Early Fall in an Old Growth Forest

Another old-growth forest "mess," but beautiful to me eyes. Shafts of light

filtering through the canopy were illuminating portions of the forest, and I

liked that. Comments and suggestions are appreciated. Thanks.

Love all the detail and range of greens and yellows coupled with the light filtering through the canopy. Very well done and yet not over done. You let it all speak for itself. It's a winner Stephen.

Exclellent photo. The range of greens is great, and tha lighting add estra texture. The diversity of shapes gives it movement. Very nice composition.

DG

Oh that's magnificent Pacific northwest. Lovely image.

Very nicely seen and executed.  A masterwork in verdant green. Congrats, rek.

Steve, this is lovely, chaos tamed beautifully. I'll bet the H4D gave you an image like you haven't seen before.

Jeff, I think the dynamic range of the H4D is probably the single most striking feature that I've found in this camera to date.  A close second is the power of Phocus software (even though it has been difficult for me to understand at times).  In the beginning, I was just thinking increased resolution; now I know it is much, much more than that.

It's a whole world of difference. 

Holy Guacamole Stephen! This is one of your finest! The composition is perfection! The dappling sunlight filtering across the image is superb! I guess the only suggestion is that the lower left has some inconsistent looking branch/leaves that I feel could be cropped, basically cropping up above that anomaly but preserving the lit leaves mid lower-left, if that makes sense. Very fine slice of this primal forest!!

Indeed, the dynamic range of the H4D is evident but the quality of the image can't be attributed solely to the camera.  To include so much chaos in a single image yet maintain a certain fluidity and order is a testament to your skills, Mr. Penland.  It's probably just me, but I find the grey-ish trunks in the upper left to be a pivotal compositional element, I feel they really anchor the image and give the viewer a glimpse into an older, more permanent world.

Simply beautiful. 

Best regards Stephen!

PDE

I wish I were there! Fantastic light!

Awesome green and also subject caught,large view shows lot of details so well,incredible green once again...

I remember seeing this and meaning to comment, so I have just found it again and will now do so. This has to be one of the most challenging shots a photographer can encounter. I think it can quite easilly look like a mess or even nothing much at all. But you have balanced the shape of the tree nicely within the frame with a proportional amount of light, shadow and colour that would suggest a natural environment. I also think the dof allows a good sense of the surroundings, and overall I think you have done a superb job of what I think is a very difficult subject.

Sincere Compliments

Alf

A Hassy!!! When did you get that? I want to say that this may be your best post processing yet Stephen but perhaps the camera has something to do with it. I'd love to here your impressions. JJ

I sincerely appreciate the comments from folks.

I almost didn't post this photo, but viewers seem to be in favor of it more than I was initially.  I guess that is balanced by some shots that I simply loved but that didn't get much reaction from many other people.  I think everyone can identify with that.

I usually try to find some interesting form in what I like to call a "mess" of vegetation characteristic of an old-growth forest.  I didn't see the kind of form I usually like in this particular photo -- it didn't seem to have a beginning or an end, and that initially put me off.  I was intrigued, however, by Jeff Lear's comment about the importance of the trunks in the upper left, and I agree with that (imagine if that area had been another tangle or, even worse, open sky).

I like to photograph these forests under cloudy conditions, and I often put the camera away if/when the sun comes out.  I didn't do that this time, and instead looked for small portions of the scene that were lit while the rest of the frame remained in shadow when the sun poked over the hill.  Several people have mentioned this aspect of dappled light, and I tend to agree.  I'm very glad I kept the camera out, and it really was fun looking for light patterns as well as vegetation patterns that might make a good photograph.

This is when I started to appreciate the greater dynamic range of the H4D-40 and Phocus software.  There was a great range of light in these photos, but the camera and the software were able to accommodate that range.  I'm making an educated guess, but I don't think my Canon and CS4 could have done this in a single exposure, and that's probably why I got into the past habit of putting the camera away when the sun came out.  As I recall, I think this RAW photo was processed entirely in Phocus; CS4 wasn't needed except for sizing and slightly sharpening the jpeg.

Jeff Grant was very instrumental in helping me get into this new camera system, and I'm very grateful (very poor, but very grateful ;>).

Mark made a comment about the vegetation in the lower left that doesn't quite match the rest of the scene, and I think I can easily take care of that with a crop that still preserves a standard aspect ratio.  I'd probably put the bottom edge just under that line of relatively bright leaves located just to the left of center.

This road used to access a campground located 5 miles from the entrance to the park.  The road washed out at one spot a couple of years ago, and it has been closed to vehicles ever since.  Even when it was used to get people from point A to point B, I always walked it because it gave me such wonderful access to a semi-private forest.  The end of June and beginning of July have been my favorite months (the ferns have largely recovered from the snowpack, and new ferns are uncoiling), but this visit was one of my firsts when the vine maples and devils club were showing so much yellow.

If I can get a single photo that I really like and that seems to resonate with other folks, I consider that a successful trip.  To have 2-3 such photos is really satisfying, especially now that I have to travel across the entire state, requiring about 8 hours, to get to this area that used to be 90 minutes away.

This is a very complex motiv where you managed to sort out the caos. The picture got a palette of styles, hints of abstrackt and painted styles but you bring it all together in a nice and firm composition.

It's good to see that you ghallange your self and us by bringing on such a photo.

I like this for several reasons and one of them is for your strong and respectfull style in natur photo.

HelgeB

Dear Stephen,

I went through your most recently posted photos (and thanks for creating this folder) twice. On the first occasion I liked this image best of all (although all of them are terrific); having noticed your observation that you had doubts about it, I decided to wait and look again. I have just done it, and I again find this image particularly striking.