of white blur. Now for slower moving water and falls with a lot less "fullness" I generally prefer slower speeds.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Indranil, the repost is a definate improvement. Having detail in water is my personal taste rather than as Robert said "a white blur" Due to the fog the image has an interesting mood and the falls are placed well within the frame.

[Judy Howle]

Very nice image Indranil. I like the composition and placement of the falls and the fog really makes the image for me.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Indranil,

I too prefer the OOTB comp over this one.....even with the tree removed. Robert brings up a great point on the water.....depending on the flow.....a faster SS sometimes works better from preventing it in going to pure milk. It is a personal preference but bracketing with SS in this case is really the best option for judging which water flow looks best. Sometimes when flows are very strong.....faster is better.
This one still conveys an excellent mood and although I prefer the OOTB comp....nice to see you explored them all and very well handled!

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Indranil, I was there last Tuesday. I'll take a look at the other comp. Tough conditions to shoot. Repost is defnitely better.

[Indranil Sircar]

Thanks all; appreciate it a lot.


Indrani,

I agree with the removal of the right tree. I also went to the OOTB image you mentioned and that is the composition I would have suggested for this subject. Please post that one straight up as a new post here.



Robert, thanks for all the feedback. I will post the original from OOTB as a separate post.


Indranil, I was there last Tuesday. I'll take a look at the other comp. Tough conditions to shoot. Repost is defnitely better.

Glad you could make it... I will be back later in the season for hiking!

[Roger Clark]

Indranil,

I agree with Robert and Roman on the composition and shutter speed. Did you make any exposure with a faster shutter speed? On a waterfall, a long shutter speed make the fall seem gentle, but a faster shutter speed makes an image that says power, so which to use depends on the mood you want.

Also, to me the image seems dark, but perhaps that is the mood you want. The brightest pixel is DN=219 (one pixel in the blue channel). So the waterfall appears grey to me. Here is a levels adjustment to 219.

Roger

[Indranil Sircar]

Thanks Roger. You are right about the mood but it can go either way as you have shown here. In this series the highest ss was 1/100 (this one). The vertical composition in OOTB (http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php/83984) was at 1/50. From previous years, I have much higher ss which I will post just for comparison.

[Harshad Barve]

Indranil

I liked the moody image as it is
TFS

[Indranil Sircar]

Thanks Harshad, appreciate it very much.

[Andrew McLachlan]

Indranil, love the fog and the placement of the falls in the comp. Very nice.