I think I mentioned earlier that I have been putting together sets of four photographs to share on a recently created social media account, and from time to time I'll share some of those photographs here. This group includes two of those sets of four, with photographs from Utah: Zion NP, Capitol Reef NP, Cedar Breaks, Grand Staircase-Escalante and perhaps other locations.
You blew the doors off with the last one there, but every image is tremendous. Given your own style combined with this environment, your work here really reminds me of a large format photographer who used to post here named Ben Horne, you may remember him. For my part that's intended as a big compliment. But it's also, as I mentioned, very much consistent with your own style.
JWRisinger wrote:
You blew the doors off with the last one there, but every image is tremendous. Given your own style combined with this environment, your work here really reminds me of a large format photographer who used to post here named Ben Horne, you may remember him. For my part that's intended as a big compliment. But it's also, as I mentioned, very much consistent with your own style.
Thanks. I’m quite aware of Ben Horne’s work, and I’ve long been impressed with the effort he goes to in order photograph with 8x10 LF film gear. I suspect that he and I both have been influenced in some ways by LF film landscape predecessors — I know that I have!
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keepclicking wrote:
Dan, these are very nice and the last one is special. Brilliantly PP'd
Thank you. The last one is an example of something that I mention frequently — that fact that post-processing (sometimes extensive) can be used to make a photograph look more natural rather than to amp it up in ways that might make the post-processing more obvious.
That was actually a really difficult photograph to execute. I made it in a pretty restricted area of a Southern Utah slot canyon where I saw this combination of the deep red tones of the shaded sandstone and the blue reflections from the open sky overhead . To got the section of the canyon wall that I wanted I had to shoot at an angle rather than more straight on, so there were some depth of field challenges. In addition, the light varied quite a bit across the scene, from the deep shadows at lower right to some very bright highlights in the reflected areas at the left. A lot of the post processing work went to evening out those wide variations.
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Jeffrey wrote:
Lovely images Dan. It's not often I see you work this area.
Thank you.
It has been a while! I love the Southern Utah terrain, and I’m hoping to find a way to spend more time there again.
Jim Dockery wrote:
Ditto above, all nice, but that last one really hit me.
Thanks. That seems to be the one in this set that hits people.
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While I’m here again, I’ll add one more thing to something I mentioned in my earlier reply to “keepclicking” regarding post-processing.
It played a role in all of these images to some extent, but there’s one in particular that really required a TON of work in post in order to get it to look natural. I knew that would be the case when I made the exposure, so I exposed with my likely post-processing in mind, which produced a file that I knew would look awful straight out of camera.
Anyone want to guess which one I’m referring to? ;-)
Has to be #5? That bright sunny patch at the top must have wreaked havoc on the exposure.
gdanmitchell wrote:
Thanks. That seems to be the one in this set that hits people.
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While I’m here again, I’ll add one more thing to something I mentioned in my earlier reply to “keepclicking” regarding post-processing.
It played a role in all of these images to some extent, but there’s one in particular that really required a TON of work in post in order to get it to look natural. I knew that would be the case when I made the exposure, so I exposed with my likely post-processing in mind, which produced a file that I knew would look awful straight out of camera.
Anyone want to guess which one I’m referring to? ;-)
Excellent observation. You saw that bit of bright sky at the top! In fact, you are correct. How radical were the planned adjustments? I posted a description of some initial work on one of the versions of the image I captured at the time. (I eventually used a different raw file for the print version, but this gives you an idea of what I had to work with.)
$# also required some significant pre-visualization and planning for adjustments in post in order to deal with some significant haze, some color shifts in shadows, and so forth.
Dan
JWRisinger wrote:
Has to be #5? That bright sunny patch at the top must have wreaked havoc on the exposure.
The last one...while all the others are beautiful that particular one speaks to me. The reflective glow off of it creates warmth that would light up a room.
J0nnnnn wrote:
These are all amazing! Love the editing
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Al Trujillo wrote:
A great set here Dan!
The last one...while all the others are beautiful that particular one speaks to me. The reflective glow off of it creates warmth that would light up a room.
Al
Thanks to both of you for your comments. I’m appreciating all the positive feedback on the last one.
douter wrote:
How those trees ever get footholds in the rocks is just awesome to me, Dan!
Douglas
I've wondered at that for decades. I sort of imagine that a seed ended up in a spot with a tiny bit of soil, started growing, work up one day and realized that it was growing in a tough spot!
Monika C wrote:
Your compositions always have an incredible gravitas that just blow me away.
Thank you, Monica.
One reason I’m interested in comments is that viewers can see my photographs in ways that I may not. Because I make the photographs, oddly it is difficult for me to fully understand how others view them. (I think that’s true for all photographers.) Se I learn from what other serious observers see.
I had not thought of the perspective that your word “gravitas” suggests, but I think it makes sense to me now that I think about it.
