landscape Of Dragons & Dungeons

There wasn't a great deal of colour in the sky to start with, so I

thought maybe a B & W would be a good bet. I also processed

another one in colour. Your thoughts and comments are always

appreciated. Thank You.

Alf, I really like the perspective and the low light.  Great B&W as well.

Hello Alf, When I viewed this larger I was delighted, the detail in the fg rocks is excellent, the white specks are almost like snow covering on the rocks. The image only gets better from there. First the blur of the water and then the tack sharpness going up the hill to the ruins, that look and contrast works for me. Good one Alf.

Best,

Holger

Much better than the color version, although that was good too!

Best regards Alf!

PDE

Hi Alf,

I like this bw version because of the texture and layers in the sky, no need of colours at all. I also like the proportion between foreground and sky in the composition, the rocks line up create a good perspective. Good job.

Best Regards

Alf,

  Beautiful b/w scene with wonderful composition & details.  Great work.  Take care, Patsy

Wonderful textures! Very atmospheric and dramatic low light scene!

Hi Alf, With this title it seems my fantasy idea was on your mind. Once again well thought composition and the black and white tones are well done.

Joe

Many Thanks for your thoughts and positive feedback. There were a million variations of the rock patterns along this coast,  I tried a few different compositions with more and less foreground, and a few in portrait orientation that I will post at a later date.

Best Regards 

Alf 

HOLGER 

The white specks are in fact barnacles, which are very useful when walking on the otherwise slippery smooth rocks as they prevent my feet slipping.  i would say that technically this is a better photo than the colour version, simply because of the sharpness. Its surprising how you can use exactly the same settings and get different results. I'm very leased you liked this one Holger.

Sincere Thanks & Best Regards 

Alf 

PIERRE 

Yes, I think from a technical viewpoint you could be right, though from an aesthetic judgement I suppose its infinitely variable according to the viewer.  My sincere thanks for your interest and kind words! 

Best Regards Pierre!

Alf 

FRANCESCO

The sky was a surprise to me as I experimented with the B & W. I didn't think it would look quite so dramatic, but the adjustment to channels seemed to make it more moody looking than perhaps it really was at the time. But I too liked the effect. 

Sincere Thanks & Best Regards 

Alf 

PATSY

Many Thanks for your thoughts and positive feedback I'm very pleased you liked it.

Best Regards 

Alf 

PAT 

"Atmospheric" was exactly what I'd hoped to convey with this one.  The B & W processing helped too! 

Sincere Thanks & Best Regards 

Alf 

JOE 

Well its that kind of place Joe, the whole coastline is full of castles and islands steeped in history dating back centuries.  One can't help but get caught up in it somehow.  I think I mentioned to someone else in a reply, that when I eventually examined the castle close up, the walls were about 9ft thick in parts, how anyone could breach it is unfathomable.

Many Thanks & Best Regards 

Alf 

Hello Alf.

Great B&W.

It is hard to tell if color would be the right thing. It is two different pictures. 

Both work very well. 

Kind regards

Bela Dick

Very provocative image Alf!  The rocks are very well done, and lead my eyes to the upper portion of the image.  The highlights on the water help as well.  And the castle in the distance looks huge.  Amazing that it would have nine foot walls, as you said!  Really makes me want to know a little more about its history.  And you have made it stand out so prominently on the horizon!  Its a beautiful sky that really held still for you during the many seconds of exposure.  Best regards

Hi Alf

I love this image,firstly because B & W images are a particular favourite of mine,  but secondly because it is such a striking image...... Viewed large this image comes into its' own..... Very dramatic and powerful.... The detail in the rocks is superb and the moody mythical look of the sky is just sublime!...... Again, I "feel" your image....composed so well and creating such atmosphere..... you have raw talent, an excellent "eye" for photography and  convey the image perfectly...... Excellent work Alf!

Warm regards 

Jacqueline

Love the texture and detail in this superb B&W Alf! One of your best IMHO.

All the best,
Neil

Many thanks for your thoughts and positive feedback, much appreciated!

Maybe theres no right or wrong, just two different images as you say, that convey different moods?

