Geology
by nam

Comment by wbanning:
Congrats on the Blue, Nikki. I'm commenting here as part of the Post Challenge Volunteer thread activities.

I'm generally not a fan of extreme HDR images that go beyond tone-mapping to stylized processing. For me, this shot sits right on the edge of enough vs. too much. I scored it in the top 3rd of entries, but not among my favorites. Here's why:

The lines and subject matter are terrific - nature verging on abstract. The tonal range is good with details at every level of bright/dark, but as a result, the image lacks contrast. The brightest spot on the image is on the left side between the dark clouds and the hills. My eye is drawn to a hole in the sky. I'm also not a fan of the blue/indigo cast in the clouds, I'd be curious what warming up the tones in the skies would do.

This is obviously a minority opinion based on the blue ribbon and terrific score. If I were you, I'd completely ignore my comment and revel in the accolades. It's a lovely image that I might have processed a bit differently. I pretty certain it would have scored lower, too!

The Quilter
by nam

Comment by vawendy:
Just going through for a peak, and this one stopped me. It's really lovely. I love the lower contrast on this. I would have made it more contrasty, but that would have been so wrong.

Soft and beautiful.

The Quilter
by nam

Comment by GeorgesBogaert:
Great feeling of wisdom and skills in this portrait. It tells a story on it's own. Good use of natural light. A 7 from me

West of the Sandhills
by nam

Comment by GeorgesBogaert:
highly detailed picture. A 7 from me

Geology
by nam

Comment by Cyrilda:
Congratulations! Great job.

Geology
by nam

Comment by primabarbara:
Congrats - the structures are stunning and the clouds are adding fabulous drama

Geology
by nam

Comment by nam:
Thank you, friends. I'm pretty happy with the way this one worked out - and especially with the outcome :)

Geology
by nam

Comment by Lydia:
Yay! Congratulations, Nikki!

Geology
by nam

Comment by blindjustice:
Fantastic- congrats.

Geology
by nam

Comment by grahamgator:
Wonderful! Congrats on the deserved blue.