Ok, so I mentioned something about some sunset pictures a while back; well, here is one. I have some more from the same day but haven’t had a chance to get to them so this is the best I can do. This photo is from last week Wednesday, a breif storm had moved through the area just before the sun went down. While I was outside I noticed the sunset might be a good one so I jumped into the car and drove up the road to a farmer’s field that I thought would have a good view. I’m not much of a farmer so I don’t know what the crop is in this picture, maybe someone else can help out with that. Anyway, this has been a pretty big set up for one photo, so how about I just post the photo.
I think it looks better larger, the colors seem to be a bit richer. Here is a link to the large version on Flickr, feel free to view the rest of my pictures, although all I have uploaded are the photos you have seen on this blog.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3020/2761782184_0f276dc008_b.jpg
This is beautiful Joe! All the pictures look better larger—I guess except if it is a bad picture to start out with. I have never once thought one of pictures looked better after lowering the resolution and making it smaller, it is just the nature of the beast.
I can not really see the crop, It looks sort of short and bushy so my guess is soybeans? Possibly sugar beets.
For this type of picture it is impossible to get perfect exposure in both parts of the picture. Some photographers will take the picture twice. One photo will be shot for perfect exposure of the ground and the other the sky and then combine the two images post-production so both elements are in perfect exposure. Back in the day—ha ha, there use to be graduated filters just for this purpose. I don’t know if they still make these filters since so much can be done with the picture digitally.
Joe, what is the link to your Flickr account?
Thanks for the compliments.
I was thinking soybeans also.
I actually have a graduated filter for my camera so they do still make them, although I didn’t use it for this shot (I didn’t actually think to use it); I purchased the filter for beach shots when we went to Antigua. I took one picture in RAW format, then used a RAW editor to adjust the exposure for the sky to create a JPEG and adjust the exposure for the ground to create a JPEG. Then, in Photoshop I merged the two together. It was my first attempt at doing something like that. The merge line is along the top of the trees, if you can easily tell it is there I didn’t do a good enough job, but I think it turned out pretty good.
Try this link, if it doesn’t work let me know.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28642043@N05/
Yes, this link worked to bring me to the main page of your Flickr account. To my eye it looks like your pictures have a cool tone to them—a bluish cast. Or is it just me? If you agree with me, maybe playing with the white balance can change it.
The sunset picture is much more beautiful large. I looked for the merge line and I couldn’t see it, the trees look darker but that seems completely natural. Good job. How did the graduated filter work with the beach shots? Did it make a difference?
They probably are a bit bluish, I leave my white balance on auto and usually compensate for it with a RAW editor, but must admit I haven’t spent as much time correcting the photos that are to be uploaded here, usually because of time constraints. Usually when I take pictures Becky wants to upload them right away.
The graduated filter worked really well, the only issue I had was trying to match up the line of the filter with the horizon, especially if there was something breaking that line so it would be partially in the darkened area and partially in the undarkened area.