Best Regards

Alf

PHIL

Just a tiny snippet of its history : -

There has been some recent evidence to suggest that this site was occupied in pre-historic times but for the most part, the castle construction was started in 1313 by order of Earl Thomas of Lancaster and later in the 14th century it was improved John Gaunt (Duke of Lancaster). It later did sustain some damage between the periods of 1455 and 1485 in the dynastic "War of the Roses" between the houses of York & Lancaster (whose heraldic symbols were the red rose and white rose respectively) the damage to the castle was not made good and the structure fell into decay, later it was robbed of some of its stone. ............The walls if they could talk, would tell some interesting tales I'm sure!

Interesting thing about the sky was that some of it was kind of fluid, moving about with the wind (mostly to the left) whilst the upper right portion appeared static. Probably something to do with "thermals" or some other meteorological phononema that I was blissfully unaware of : - )

The walk up the steep hill to the castle itself left me wondering how on earth the materials were transported there, and the conditions that people must have toiled in.  It was even more mind boggling to imagine people atually attacking it, being shot at with arrows, spears and having huge boulders and red hot oil dumped on thier heads.

Sincere Thanks & Best Regards

Alf

JACQUELINE

Many Thanks for your thoughts and most encouraging feedback, much appreciated!

I'm really pleased the B & W aspect of the image appeals to you.  It would seem that you share my view that it befits the subject matter of the dark broody castle.   It is particularly gratifying to read that the atmosphere and mood is conveyed so well.  The image is optimised to be viewed large, a fact that I sometimes unintentionally omit to mention next to the title, so thank you for mentioning that too!

Warm Regards

Alf

NEIL

I value your thoughts and opinions, so its very gratifying to read you like this one. I have been making steady progress with B & W (I Hope) through a lot of trial and error, so its good to know when something works|!

Best Regards

Alf

Definitely stunning shot with awesome composition and as always amazing details. BW conversion is very nice and effective, except for a bit excessive gray zones and very few areas of pure white. Although this is so small point, but more shift toward white or pure black ( in limited areas ) creats pleasant look for landscape bw shots. As i said, this is a very small nit, and this shot in already brilliant.

My best wishes,

Hamid.

Many Thanks for your interest and thoughtful comments, very much appreciated! I am still getting to grips with B & W processing so your comments are very helpful in pointing out the shortcomings of this shot. It's something for me to contemplate and hopefully improve on my next attempt.

Best Regards

Alf

Beautiful work Alf.  I much prefer this BW version over the color, this rendition is very dramatic in appearance.  I even like the white ponies in the field, it is always nice to bring in a bit of life when you can.  Fortunately, good eating kept them still enough for your longer exposure.  A nice image in standard PNet size, but quite glorious in large.  Your BW skills seem to steadily improve.  Best regards...

-Dave

Sincere Thanks for your thoughts and positive feedback, much appreciated!

I think the B & W kind of encapsulates the drama in a stark cold way, that befits the subject, whereas the colour version has a more romantic fairy tale kind of mood. I'm not sure that they are actually ponies in the field, as there were Sheep, Jersey Cows and Horses all roaming around a huge area, but you could be right.  In any case I do agree with your sentiments relating to a "bit of life" in a photo when possible. It's a view that stands up quite well in most English countryside scenes.  It's very gratifying to read that you think my B & W skils are improving, if I can improve a little bit each time, I'd be a very content photographer!

Best Regards

Alf

Well done work.  Strong foreground which I try to learn.  Between the two, I love the this one than the one in color.  The one in B/W shows the mystery of power.  Just my feeling.  Best Regards,

Sincere thanks for your thoughts and kind words. Yes you are right I think the B & W does convey more drama and power. Probably due to the more moody looking sky.

Best Regards

Alf

Alf,

As others have said before me, this is a very good choice for B&W.  Lots of foreground detail while charging the imagination with a hint of mystery.  Great range of tones!

Jim

Many Thanks for your interest and thoughtful comments.

For a long time B & W processing was something of a mystery to me, but hopefully I have got to grips with it at last. 

Best Regards

Alf

great image my friend

next ime your down this way give me a bell I am 6 miles away

You are blessed living in an area like this!  We spent a week at Almouth and loved every minute. The beaches and sunrises / sunsets were just wonderful and I have ot say the local people were most welcoming and friendly too!

I will definately let you know when I'm headed up that way next time!

Sincere Thanks for your interest and kind words!

Best Regards

Alf