A Tree Revisited

One of my favorite HDR nature images is one I took late last fall (early winter) of a tree surrounded by frosty blue-green grass. I have gone by that tree a couple times since. Finally I went by a couple weeks ago while the trees were blooming. The top blog image is a new HDR of that tree with spring colors all around. The second image is the original image shot in the fall. I find that I really like both of these images. As I noted before, good subjects are worth revisiting many times.

Sunrise

As you may have notice several of the image I shot in the orchards were shot at sunrise. Sunrise is an excellent time to find great images. Throw in a little fog or mist and you are in heaven. It is often this mist or fog that distinguishes sunrise from sunset shots. I have included a couple more images shot at sunrise in this blog. The top image shows the fairy tale look you can get with a little mist. In the second image the mist spreads the red glow from the sun all around. In the final image the fog highlights the morning sun rays.

Orchards

I found several orchards in bloom near my home. I have been working them off and on for several days. I have been there around sunset, sunrise w/wo fog. By far the most "appropriate light" for my taste was sunrise with a light fog. Without the fog, even sunrise light quickly becomes to harsh for the soft billowing look of the orchards. I use the term "appropriate light" which is a phrase I learned from Brenda Tharp's writings. This term is all about finding the light that is right for your subject. It may or may not be sunrise or sunset light ("the golden hours"). It may be diffused light from a cloudy day or even mid-day sun (Ansel shot a lot or work then). That all said, there may more than one type of light that works well. The second image is a back lit view of an orchard which is still quite nice.

The other point of this blog entry is that if you find a good subject go back again and again - work it. I had actually decided not to go back any more this week when I saw the light morning fog. I went back and I am glad I did.

The final image uses an overlay of a sharp image and a out of focus image blended in photoshop using the difference blend mode. This has a nice fantasy look.