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Moutaintop Sentinel : Another Stormy Chapter
Moutaintop Sentinel : Another Stormy Chapter
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Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: A Single Tree (Advanced Editing IV)
Collection: 2006
Camera: Konica Minolta Maxxum 5D
Lens: Konica Minolta AF 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6(D) DT
Location: Virginia - Shenandoah National Forest
Date: Sep 5, 2006
Aperture: F8
ISO: 100
Shutter: 1/3
Galleries: Landscape
Date Uploaded: Sep 6, 2006

 RawShooter essentials 2006
- Appearance : Strong
- convert to TIFF

Post-Processed with Paint Shop Pro X

Crop
Duplicate BG
- Clone cleanup
Mask Tree
- Brightness & Contrast : Clarify +20 to sky/clouds
- Opacity 89%
- Neat Image
Mask Sky
- Fill flash +10, -10 sat
- Hue & Saturation : (Ylw -10)
- Levels (0,1,240)
- Hue & Saturation : (Blue -3)
- Brightness & Contrast : B/C (8,0)
Duplicate Mask Tree layer
- Burn mode 40% opacity
- Neat Image
- Curves (auto lighten)
- Brightness & Contrast : B/C (0,50)
- Brightness & Contrast : HMS (-30,30,30)
- Hue & Saturation : HSL (Blue -30)
- Digital Camera Noise Reduction (35,35,35,35,0,61,321)
Merge All
Brightness & Contrast : Histogram (0,1,215)
Resize
Noise Reduction : Salt & Pepper (1,1)
Borders
Save as JPG
Duplicate Mask Sky layer
- Dodge pine tree
- Burn background trees lower left
- Opacity 34%

Ok...this is getting nuts. Got out of bed at 3:30am to drive 50 miles in a rainstorm so heavy the windshield wipers could barely keep up. Get to the mountains and the fog is so thick you can't see the front of the vehicle! It's still raining. I'm hoping the rain lets up enough and the sky brightens enough, to get a shot of this tree.

Eventually the rain becomes a mist - out I go with umbrella and rain gear. Hop the overlook rock wall, hike along the hillside trying to stay upright. Finally reach a vantage point that allows me to setup the tripod and isolate the tree against the clouds and valley below. Once the sky started clearing, it cleared FAST! I only got 4 or 5 shots off before the valley was totally exposed below and the clouds cleared out totally.

Previous visit to this location in May 20, for the Shenandoah GTG, prompted this special trip.

[thumb]337764[/thumb]

Statistics
Place: 63 out of 251
Avg (all users): 5.8402
Avg (commenters): 6.2500
Avg (participants): 5.6211
Avg (non-participants): 6.0505
Views since voting: 1199
Views during voting: 284
Votes: 194
Comments: 9
Favorites: 0

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AuthorThread
 Comments Made During the Challenge
Nikon D80
Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5- 5.6G ED DX
 09/14/2006 08:53:56 PM
Perfect title for this flawless photograph. You have my vote---9.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon EOS-30D
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM
 09/14/2006 12:40:59 AM
Really flat image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon EOS-30D
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM
 09/13/2006 07:10:40 AM
great shot. would be interested to see how the tree looks further up the frame... or enlarged within the frame
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon EOS-6D
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM
 09/12/2006 06:20:23 PM
Nice perspective and great exposure. Think you might have been served well by walking away from a strict adherence to the rule of thirds amd pushing the tree over to the left edge so that it looks like it really is being threatened by the incoming storm/wall of clouds. Nontheless, a nice photo. Good luck.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon EOS-5D
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
 09/12/2006 10:18:35 AM
Now you have captured a very nice simple landscape of the Chinese shan shui (mountain water) painting type - almost. I like the dull colours - almost lack of colour perhaps. Possibly a little work on this could make it outstanding. I imagine it would work in sepia or b/w as well. 8.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Nikon D80
Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF-ED
 09/12/2006 05:02:09 AM
Oh to be able to emulate this fellow in Bonsai.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon EOS-350D Rebel XT
Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM
 09/12/2006 02:10:10 AM
I like the silvery background.......and it has a zen feeling in this one.....
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Mattel Barbie Photo Designer Digital Camera
 09/11/2006 08:52:23 PM
this is a beautiful shot - more contrast in the clouds would make it stronger (soft D&B - not the heavy handed stuff!)

Great work, good luck in the challenge!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
Canon PowerShot S1 IS
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro
 09/11/2006 01:03:53 AM
Very nice and moody. Very evocative!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
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