Landscape Quarry

**bobbotron** · 02-10-2017, 07:47 AM

Yesterday I snapped these photos of an interesting quarry nearby. I think a circular polarizing filter could have helped to eek out the fine details of the snow, would love to get some feedback on them.

xabolcs · 02-10-2017, 08:25 AM

...on my screen looks good the snow...

DeadJohn · 02-10-2017, 11:32 AM

A lot depends on how these images will be viewed. At the low resolution of the links they don't look great. Full screen on Flickr looks better.

#1: Too much blue sky at the top. May have worked as an abstract - blue top and white bottom - but all those bare trees at the cliff base look messy and distracting.

#2: I like the right edge. It has interesting detail in the rocks and vertical lines in the snow, with fewer bare trees. Try a crop keeping around 1/3 of this image, maybe a square crop from the lower-right corner, with or without sky visible.

#3: This is my favorite. The dip in the foreground is matched by the taller trees in the background. The sky color looks off, grayish rather than blue; maybe increase saturation, adjust WB, or do a B&W conversion. The vertical twig at the lower right is a distraction that could be erased or cropped. There's also a horizontal shadow at that corner that will go away with a minor crop.

#4: The B&W is interesting and might be an improvement on #1, but the bare trees at the base of the cliff remain an issue.

**bobbotron** · 02-10-2017, 12:36 PM

Originally posted by DeadJohn

A lot depends on how these images will be viewed. At the low resolution of the links they don't look great. Full screen on Flickr looks better.

#1: Too much blue sky at the top. May have worked as an abstract - blue top and white bottom - but all those bare trees at the cliff base look messy and distracting.

#2: I like the right edge. It has interesting detail in the rocks and vertical lines in the snow, with fewer bare trees. Try a crop keeping around 1/3 of this image, maybe a square crop from the lower-right corner, with or without sky visible.

#3: This is my favorite. The dip in the foreground is matched by the taller trees in the background. The sky color looks off, grayish rather than blue; maybe increase saturation, adjust WB, or do a B&W conversion. The vertical twig at the lower right is a distraction that could be erased or cropped. There's also a horizontal shadow at that corner that will go away with a minor crop.

#4: The B&W is interesting and might be an improvement on #1, but the bare trees at the base of the cliff remain an issue.

Thanks for the thorough critique @deadjohn! I really appreciate it. I agree with everything you've written here, I'll keep it in mind if I ever shoot at this location again.

madphys · 02-10-2017, 01:43 PM

Location seems interesting. #2 and #3 for me. But this place would look a lot different under evening sun. I also imagine, that a night shot with the starry night above would make the perception of this quarry completely different - more artsy.

**Bruce Clark** · 02-10-2017, 01:46 PM

Hi

I prefer #2, less sky. To give the snow a boost I would increase the contrast slightly. Boost the highlights and darken the shadows. Go easy on it though. Also a touch of sharpening helps to bring out details.

**bobbotron** · 02-10-2017, 01:51 PM

Originally posted by madphys

Location seems interesting. #2 and #3 for me. But this place would look a lot different under evening sun. I also imagine, that a night shot with the starry night above would make the perception of this quarry completely different - more artsy.

Indeed, I could likely get a pretty interesting star trail happening here, if I could ever get out there after dark! It's also possible I could get myself hassled by a quarry worker, but that's another issue all together. :P I was surprised it was still in use, it looks fairly abandoned. I shot these photos with my dog on leash (he was traveling with me) - the site is accessible from a 40 foot driveway. I noticed it was plowed, but even walking in it didn't look like anything was going on there. A minute or two after I'd finished shooting and was back at the car a large dump truck rolled in, I was happy enough to have been out of the way by then.

I found these really tested my meager post processing skills. I'm not very good at selective dodge and burn, which I think could have really helped to bring out the texture of the hills and keep the sky from getting overcooked.

**bobbotron** · 02-13-2017, 08:04 AM

I took another go at this photo, cropping out the one tree on the right and using a neutral density filter to lighten the skyline. Too bad those cedars are so gray, but... it's just this time of year around here.

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02-10-2017, 07:47 AM	#1
bobbotron Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Ottawa, ON Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,349	Quarry Yesterday I snapped these photos of an interesting quarry nearby. I think a circular polarizing filter could have helped to eek out the fine details of the snow, would love to get some feedback on them.

