West of the Sandhills
by nam

Comment by Cyrilda:
Rock formation on this is exquisite, thus beautiful photo with perfect processing. 9 on this one

The Quilter
by nam

Comment by rooum:
Love the window light an the look of concentration. 9

Geology
by nam

Comment by Neat:
This is remarkably done. The clouds almost mimic the same formations the rocks are forming.
A simple composition done well. Not too many colours to distract the eye.

West of the Sandhills
by nam

Comment by lombardino:
I wish there were a golden lighting, like from a sunset or sunrise, coming from the left.

Watching the Geese
by nam

Comment by tnun:
very cool.

Watching the Geese
by nam

Comment by tvsometime:
Effective pov and a plethora of visual elements combine foe a strong image. 7

Geology
by nam

Comment by nam:


Here's a new edit - warmer sky, more contrast in land.

Thanks so much, Bill, for the thoughtful critique. I am probably pretty much with you on HDR images - I tried to stop short of going over the top as I really don't like that. I know I always process the skies separately as they always seem more problematic to me.

I did warm the earth and cool the sky - perhaps I over-did it but I really don't like skies with a yellow cast and the sky that day had that menacing dark blue color that immediately precedes a thunderstorm in the Midwest, Southwest, or West so I tried to get rid of it, possibly erring in that direction. I don't mind the tones, though.

Your comment about tonal range and contrast actually interests me more. I'm still feeling the scene falls a bit flat. I think you are suggesting I up the contrast to see what that does. I'll try, but I'd love more input.

Sorry it took so long for me to respond beyond the "like comment" check, but we have our granddaughter for the weekend every other week and this was the one - I spend almost all my free time enjoying her :) (And yes, she's hopelessly spoiled.)

Message edited by author 2016-11-06 20:37:44.

Watching the Geese
by nam

Comment by Cyrilda:
There are so many great photos in this challenge it's hard to choose. This is a very nice B&W. 9

The Quilter
by nam

Comment by Cyrilda:
This photo meets the challenge well and the art of sewing is almost lost to the older generation. I highly respect this lady and give this an 8

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!