Colorado fall color: San Juan Mountains sunset

[Roger Clark]

From 2007. I recently ran across these files. This is a 15-frame split density HDR mosaic. 1D Mark II, 28-135 IS at 33mm f/5.6, ISO 100. The images with the clouds were exposed at 1/80 second and the land below at 1/10 second. Assembled in ptgui, which blended the hdr much better than using a split density filter. I think I should crop a little off the bottom, but didn't want to impact the yellow aspen trees. What do you think?

Roger

[Jay Gould]

Here comes da Judge of Ethics!!

Not me; just the subject.

First, WOW!!

If it were mine, since I have no hesitation to change what I captured, to make it MINE, I would do this: WDYT?

I just cropped at the very top of the rocks and then did an elimination of the remaining portion of the one Aspen. I did not want to shorten the two lower ridge lines as they invite the eye to the mountains.

[Valerio Tarone]

My attention was drawn by these strong colors! perfect as ROT. to crop the bottom or not? it doesn't mind, but the agree with the Jay's tip.

[Robert Amoruso]

Roger,

On the composition/cropping question my feeling is it would have been best to have more at the bottom so as to not clip the aspen at the bottom and to have included the intersection of the "V" in the FG slopes.

What Jay did looks OK but having included more at the bottom in the initial exposure would have been preferable IMO.

The clouds - color and texture - look great, but the mountains and FG land the trees the color looks off to me but you mentioned this was sunset and the FG appears to be shaded so perhaps that is it.

[Rachel Hollander]

Roger - a beautiful scene. It almost looks like a painting. A little more below would have taken this over the top. I agree with Robert's observations about the look of the aspens.

TFS,
Rachel

[Roger Clark]

Thanks everyone for the comments. Here is a repost with more on the bottom. I originally did not like the bland rocks at the bottom and that is why I cropped them out. Unfortunately I did that as one of the first steps before I did a warp to make the horizon straight, so it was a fair amount of work to get that lower piece registered and stretched the same as the rest of the image. Now that I see the final image with more on the bottom, the rocks grow on me.

People who have been to the spot will recognise it: it is Dallas Divide. It usually a morning shot and generally there are few photographers here in the evening because the sun sets behind the mountains and the foreground and mountains are in shade. I saw this developing from a spot further east and rushed up here for the sunset. The clouds and blue sky gave the light on the mountains (except of course the few peaks with direct sun). That gave the unusual light. The direction of light for the trees was the soft backlight from the orange clouds.

Roger

[Chris Korman]

Very nice location to be photographing from. I like what you have captured. I felt the mid FG was a bit too bright in areas so I selectively darkened them while maintaining the tree brightness, though the changes are best seen by overlaying the two and cycling between them.

http://webs.lanset.com/hypoploi/jpeg/san.juan.mtns.sunset.c09.2007.jz3f6155-69.g-1024_edit.jpg

[Chris Korman]

I also thought this would look nice as a B&W, here's that version: http://webs.lanset.com/hypoploi/jpeg/san.juan.mtns.sunset.c09.2007.jz3f6155-69.g-1024_editbandw.jpg

[Morkel Erasmus]

Insane light and colours, Roger! Nice spot too...I agree with the comments above and really like your repost with more of the FG rocks included.
I also think Chris's repost is an enhancement with the darkened midground.
Lastly - the first thing that caught my eye from the get-go was the 'strange' colour of the FG yellow trees. Having never seen them in real life I am not qualified to comment...and as you mentioned the light reflected off the clouds also had an impact. :e3

PS: Though I love B&W photos and there's a good tonal range here, I feel converting this one loses one of the big PUNCH factors - the colours! :bg3:

[Roger Clark]

Chris, Morkel,

Thanks for the comments. I'll probably play with those mid-tones when I get a chance. And I do like the B&W too (I used to do a lot of large format B&W).

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Roger, I like your repost best. The clouds look great and the comp is improved with the extra room at the bottom. I wonder if the aspens need to be toned down just a touch.

[dankearl]

Very Nice and great color, but to me, the aspens don,t quite look true to color.
Overall it is dazzling though and I also like the B and W.

[Roger Clark]

Very Nice and great color, but to me, the aspens don,t quite look true to color.
Overall it is dazzling though and I also like the B and W.

Dan,
Why don't you think the aspens "don't look true to color?"

Some snow banks have RGB= 182, 182, 180. Doesn't get much more neutral than that. Remember the aspens are back-lit by the orange clouds and not by the setting sun. It is that unusual light that makes the image in my opinion.

Roger

[dankearl]

Roger, it is not a big deal, and I am not a stickler for things like that.
They look light and lemon yellow, Aspens usually look a bit more golden, and backlight they should look darker, not
Lighter.
HDR images are not real, nothing wrong with that and you disclosed your settings.
The foreground was shot slower and thus lighter and it shows.
It is a very nice image, but not true to the scene and that is just my opinion.

[Roger Clark]

Roger, it is not a big deal, and I am not a stickler for things like that.
They look light and lemon yellow, Aspens usually look a bit more golden, and backlight they should look darker, not
Lighter.
HDR images are not real, nothing wrong with that and you disclosed your settings.
The foreground was shot slower and thus lighter and it shows.
It is a very nice image, but not true to the scene and that is just my opinion.

OK, I just looked at an individual image from the mosaic to see if there was any effect from HDR. In the case of the aspens, there is only one exposure, and there is really no difference between the individual exposure and the assembled mosaic. There is no HDR artifact that I can tell on the aspens.

Roger

[Santanu Banik]

Lovely colors - definitely liked the color version more :)
The golden light on the peaks are superb... the clouds are taking away some attention from those majestic peaks though :)

[Brendan Dozier]

Very nice, Roger! Great colors and grand, wide open landscape scene. I like pane #6 repost with more FG. Nice work!

[Andrew Aveley]

Roger , awesome colours and scene with wide open spaces................well done on the mosaic here......Ditto on bw suggestions , may just have some more kick :)

[Don Lacy]

Hi Roger, Just came across this thread and what a wonderful image I prefer the second post with the slightly darker foreground that Chris did.


HDR images are not real, nothing wrong with that and you disclosed your settings.
Dan would you like to clarify that statement HDR is as real and valid as any other method that expands the dynamic range of the captured medium to better match human sight. I do not understand why you would not think it real.

[Mark Wiseman]

Hi Roger,
A bit late to the discussion, your repost is so much better. You definitely need the foreground rocks to add foreground interest in the overall composition. The colours of the autumn trees are wonderful. My only change to the composition would be to possibly crop the sky so that the portion above the mountain tops would equate to a third of the overall composition, but I suppose I am being picky. The B&W conversion does not warrant consideration as the autumn colours for me are what this image is all about.
Thanks for sharing and best wishes,
Mark.
:cheers: