In praise of blue skies

Paul the Sunman · 01-28-2016, 02:13 AM

I was viewing an On1 tutorial video today about replacing "boring" skies with something more interesting. This comment was made:
"One of the saddest things you can have is a completely blank blue sky". This seems to be a common mantra amongst photography professionals.

You Tube

But I simply don't buy it. I LOVE deep blue skies. They can perfectly set off an interesting foreground, and produce wonderful clarity and colour contrast.

Am I alone in this view? What do you think: are plain blue skies a photographic crime? Should we all be keeping a library of thunderous clouds and slotting them in to all our "boring" blue sky scenes?

**ffking** · 01-28-2016, 02:24 AM

I think for your graphic style of photography that makes a lot of sense

Unregistered User 8 · 01-28-2016, 03:10 AM

Hi Paul. I think your photographs are very good " plain skied." as your subjects are framed wonderfully. We shouldn't start doubting our tastes and abilities because the " professionals " prefer this our that. Keep doing what you're doing. Opinions are just opinions, not facts.

IMHO !!!

fredralphfred · 01-28-2016, 04:33 AM

I think you should take all of my pictures for me.

Excellent work. Too bad you can't become a professional with that much blue sky -- your photos would attract too much attention from the other pro's.

Is it just me, or would B&W freaks go nuts over that sort of gradient if it were gray instead of blue?

dakight · 01-28-2016, 05:28 AM

With all due respect to the folks over at On1, they are in the business of selling software so they will naturally gravitate toward additional processing. There is a place for cloudy skies and there is a place for pristine blue skies. You are the artist, it's really up to you to decide what you want to convey.

BrianR · 01-28-2016, 07:19 AM

Originally posted by Paul the Sunman

This comment was made:
"One of the saddest things you can have is a completely blank blue sky".

We've had one sunny day here over the last 2, maybe 3 weeks. Seeing a big, bold, blue sky in a photo makes me sad that I can hardly remember what one looks like in person

.

DeadJohn · 01-28-2016, 09:05 AM

Blue skies are okay; shoot for the conditions. The "before" sky in that video was fine because it didn't dominate the image. The photographer composed (or cropped later) to feature the terrain not the sky.

I'm not a fan of composites, but I understand why someone might replace a sky if they can't easily return to a site on a different day. At least the tutorial is smart enough to deal with reflections off the water.

LensBeginner · 01-28-2016, 09:12 AM

Different tools as means for different ends.
Never hurts to have one more weapon in your arsenal, one more creative possibility, if you know how to use it.

**WPRESTO** · 01-28-2016, 11:14 AM

I have no problem with plain blue skies, but puffy "fair weather" clouds breaking up continuous blue certainly liven up landscape images. My hateful condition is a uniform, featureless, "flat" white or gray sky.
For some images a plain blue works fine.

**Madaboutpix** · 01-28-2016, 01:14 PM

Cloudless blue skies? Utterly despicable, one of my pet hates. They are going to ruin just about any composition you could imagine. Learn from the pros and take your photography to the next level by eliminating this common mistake from all your images. You can make your skies look as if they had been captured on Venus! Or just add a giant Blood Moon to balance your composition. See for yourself how bland and boring mere blue sky shots are - you can do better than that:

https://500px.com/photo/115407677/herring-gull-in-low-level-flight-by-marc-s...ser_id=2738079

https://500px.com/photo/125546315/statue-of-laurens-coster-detail-by-marc-sy...ser_id=2738079

https://500px.com/photo/127131159/untitled-by-marc-synwoldt?ctx_page=3&from=...ser_id=2738079

This photo tip was brought to you by pimp-your-images.com

Paul the Sunman · 01-28-2016, 04:03 PM

Thanks everyone for your comments. It seems you all think there is a place for the stark blue sky. Glad to hear it!

In any case, I will continue to seek them out. Which is not to say of course that clouds can't add interest or drama. But space, emptiness, can be a wonderful resource in art.

digital029art · 01-28-2016, 04:07 PM

.
Whole sky 360 spin around and round – winter in the Everglades.

Do you ever look straight up at the sky and spin yourself around?
This one will really screw your head on right!

