Desert pictures

[Fox Paw]

I took these this morning. Criticisms are always appreciated.

 

[Wyjid]

i like the second one a lot. i think the grass could do with a touch more contrast. then the detail would look less overexposed. i love the dark sky as well. deepening the shadows would accentuate that as well. i love the south west. i want to go back.

 

[Mike_E]

Hi I don't really have a crit, but I would like to share my vision with you. (OK, that sounds as pretentious as can be but I can't think of a better way to say it just now- sorry)

In both cases I like the composition but I think that both would benefit from more contrast. In the boulders shot I used shadow/highlight, levels and a light touch of unsharp mask. In the fence shot I just used shadow/highlight and the barest hint of sharpening.

 

[Tyjax]

If you have these in raw you could go back to curves HAMMER the contrast pull exposure just a teeny tiny bit and make two great pictures STUNNING. Seriously. These have the ambiance AND the right "eye". Good un! Way to see and snap.

 

[icassell]

I like them both alot more with the added contrast. I REALLY like the second one.

 

[Fox Paw]

I very much appreciate the comments and suggestions. I think you're all quite right about the contrast. I do have them in RAW and I'll tinker.

 

[Wyjid]

i see people have already done the contrast thing so i bumped it a bit further than normal just to see something different.

 

[Renair]

I'd like to see the colour versions.

 

[abraxas]

Nice shots. Show us more.

Looks more like where I live than what I've seen of where you're at.

 

[SympL]

I really like the second image as well.
I also agree with the contrast comments, but, I would be careful not to give away exposure for the sake of impact.
Good job.

 

[Steph]

I don't think I agree with the increase of contrast everybody else is suggesting (it seems to be the standard comment for any B&W conversion on this forum). The original version suggest subdued light (maybe from early morning or late afternoon) whereas with more contrast it suggets very strong and harsh side lighting. Sure, more contrast will give more impact but I don't know which one represents the scene more accurately in this case (only the OP can tell). I personnally prefer the more subtle original picture.

 

[Fox Paw]

abraxas, SympL, Steph, thanks very much. I played with these in light of the comments and printed out the results. The old corral definitely needed more contrast. So far, I prefer a version of the boulder shot with a mild contrast boost.

Renair, here are the color versions. I hope that's allowed here in the black and white gallery.