02-10-2017, 08:25 AM	#2
xabolcs Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Wild-Nord-East Hungary Photos: Albums Posts: 149	...on my screen looks good the snow...

02-10-2017, 11:32 AM	#3
DeadJohn Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: New York Posts: 4,833	A lot depends on how these images will be viewed. At the low resolution of the links they don't look great. Full screen on Flickr looks better. #1: Too much blue sky at the top. May have worked as an abstract - blue top and white bottom - but all those bare trees at the cliff base look messy and distracting. #2: I like the right edge. It has interesting detail in the rocks and vertical lines in the snow, with fewer bare trees. Try a crop keeping around 1/3 of this image, maybe a square crop from the lower-right corner, with or without sky visible. #3: This is my favorite. The dip in the foreground is matched by the taller trees in the background. The sky color looks off, grayish rather than blue; maybe increase saturation, adjust WB, or do a B&W conversion. The vertical twig at the lower right is a distraction that could be erased or cropped. There's also a horizontal shadow at that corner that will go away with a minor crop. #4: The B&W is interesting and might be an improvement on #1, but the bare trees at the base of the cliff remain an issue.

02-10-2017, 12:36 PM	#4
bobbotron Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Ottawa, ON Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,349 Original Poster	Originally posted by DeadJohn A lot depends on how these images will be viewed. At the low resolution of the links they don't look great. Full screen on Flickr looks better. #1: Too much blue sky at the top. May have worked as an abstract - blue top and white bottom - but all those bare trees at the cliff base look messy and distracting. #2: I like the right edge. It has interesting detail in the rocks and vertical lines in the snow, with fewer bare trees. Try a crop keeping around 1/3 of this image, maybe a square crop from the lower-right corner, with or without sky visible. #3: This is my favorite. The dip in the foreground is matched by the taller trees in the background. The sky color looks off, grayish rather than blue; maybe increase saturation, adjust WB, or do a B&W conversion. The vertical twig at the lower right is a distraction that could be erased or cropped. There's also a horizontal shadow at that corner that will go away with a minor crop. #4: The B&W is interesting and might be an improvement on #1, but the bare trees at the base of the cliff remain an issue. Thanks for the thorough critique @deadjohn! I really appreciate it. I agree with everything you've written here, I'll keep it in mind if I ever shoot at this location again.

02-10-2017, 01:43 PM	#5
madphys Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Riga, Latvia Posts: 98	Location seems interesting. #2 and #3 for me. But this place would look a lot different under evening sun. I also imagine, that a night shot with the starry night above would make the perception of this quarry completely different - more artsy.

02-10-2017, 01:46 PM	#6
Bruce Clark Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ocean Grove, Victoria Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,458	Hi I prefer #2, less sky. To give the snow a boost I would increase the contrast slightly. Boost the highlights and darken the shadows. Go easy on it though. Also a touch of sharpening helps to bring out details.

02-10-2017, 01:51 PM	#7
bobbotron Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Ottawa, ON Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,349 Original Poster	Originally posted by madphys Location seems interesting. #2 and #3 for me. But this place would look a lot different under evening sun. I also imagine, that a night shot with the starry night above would make the perception of this quarry completely different - more artsy. Indeed, I could likely get a pretty interesting star trail happening here, if I could ever get out there after dark! It's also possible I could get myself hassled by a quarry worker, but that's another issue all together. :P I was surprised it was still in use, it looks fairly abandoned. I shot these photos with my dog on leash (he was traveling with me) - the site is accessible from a 40 foot driveway. I noticed it was plowed, but even walking in it didn't look like anything was going on there. A minute or two after I'd finished shooting and was back at the car a large dump truck rolled in, I was happy enough to have been out of the way by then. I found these really tested my meager post processing skills. I'm not very good at selective dodge and burn, which I think could have really helped to bring out the texture of the hills and keep the sky from getting overcooked.

02-13-2017, 08:04 AM	#8
bobbotron Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Ottawa, ON Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,349 Original Poster	I took another go at this photo, cropping out the one tree on the right and using a neutral density filter to lighten the skyline. Too bad those cedars are so gray, but... it's just this time of year around here.