Click for more fun GIFs!
https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/2016/01/28/animated-everglades-skies/

DeadJohn · 01-28-2016, 06:05 PM - **1 Like**

^ that spinning sky reminded me of this song:

You Tube

digital029art · 01-28-2016, 08:11 PM

lol that's a good one DeadJohn!
I was actually thinking of another 80s song:

You Tube

fredralphfred · 01-29-2016, 07:00 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by digital029art

lol that's a good one DeadJohn!
I was actually thinking of another 80s song:
Ratt - Round And Round (Official Video) - YouTube

If it's too loud, you're too old.

01-28-2016, 07:19 AM	#6
BrianR Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Ontario Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,332	Originally posted by Paul the Sunman This comment was made: "One of the saddest things you can have is a completely blank blue sky". We've had one sunny day here over the last 2, maybe 3 weeks. Seeing a big, bold, blue sky in a photo makes me sad that I can hardly remember what one looks like in person.

01-28-2016, 11:14 AM	#9
WPRESTO Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Massachusetts Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 59,138	I have no problem with plain blue skies, but puffy "fair weather" clouds breaking up continuous blue certainly liven up landscape images. My hateful condition is a uniform, featureless, "flat" white or gray sky. For some images a plain blue works fine. Last edited by WPRESTO; 01-29-2016 at 12:34 PM.

01-28-2016, 04:07 PM	#12
digital029art Inactive Account Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 440	“Excuse me while I animate the sky!” . Whole sky 360 spin around and round – winter in the Everglades. Do you ever look straight up at the sky and spin yourself around? This one will really screw your head on right! Click for more fun GIFs! https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/2016/01/28/animated-everglades-skies/

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01-28-2016, 02:24 AM	#2
ffking Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Old South Wales Posts: 6,039	I think for your graphic style of photography that makes a lot of sense

01-28-2016, 03:10 AM	#3
Unregistered User 8 Closed Account Join Date: Mar 2015 Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,694	Hi Paul. I think your photographs are very good " plain skied." as your subjects are framed wonderfully. We shouldn't start doubting our tastes and abilities because the " professionals " prefer this our that. Keep doing what you're doing. Opinions are just opinions, not facts. IMHO !!!

01-28-2016, 04:33 AM	#4
fredralphfred Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Orting, WA Posts: 252	I think you should take all of my pictures for me. Excellent work. Too bad you can't become a professional with that much blue sky -- your photos would attract too much attention from the other pro's. Is it just me, or would B&W freaks go nuts over that sort of gradient if it were gray instead of blue?

01-28-2016, 05:28 AM	#5
dakight Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Phoenix, AZ Photos: Albums Posts: 1,216	With all due respect to the folks over at On1, they are in the business of selling software so they will naturally gravitate toward additional processing. There is a place for cloudy skies and there is a place for pristine blue skies. You are the artist, it's really up to you to decide what you want to convey.

01-28-2016, 09:05 AM	#7
DeadJohn Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: New York Posts: 4,834	Blue skies are okay; shoot for the conditions. The "before" sky in that video was fine because it didn't dominate the image. The photographer composed (or cropped later) to feature the terrain not the sky. I'm not a fan of composites, but I understand why someone might replace a sky if they can't easily return to a site on a different day. At least the tutorial is smart enough to deal with reflections off the water.

01-28-2016, 09:12 AM	#8
LensBeginner Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2014 Photos: Albums Posts: 4,696	Different tools as means for different ends. Never hurts to have one more weapon in your arsenal, one more creative possibility, if you know how to use it.

01-28-2016, 04:03 PM	#11
Paul the Sunman Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,847 Original Poster	Thanks everyone for your comments. It seems you all think there is a place for the stark blue sky. Glad to hear it! In any case, I will continue to seek them out. Which is not to say of course that clouds can't add interest or drama. But space, emptiness, can be a wonderful resource in art.

01-29-2016, 07:00 AM - 1 Like	#15
fredralphfred Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Orting, WA Posts: 252	Originally posted by digital029art lol that's a good one DeadJohn! I was actually thinking of another 80s song: Ratt - Round And Round (Official Video) - YouTube If it's too loud, you're too old.