Hi all, it's been a while since I posted--COVID has generally put a damper on my travel plans--but I spent the last couple months in Hawaii staying with my girlfriend's family and had an opportunity to get outside a bit. This is from a recent hike up to a well-known spot on a ridge overlooking H3 (one of the more scenic highways in Hawaii). It's a 5-mile uphill trek (and another 5 back down), that can be a bit precarious in the dark--especially with very strong winds once you get up on the ridge line--but it was well worth the journey for a spectacular view and sunrise.
What do you think about them? Any thoughts, criticism, etc. is much appreciated! My take is below:
1. This one is my favorite, and is the shot I wanted to get. However, I'm worried that it's a little soft--it's a pano stitched together, but I couldn't get my tripod high enough for this shot, so they're handheld but at a slower shutter speed than I would have liked for handheld. When I was shooting I didn't think it was actually going to stitch since the railings in the foreground passed through multiple frames, but luckily it did. Overall, I'm very happy with the result, but is it sharp enough for a portfolio piece?
2. I kind of like the mood in this one, but the perspective on the stairs is a little wonky. In some ways, I think it conveys the off-kilter reality of the path, but sometimes I think it's distracting (and sometimesI think both of these simultaneously). Would also like it to be a little wider, but this is shot at 14mm, so already at the limits of my (and most other) gear. Worth keeping, or are the stairs too distracting?
3. I'm the least confident about this composition. I was getting frustrated with some of the other shots, and decided to just cut out the foreground entirely to capture more of the sunrise and scene below. Sometimes I like the way the trail wraps around the mountain, and the leading line comes out the other side as the highway, but overall I think it's the weakest of the bunch. Does the composition work for you?
4&5. Obviously, these are very similar. #4 is a vertical pano shot at 50mm, while #5 is a single frame at 50mm. I like the scene overall, but am unsure which I prefer. I like the prominence of the double peak in #5, but I think the sun rays and light are captured better in #4. While I think the mountains on the right add some important context in #4, I also wonder whether they unbalance the image and create a sloping effect to the left (to be fair, the scene really does slope that way coming down from the mountains). Which do you prefer? Are either of them portfolio-worthy?
I haven't been there I a while! Beautiful
Thanks Cody! Beautiful up there, though going up the back way is always an adventure.
Hi josh. Each interaction enriches me with good knowledge of this art form. sharing my thoughts thus...
Image 1: I see a very good concept of foreground leading to mid-ground to finally the sun. Though, the exposure is not well complementing this. Do you want to consider reprocessing your image for lighting the elements?
Image 2: is the horizon horizontal? are the railings aligned at the foreground? is the image calibrated for Lense in post? may be my optical illusion.
image 3: Honestly speaking, this image is not catching my interest.
Image 4: the pond is very good focal element in the frame. sun rays lead to that. the shadows again disturb me here. as my opinion, top dark could crop and gradual exposure to the right to have shadows only towards the edge may enhance this image further.
Image 5: composition cropped from 4 is interesting. but to me its too much at the side to be the show stopper focal.
cheers.
Thanks for the feedback Vijay, really appreciate it!
To answer your questions:
1. I know the first is a little dark--I was going for something of a dramatic, moody look, and given the dynamic range of the scene I'm a little hesitant to push the files too much further, but I'll try reworking it a little to see if I can raise the shadows and play with the exposure to get something that I like.
2. I think the horizon is straight, but the camera was panned to the right in order to capture the sky, rather than shooting straight down the center of the stairway. That perspective distortion is what's creating the off-kilter look. I agree that it might be a bit distracting, and not ideal.
3. Agree that this is the weakest of the bunch.
4. Point taken on the shadows--I'll se if I can boost them a bit without losing the moody look I was going for.
5. In this crop, I think I saw the light and the two peaks as the main focal point, with the lake just providing balance to that side of the image, but perhaps it's a bit too attention-grabbing to be that far into the corner of the frame.
Again, thanks for the input--it's always insightful and helpful!
Sick man. I'm with you on the first shot. I imagine that one really conveys the magic that you felt that day, seeing the scene play out.
Really needs a large monitor or format to be fully appreciated.
Thanks Robert--definitely a magical morning!