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Thread: Dust and Clouds

  1. #1
    BPN Member Morkel Erasmus's Avatar
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    Default Dust and Clouds

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    Another one from the Chobe river. We were able to pull this boat right up to this island where a couple of African Bush Elephants were feeding and dusting.
    Converted in PS CC and Nik silver efex 2...

    Techs:
    Nikon D800
    Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 24mm
    Kenko PRO Circular Polariser
    f8.0 | 1/400 SS | ISO-640
    Last edited by Morkel Erasmus; 06-09-2014 at 10:23 AM.
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    Lifetime Member Marc Mol's Avatar
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    Good low angle POV that the photog boat provides here Morkel, with the CP filter & sky adding nice drama, however the dust is somewhat lost in this conversion and I had to
    actually look around to see that it was only the leading ele which was bathing. Perhaps a colour alternative may pick that out a little better?

    TFS


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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Morkel - good low pov and dramatic clouds. I agree with Marc that the dust is somewhat lost though. Also there seems to be a somewhat stark thin halo around each elephant, probably due to the conversion. I like that the elephants are separated from each other and their placement in the frame. In reviewing my images, I realize just how hard it is to get the animals to cooperate and leave some room between them.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    BPN Member Morkel Erasmus's Avatar
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    Thanks Marc and Rachel.
    I disagree about the dust but then I've looked at the shot for a long time in processing, haha

    Rachel, I think that's a sloppy sharpening halo

    Here's the colour version, swiftly processed, for comparison.
    Morkel Erasmus

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    I really like this Morkel. Always amazed as to how you process these images. There is a lot of detail in here as well as the structure of the clouds thats acts as a great back drop to the eles due to the low POV. I can't help wondering though what it it might look like if you had some water in the foreground showing. Super capture.

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    BPN Member Andreas Liedmann's Avatar
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    Hi Morkel very nice conversion , love it. Sky looks close to B/W guru Ansel Adams .
    And therefore i feel the FG with the ellies gets a little lost , if it was mine i would try balance this a bit more by pushing the FG and the ellies with more contrast. Not as much as the sky , though.Plus i would try loosing the river bank and see how that looks .

    Nice job during capture and PP

    TFS Andreas

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    BPN Member Anette Mossbacher's Avatar
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    Hi Morkel,

    read not all comments. The angle is great

    My first impression and question: Do you sharpen the clouds?
    The conversion looks so far good to me, but somewhat the "elles" get lost in the B&W version for me. The sky/clouds take the most important part in this image, IMHO!
    I would change that, but this is just me, as usual.
    The color version works better, that one lets the animals stand out more and the dust is seen of the front elle.
    As well, the FG of the ground, would "unsharpened" that a tad.

    Ciao
    Anette

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    Morkel I am not usually a fan of black/white but this one rocks my boat, amazing clarity and a dramatic sky.

    Keith.

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    Beautiful shot, Morkel! I prefer the color version - it simply let the ele's & sky stand out so much better. Neatly done!

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    BPN Viewer Steve Canuel's Avatar
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    Hey Morkel,
    The color contrast of the white clouds and blue sky is stark enough that it doesn't need the drama of a B/W conversion IMO. The dust is a lot more noticeable in the B/W after viewing the color version. Looks like a beautiful day.

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    Lifetime Member Marc Mol's Avatar
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    I'm liking the colour version for the dust clarity/behaviour aspect and the B&W for the dramatic sky here Morkel.
    It's kinda more dirt than dust here Morkel, as I was initially looking for that large dust cloud one associates with ele dust bathing.
    Last edited by Marc Mol; 06-10-2014 at 07:04 AM.


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    Hard to choose. Think I like the B&W because it looks so dramatic. But the colour does show where the dust is easily. Both versions look great.

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    Forum Participant edwardselfe's Avatar
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    I prefer the colour one too - the dust is a great touch. Also wonder about your choice of where to cut off at the bottom. But the placement of the eles and the sky and clouds is stunning, as is the PP (as usual).
    Ed

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    Lifetime Member Andre Pretorius's Avatar
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    Hi Morkel

    Both have their own magic!

    Love the sky!

    Andre
    Regards

    Andre.

    www.gappimages.com

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    Like the mono treatment but would personally try to brighten the ellies and FG selectively (give the ellies more than the FG). Great POV dude!

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