Path across the Moors

We were flying kites on the moor until late in the evening. The

superb light and this signpost seemed to be inviting me to take a

photo so here it is. All comments welcome!

Nice placement of the sign to the right. I like the light at the end of the field.

My only suggestion would be to move the sun a little off-center. I wonder if you could have used the sign in the front of the sun.

Thanks Amar!

 

Mandar, thanks. The problem with having the sun off-centre is that flare becomes much more obvious and would have ruined the shot.

Hello Colin ! Very beautiful shot! It makes me think to the Aubrac, in France, where I was in june, and this photo to mine with the cross in the middle of the meadows (except that all is different !)

Supperb light and masterly exposure. I wish the dark cloud were not in the bg of the sign. At a first glance, I thought it was a cross.

Henri, thanks, I remember your similar/different shot.

 

Manolis, thanks. I think you are right about the sky behind the post and have uploaded a version with a slightly brighter sky there.

hey buddy, glad you are back, hope you had a good time. this is a tricky photo that only a master should attempt, and you are a master. it works well, but has some challenges cuz of the darkness. and ordinariness of the scene. I'd consider (you probably have, but i like to run on and give advice about things i couldn't do well anyway) lighten even a little more around the edges, particularly around the post, and punch up the color of the vegetation in the middle, particularly the magenta colors. i like the tilt and splay of sun very much, bold moves that work for me very well.

Unusual lighting and nice composition. Well seen and executed.

Thats where You where Colin.I can see why it capped You late at night. The sign is effective,showing the way towards the sun and the sky.I like the purplish shrubs and the large area of the moors.Did You make some pictures with the kites too?

Hi Colin, glad you are back!and hope it was a nice break from the routine.

 

I wonder how the smashing light did not burn the whole composition...but instead it lighted very nicely the field . The centeral placement of the sun is " broken" by the sign, and the clouds color is an " answer" to the colors of the field what gives a unity to the composition. Well done Colin, not an easy situation. Pnina

Ben, thanks - yes we had a great time. I see what you mean about the darkness of the sky and the colours of the heather and stuff. I was trying to capture the feel of the sun about to go down and the evening half-light so i don't want to lighten too much.

 

ken thanks!

 

Alix, thanks for your comment and yes I did get some of the kites such as this. Well, strictly speaking there is no kite but I'm sure you can imagine it.

 

Pnina, thank you! I used a ND grad filter to try to make the sun dark enough (but only just). Also kept the sun in the middle of the frame to reduce flare.

okay, so here are dumb questions, and if you don't want to answer here, feel free to ignore. what is an ND filter? what does it do? what does it cost if i was crazy enough to follow you into this field? (pun intended! bonus question: what is a moor exactly anyway?)

Thank You Colin to let me be part of it.I think kites are exciting,but Your pictures are exciting anough, they don't need props.Sometimes, You offer birds. Alix

Like a breath of fresh air! Crisp. Wonderful work with the sky and sun.

 

May I ask what kind of ND-grad filter you use? I tried to mount a Cokin holder with filter on my 10-22, but of course had a lot of vignetting.

Welcome back Colin, a beautiful image. I like the foreground heather colors that add so much to the photo. The sign post in my opinion is perfect, the sun and sky are awesome. Well done, Sondra

Thanks Ben, Alix, Camilla, and Sondra.

 

Ben, ND Grads? I have uploaded a bad photo I took which shows the filter on the left and the holder attached to a lens on the right. The filter slots into the holder.

 

ND (neutral density - does not change the colour - just darkens it)

 

gradual filter (dark at the top and getting lighter to clear about half way down).

 

Used in landscape photography to balance the brighter sky to the darker land by darkeing the sky. They come in various strengths (one stop, two stop etc and also with different edges (gradual or hard edge). I have a one stop (sometimes called a 0.3 for reasons which escape me) and a two stop (0.6).

 

They can be pricey for a small square of plastic. The holders are cheap but each lens needs an adapter to screw into the filter ring.

 

Camilla, I had the same trouble with the 10-22 so I just hold the 'P' size grad to the lens, check for fingers(!) and shoot. The holder gets in the shot as you say.

colin, you are the best. thanks, got it.

F A V O L O S A !!!!... bellissima complimenti

questa mi piace TANTO... bello scatto !!!! ombre luci colori ...si si si bella !!!! ancora complimenti hai fatto centro ....BRAVO !!!

Colin, I think your intention was a photo showing us the glaring light you saw that moment. And you did a great job with this technique, leaving the sun area burnt out without damaged tones elsewhere. This lens is surprisingly flare resistant, almost better than my 17-40/4L. The handheld grad ND technique is a bit tricky, but there is no workaround, even the slim holder makes vignetting. A clever composition, and great result under extreme lighting conditions !

 

Cheers

 

Carsten

Colin, great work with light, the effect is very pleasing. You might check out my photo named "hit by the light" in the desertscapes folder to see how I dealt with the similar conditions. cheers Jana

Ben , you're welcome.

 

Cavagna, grazie molto!

 

Carsten, thanks, and yes I wa trying to capture the effect of the brilliant sun on the darkening landscape. I think the only solution for using filters with the 10-22 is maybe to get some of the 10 cm square screens such as the Lee system rather than the 'P' size which are really slightly too small to hold comfortably. They are $$$$ though! You are right about the flare resistance and it was one of your snow shots that first showed me what was possible there.

 

Jana, thanks. I have had a look at your shot and can see the similarities. I will take time later to have a closer look at your excellent portfolio.

 

regards - Colin

Hi Colin, the backlit heather looks great in this shot. The sun is a little bright and yet the clouds are very dark (and a suggestion of vignetting) - I don't think you've quite got the postwork on this one quite right as the overall effect is a little unnatural. I'm also curious about the signpost as it seems not to be casting a shadow? Was this added in PS?

Daryl, thanks for your comment. The vignetting you see is partly a result of using a wide angle lens and partly because the light source is in the middle and is falling off towards the edge. The focal length of the lens is equivalent to 16mm which means an angle of view of over 100 deg. So the edge of the frame is more than 50 deg away from the centre. So it is difficult to know what 'natural' means in these circumstances as looking directly into a setting sun usually blots out much of what we see anyway. But this is what a camera sees under these conditions and PS work invoved only a few level adjustments. The signpost is genuine and was the inspiration for the photo.

Colin,

 

I am not the most experienced photographer on here. I guess the sun looks overexposed but as a layman see's it I have to say i LIKE it...this is a great shot and reminds me of home...scotland.....lets have more over exposures!!!

 

all the best,

 

Denis