It's been a long time since I entered the WA. This shot was fortuitous in that I didn't realize the WA topic was "Landscapes" when I shot it. Every day I go for a walk from our house up into Griffith Park to what is called the Helipad and back - about 3 miles round trip - all in just under an hour. There is a great view of Los Angeles from up there. Yesterday,when I got arrived I realized that the rare rainstorm we were having provided an opportunity for a fantastic pan shot. So, when I got home, I immediately turned around and made the trek back up, but this time with my camera and heavy tripod. This was shot somewhat after 7:00 PM. It's too bad that it has to be reduced so small because even I was amazed by how much detail I managed to capture. Lights are just starting to come on in houses and car headlights are clearly visible way in the distance. On the extreme right, you can see the famous Griffith Park Observatory and nestled just beneath it is the Greek Theater. Then you can see out to Century City and the Pacific Ocean lit by rays of sunlight. In the middle is the Palos Verdes Peninsula and you can also actually see all the way out to Long Beach on the far horizon - something that the usual layer of smog makes impossible. I can tell, because I recognize the Vincent Thomas Bridge but I have to zoom in to about 150% to see it. On the left are the tall buildings of Downtown LA. When I was a kid, I remember going up to a similar vantage point and being amazed by the single tall building that was City Hall. Now, that tall building is barely visible as a short pointy building on the extreme left of Downtown. I shot several different exposures of each segment and first combined them as HDR's before putting the six pieces together into a pan. Anyway, it turns out that it was a worthwhile endeavor to have slogged up there a second time and I hope you enjoy seeing this, even if most of the detail is lost.
Hi Endre! Any landscape in 800 pixels is a tall order. The dramatic sky in yours is wonderful. I handful of ctrl + and firefox made up much larger. definitely a worthwhile endeavor.
Thanks so much, Jim, my friend! I am delighted that you were able to see it a little larger and that you enjoyed it so much. I was able to post a slightly larger version over at the City forum. It's still not large enough to see the details but it is a little bit better.
Fond regards,
Endre
James Markus wrote:
Hi Endre! Any landscape in 800 pixels is a tall order. The dramatic sky in yours is wonderful. I handful of ctrl + and firefox made up much larger. definitely a worthwhile endeavor.
Thanks so much, Klaus, my friend! I'm so glad you like it. Well, it's the extreme rarity of the shooting conditions that made it possible at all so that was pure luck. Also, although I look at the Wa all the time, I don't always have time or inclination to enter. This time it was pure serendipity that the topic matched my photo - not the other way around. Anyway, it's great to hear from you!
Fond regards,
Endre
Klaus Priebe wrote:
Wonderful panorama, Endre! You had some very nice sooting conditions too! Nice to see you back here in the WA!
Beautiful Endre! After reading your description and looking at the larger image, I am amazed at all of the "information" in this shot. I think I even found Waldo! Nicely done!
Thank you so much, Jon! I am really glad you like it. I keep tweaking it and I just posted a slightly better version over at the other forum but I seem not to be able to change it here. Oh well...
I'm sure Waldo is in this shot. You may also be referring to Waldo in the photo that I linked in response to Andrew-Bede's lovely photo of yellow flowers. Waldo is easy to find there. I wold love to print this at the size it is in my computer - 10 x 48. That would be spectacular!
All the best,
Endre
jbush wrote:
Beautiful Endre! After reading your description and looking at the larger image, I am amazed at all of the "information" in this shot. I think I even found Waldo! Nicely done!
Now thats a pano! Endre, I'm sorry max length is 800px I concur that's awefully small by todays standards. Heck, I was hoping my entry would be bigger....and then like you, I was reminded upon posting max length was 800px. For mine, that's acceptable (but not ideal). But for panos like yours....800px is completely unacceptable.
I say we petition Fred to increase the limit....to a minimum of 1280....1920 would be a good choice IMO.
Thank you, Aaron! I appreciate your kind comments and am glad you like this so much. It does look a lot better over at the other forum. Fred just increased the maximum from 600 to 800 so I don't think we ought to press our luck!
All the best,
Endre
Aaron D wrote:
Now thats a pano! Endre, I'm sorry max length is 800px I concur that's awefully small by todays standards. Heck, I was hoping my entry would be bigger....and then like you, I was reminded upon posting max length was 800px. For mine, that's acceptable (but not ideal). But for panos like yours....800px is completely unacceptable.
I say we petition Fred to increase the limit....to a minimum of 1280....1920 would be a good choice IMO.
Now this is a pano! This makes my little pano look like a normal single framed shot.
Wow Endre you captured so many fantastic objects in this shot(s). I really like how the sun rays on the right help balance the city on the left. Very cool shot!
Thanks so much! I am delighted that you like it so much! As with most photography, one has to enjoy a bit of luck to get the right shot. I think the Photography Angels smiled on me for all the work I put in getting back up there and set up a particularly nice shot for me.
All best wishes,
Endre
lighthound wrote:
Now this is a pano! This makes my little pano look like a normal single framed shot.
Wow Endre you captured so many fantastic objects in this shot(s). I really like how the sun rays on the right help balance the city on the left. Very cool shot!
This shot was fortuitous in that I didn't realize the WA topic was "Landscapes" when I shot it. Every day I go for a walk from our house up into Griffith Park to what is called the Helipad and back - about 3 miles round trip - all in just under an hour. There is a great view of Los Angeles from up there. Yesterday,when I got arrived I realized that the rare rainstorm we were having provided an opportunity for a fantastic pan shot. So, when I got home, I immediately turned around and made the trek back up, but this time with my camera and heavy tripod. 
This was shot somewhat after 7:00 PM. It's too bad that it has to be reduced so small because even I was amazed by how much detail I managed to capture. Lights are just starting to come on in houses and car headlights are clearly visible way in the distance. On the extreme right, you can see the famous Griffith Park Observatory and nestled just beneath it is the Greek Theater. Then you can see out to Century City and the Pacific Ocean lit by rays of sunlight. In the middle is the Palos Verdes Peninsula and you can also actually see all the way out to Long Beach on the far horizon - something that the usual layer of smog makes impossible. I can tell, because I recognize the Vincent Thomas Bridge but I have to zoom in to about 150% to see it. On the left are the tall buildings of Downtown LA. When I was a kid, I remember going up to a similar vantage point and being amazed by the single tall building that was City Hall. Now, that tall building is barely visible as a short pointy building on the extreme left of Downtown. 
I shot several different exposures of each segment and first combined them as HDR's before putting the six pieces together into a pan. Anyway, it turns out that it was a worthwhile endeavor to have slogged up there a second time and I hope you enjoy seeing this, even if most of the detail is lost. 
Nicely done!