t37traveler

Thanks of stopping by Michael - Gosh, I'd almost forgotten about this one.  This is posted exactly as shot, and is  "a few" years old now. I was limited by the lens I had mounted at the time, and, of course, where this dude was hiding.... not much angle to work with, especially with two strobes on Ultralight arms. I thought about eliminating the soft coral, but I think it would leave an awkward looking dark, empty space. To me it helps form a dark triangle that points toward the open mouth that is comprised of  two more-or-less triangular shapes.. and then there is the repetition of all the little circles that echo the eye.... Looking at this now, I would clone out the light spot in the upper right, the light spot just to the rear of the open mouth and the two light dots at the edge of the photo over the head.  Thanks a lot for your comments and time. I really appreciate it. I should go find the original and re-wrk it now that I have a lot more experience with PS and have added LightRoom to my e-darkroom.

Absolutely gorgeous, and the horizontal crop is perfect. Love the dynamics of the geography and reflection pulling the eye to the shoreline, but just a little to the left of center thanks to the gulch on the hill and the break in the trees. I also really, really like the rich muted earth tones commented by  the tiny highlight provided by the little white house (or boat house?). Beautifully seen and executed!

Chris and Pierre - thank you for your stopping by. Chris, I have really looked at this photo and I just didn't see any slant, but there is a bit of tilt to the water on right hand horizon. With all the other horizon levels from left to center I just didn't notice it (guess you can tell I popped out of the car and shot this one hand held.... it was a pretty rainy trip.) Thanks for the keen eyes - I'll do a quick fix.

You have achieved an effect that is almost pointillist! Love the pink umbrellas! Very appealing "classic" image. My only suggestion would be to remove the three bright yellow objects at the top center right side of the photo. They are colorful enough to be a bit distracting and keep my eyes from following the path into the depth of the photo beyond the people.

Linda- I'd like to see a little more contrast between the foreground and the background - the frozen grasses need a little more light and life to really stand out - as if the sun were hitting them a little more directly. I guess I'm looking for "pop."

A beautiful geometric - delicate and feminine, gentle in color, but strong and ordered in pattern and line - love the contrast that these elements bring. It reminds me of a kaleidoscope - the kind we all loved to gaze through as children and watch the crystals tumble from pattern to pattern. You've got another winner here, lady!

Hey Lawrence - Great artsy street shot! I particularly like the textures in the wood and stone. The touch of plaid is like a dash of salt in a good dish - spices it up just enough to bring out the real flavor - and adds a bit of a homespun feel. I really like this one!

Pierre and Svetlana - thank you so much for your kind words  and for taking the time to comment.

Gorgeous, brilliant color pallette and wonderful use of red as an accent with a lot of punch. I love the unusual perspective - I feel like the photo is moving toward me instead of my moving into the photo, thanks to the little red wagon. My only comment is that I would have liked a little less shadow in the bushes on the left... probably impossible in this bright sun.. maybe photo-realistic HDR would make that possible. Really nice work! (Wish I were there in the photo sitenow instead of freezing in winter's chilly grip.)

Koushik and Peter - thank you for your thoughtful and encouraging comments. After I did the inversion, I had to recreate the beak and the eye, a simple task with the clone tool. This snowy egret was wading in bright blue water at low tide. The abstract patterns are reflections of sailboat masts, etc. Mother Nature is quite an artist in her own right!

one simple word: ethereal, delicate, calming, magical ... oops, see I am way past one word.... this is a lovely piece of work. Well done.

I like this version much better than its "sister photo" - the other image seems static compared to this one. I like the sense of movement and use of the diagonal line. Creative and unusual - I keep thinking it is a 21st century sculpture of a dandelion that has gone to seed or some other dried flower.Very nicely done.

Beautiful use of light, color and special effect post process to create an image that surpasses the pure photo or the pure painting.

What a beautiful  and unusual still life! I particularly like the contemporary feel that the black and gray background gives it. So "Dutch Masters" in color and light, so 21st century in content and composition. Superbly done from the fried fish to the rainbow in the glass of wine.

Alf - thanks for the great email suggestions.... I sent you a reply via email.

Pierre, Alf and Larry - Thank you so much for your generous comments. I waited quite  a while to catch this shot. The "old girl" was swathed in cloud and mist when I first got to the lake. It was mid-morning when I took this series of shots. Later that day when we passed this place, the clouds had once again hidden the peak. I have a color version taken about 100' from where I took this, but the clouds are not nearly as spectacular.  F/8 and be there!

As an UW photographer myself, I can appreciate your effort. I like the diagonal line of the drop-off.  Two things really jump out at me that could be corrected. Your strobe made the barrel sponges a little blown out, and the dashes of pale aqua and bright spots in the corner are a bit distracting. Without the diver, the photo would be completely empty of interest. It would have been more interesting to have the diver swimming the the photo. He/she is a bit high - the cam band on the tank flows out of the photo. Also, everything is a bit soft, and I know how hard that is to overcome UW. I think having the diver closer to the sponge heading into the camera would have given you a better opportunity for added sharpness.

This is an HDR creation (one of my first efforts). Your comments/critiques

would be greatly appreciated.

Taken on a cold January evening, this one of my first forays into the world

of HDR. The image deliberately dark with added vignette for accent. Does

it work? Is it too dark? It is supposed to be a "mood" photo. Your

comments/critiques would be greatly appreciated. (Another version of this

is in my album "New Work Ja 2011 - March 2011.)

Tony - thanks so much for the advice and observations. I am not happy with the foreground either, and as I get more experienced with Lightroom, I know I can improve this - a lot. I experimented with cropping - didn't like the resulting composition - something about those trees and the vertical lines that lift the photo and balance the horizontal background, at least in my eye. The other part of the photo that annoys me is that I shot it with a split ND filter (a Cokin as it was all I could get 2 days before I left on the trip - not such good planning on my part) and their gray turns the skies an unrealistic blue. The sky was definitely "aqua-ish" but  not quite this much. I have since purchased a Singh-Ray ND in another density and love it... so worth the extra $$$!  Thanks for the time and your constructive criticisms - all very, very valid.

Tony- Thank you for stopping by and commenting. Your insights and suggestions are always valuable. This was my first trip to "Great Blue Lake" as it was first called... and I hope not my last. The weather changed almost minute by minute = talk about a multtiude of diverse photo-ops in a few minutes.

Lovely scene and beautiful sentiment. Captured Light is now bookmarked as a top site. Joy, peace, blessings and success to you in the New Year and beyond.

Beautiful, soft work spiced up with a dash of vivid color. Creative and beautifully done. I think this work must have been intuitive and from your heart. I see your mother in this. Did you know that butterflies are a symbol of rebirth and new life.....

My prayers and best wishes for peace and serenity to you and your whole family.