Photographer’s Notes I wasn’t sure I would enter this one, but did on the last day. My inertia devolved from trying to take a photo of a single tree, that is one tree alone, and it got boring after awhile. I tried a Japanese garden, a nearby park, a bonsai museum. It wasn’t until I put a tree in context that I liked the shots. Maybe this simple tree in the context of a zen garden will please you. Maybe you’ll say, I’d like to spend some time here. Enjoy.
For the record, It’s a hillside covered in bushes (not trees) in the background. And the location is the Japanese Garden in the Seattle Arboretum.
Post Processing • Convert from RAW (Nikon Capture)
• Color Correct (Curves)
• Blur Background Slightly (Gaussian Blur & Fade)
• Sharpen Tree (Unsharp Mask)
• Adjust Color (Selective Color)
• Sharpen Tree Further (Unsharp Mask)
• Crop
• Dodge & Burn
• Increase Mid-Tone Contrast (Curves & Fade)
• Crop Further
• Resize
• Dodge & Burn Further
• Slightly Blur Foreground Bush (Gaussian Blur)
• Save for Web
Camera Data • Nikon D200
• 2006/09/05 11:28:09.5
• RAW (12-bit)
• Image Size: Large (3872 x 2592)
• Color
• Lens: VR 24-120mm F/3.5-5.6 G
• Focal Length: 120mm
• Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
• Metering Mode: Spot
• 1/60 sec - F/5.6
• Exposure Comp.: 0 EV
• Sensitivity: ISO 100
• Optimize Image: Vivid
• White Balance: Auto
• AF Mode: AF-S
• Flash Sync Mode: Not Attached
• Color Mode: Mode III (Adobe RGB)
• Tone Comp.: Normal
• Hue Adjustment: 0°
• Saturation: Enhanced
• Sharpening: Medium high
• Image Comment:
• Long Exposure NR: Off
• High ISO NR: Off
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Place: 72 out of 251 Avg (all users): 5.8042 Avg (commenters): 6.3750 Avg (participants): 5.6593 Avg (non-participants): 5.9388 Views since voting: 2656 Views during voting: 318 Votes: 189 Comments: 9 Favorites: 0
This is the sort of photo I would expect to see in a gardening book or magazine. 'Here is what a zen garden pine looks like'. Nothing more, nothing less. A photo that serves one narrow, informational purpose. In such a publication, a shot like this has both place and purpose. Here in a photo challenge, I'm afraid it offers nothing at all and is probably going to score poorly as a result. Lighting here is a bit rough with some very dark shadows and very bright higlights working against each other. Bit too much etail left in the background which clutters up the image. Might try a larger aperture next time and/or crop the photo tighter so that your main subject is more prominent. Good luck.
A good location to find classic examples of trees. The lighting is a bit on the harsh side - which obscures the overall 'natural' soft effect of such gardens.
EEk - is it my monitor? This is the second where the saturation on the green is just too much. I like it on the tree - so maybe destat the bush on the left?
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