I love this kind of magical light that happens when the sky is cloudy and stormy but the sun iluminates the scene in the ground. This is a very rare and unpredictable condition, usually I don't have my camera with me. I was lucky this time to be in the right place at the right moment.
This is a HDR photo with a few adjustements in color and contrast in postprocess.
Federico, excellent image, especially the foreground, clouds are wonderful too, but seem out of balance with the foreground. In my opinion a little contrast adjustment to the sky might remedy this.
Congratulations on your Photo Of The Day!
Thank you for your thoughtful feedback. Do you mean increase or decrease contrast in the sky?
I wish it were that simple realistically you'll have to play with it. Are the darker area sky or distant mountains it's hard to tell? If they are mountains I would first increase the middle tones of the sky but avoid the brightest white as they look good and look very close to blowing out or clipping. So increase the contrast in the sky middle tones would be a good start. If you use Brightness/Contrast slides just use the contrast slide first than brightness adjustment to taste and as histogram indicates. Personally I would try the curves tool for more control. Just a matter of personal preference.
Fine, I always use curves to adjust brightness to keep blacks and whites constant. In this photo I selected the darkest parts of the sky with a color mask and adjusted curves to add depth. I will try as you recommend. Have a nice day.
Super! ignore what I said about the highlights after looking at your image ago they don't look as hot as I thought. Anyway sounds like you have an advance handle on things.
Sometimes with masking I add a blank mask make a selection then drag an appropriate grad across the mask. Have a good one, Ciao