Tough At The Top

This is another image where I have experimented with blending a HDR

image with a normal Jpeg, Your Thoughts and comments are always

appreciated. Thank You

Excellent composition Alf.

 

Regards

 

Pedro.

Very nice. I think you should crop out about 10 - 15% off the right side (at the division in that rock) and about the same off the bottom (just above the bottom of the rock in foreground). I believe this would emphasize the vastness and desolation of the scene with more force.

Moody. Reminds me of Bronte's Jane Eyre , driven out after the fire, symbolic of lost in desolation. Interesting struggles here of green vs. snow, foreboding clouds vs. piercing sun, and the tree, struggling in the midst.

These trees shaped by the weather in these desolate scenes are always a joy to behold. You have managed this with merit as the light is fantastic. Regarding Mike's comment I see no reason to crop, looks fine as it is. But isn't that the beauty of Photoshop...all our varied comments and ideas....Take care mate!

 

 

Fantastic light and a really beautiful shot.

Alf, I am a great admirer of your very moody landscapes. This is another one of them. Surely Heathcliff is hanging around near here somewhere! Regards, Adrienne

7/7...

Excelente composición, detalle y color. Perfect Max.a. Saludos

Alf,

Wow....looks like you have started 2010 off with a bang. Beautiful image. Regards, Patsy

PEDRO

 

Thank you for looking in and commenting, much appreciated!

 

Regards

 

Alf

 

MIKE

 

Thank You for your imput, different idea's are always very welcome.

 

Regards

 

Alf

 

DONNA

 

Thank you for your comments, the image was taken not too far away from "Bronte Country" too. Great to see you drawing again Donna!

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

 

KEITH

 

Thanks Keith, yes I agree these desolate places where the lone trees somehow survive the most arduous conditions, often clinging to life through taking root in a limestone pavement as this one is, makes great subject matter. appreciate your comments, cheers mate!

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

 

BIRTE

 

Lovely to see you back safe and well! Thank you for your kind comments

 

Regards

 

Alf

 

ADRIENNE

 

Thank you for those lovely comments, evertime I think of "Wuthering Heights" Kate Bush's song comes to mind sending shivers down my spine (though I'm not at all sure if that was due to her high pitched voice or the romantic content) : - )

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

 

VLADIMIR

 

Thank you! Much appreciated!

 

Regards ]

 

Alf

 

GALLEGO

 

Thank you for taking time to look in and comment, Much appreciated!

 

Regards

 

Alf

 

PATSY

 

Thank you so much for your very kind comments , hopefully I will continue into 2010 in a similar vein, though time is restrictive with work commitments.

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

 

 

Sincere Thanks and Best Wishes To All

 

Alf

 

 

this is really a superb image. I love the muted colors. Really strong composition. The lone tree provides a strong focus and symbolic value. Nice textures on the stones and beautiful moody sky. Regards - michel

Thank you for looking in, your kind and encouraging comments are really appreciated.

 

Warm Regards

 

Alf

WOW!!! So beautiful, I love it.

 

Alberto

The lone tree and background light are appealing, though I find the inconsistancies in snow color and illumination to be a processing-induced distraction. Additionally, it would seem to need a 5-degree or so CCW rotation, unless the tilt is intentional. Looks like this spot has some more potential though, with a very attractive tree out in the open.

ALBERTO

 

Thank you for your very kind comments

 

Warm Regards

 

Alf

 

MARC

 

Thank You for taking time to look in and make your observations, The inconsistancies in snow color was intentional and rightly or wrongly was meant to reflect the different light, it would have been relatively easy to have uniform white snow everywhere all illuminated to the same degree, but I felt this would not have been realistic or indeed interesting. As the title may suggest the shot was taken near the summit of a hill/mountain and the slope in the shot is a true value (Even I couldn't get the horizon that wrong! : - ) .....well ok maybe I could but not this time!

 

Thanks again Marc

 

Regards

 

Alf

I like this image very much, I would leave it as is, your composition truly captures the feeling of place. The warm tones in the sky and your excellent exposure work together to make this a winner.

 

Jim

Your title defines your intent here and I think that you have done it nicely. It might be fun to mess with rotating and cropping but it's fine as is.

very good work...I like it...congrats

Very nice! Best regards, Ilkka

Strong tonesand composition

nice perspective of the nature, excelent composition and use of the light. Well done..!

 

Ricardo

Beautiful composition, Alf. A delight of perspective, colors, snow and cloudy atmosphere. Good work! Regards

Hi Alf,

 

sorry to differ in opinion to most who have already commented, and it is only my opinion. I am quite baffled by the ratings this photo has received. In my opinion the processing is un-natural looking to the point of detracting from the image. The lighter looking snow does not help. Although the tree is on a hillside and the horizon is correct, the slanted composition just looks awkward, there is maybe a quarter of the image filled up in the bottom left corner with trampled snow, which looks quite messy. I think it may have been better if you could have found a patch of less disturbed snow, nearer to the limestone, thus including a much more detailed foreground and also point of sharp focus.

 

All the best, Dave.

JIM

 

Thank you for your very kind comments and your support, much appreciated

 

STEVE

 

Thanks for looking in and for your observations, I have cropped a bit already, but always open to suggestions, Thanks Steve.

 

MEHMET

 

Thank you for your kind comments ,much appreciated! I'm glad you like it.

 

ILKKA

 

Thank You!, Much Appreciated.

 

JEF

 

Thanks for looking in and for your kind comments.

 

RICARDO

 

Thanks for stopping by, your kind woirds are much appreciated.

 

DAVID

 

Thank You for your observations and comments, much appreciated

 

 

DAVID SPEIGHT

 

Your opinion is as welcome as the next persons and just as valid, I think it is important to get a good cross section of views, but just to answer some of your points, its is difficult to find a patch of " less disturbed snow" on a mountain side full of sheep, the "trampled snow" you refer to was more or less everywhere, but particularly near the tree as I assume it gave the sheep some sort of sparse shelter.

As for the processing being "un-natural" looking I think that is the point of HDR to produce surreal looking images, but as this is one of my first attempts, there is probably quite a bit of room for improvement, but as a relative newcomer to photography I will continue learning. Thank you for your interest David

 

 

 

Warm Regards To All

 

Alf