This was taken in a really remote place in China. I stayed at a farmers house and I went up super early to hike to the location and catch the sunrise. Absolutely worth it. Definitely one of the most beautiful landscapes I've ever seen.
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Love the foreground but I feel like the background could be a little more clear, maybe a bit earlier in the sunrise. Also wish that grass wasn't obstructing the view of the rice fields so much.
Living in China myself, I know a bit of haze is pretty common almost all the time, so I don't mind that the backgorund isn't clearer (I might be biased though as Im used to it)
I don't mind haze in photos. I just think it degrades the overall feel of quality here. Like the top half of the photo was taken with a different camera than the bottom half. If that makes any sense.
Thank you both for your feedback! I do have photos with no grass, but I liked the extra depth. Maybe a bit cliché though. The mountain casted a shadow on the terrace, so unfortunately I couldn't take the picture earlier.
What an awesome location.
I see what you're talking about with the non-ideal shadows, and I think this scene would have been a great candidate to stack multiple frames taken over time. If you get the opportunity to return sometime, try setting up and start shooting before sunrise. The reflections won't be so blown out and may reflect a bit of the orange sky. Merge that with a second frame that includes the sun kissing the mountain for an increased sunstar effect and a third frame where the light is optimal on the terrace. Playing with those three snapshots in time and merging selectively in Photoshop using different blend modes would make this stunning.
As-is, it's still very eye catching and dramatic. Well done.
Nice to hear that you like it, Richard. And thank you for the feedback!
Actually, the reflections are not blown out at all on my RAW, but they didn't reflect any of the orange sky, they were just a bit boring. I wanted to emphasize water, so I cranked up its brightness. And I also added some warmth to it.
Great idea with stacking different times together. I was not aware of the technique when I took this shot, but I might have enough of photos from that morning to try it out in post now. Next time I will have have that in mind.