Image of the Week Submission May 5- May 17, 2020

[dandc]

Waiting

lh3.googleusercontent.com/w0SI63tYbZJWNCEGeALF5NRy0Y8sMDAjRCjh6gIrot84wZ8BnzXkP_-hiHdnyO6UQPBUFnGhS9w9kb2ajQ=w1024-no-tmp.jpg

[pontiac1940]

Tree swallow. May 15, 2020. 
 

[Fauxtoto]

Thank you to everyone who posted an image in the forum and to everyone who has taken the time to look at shared images. Your participation in this humble and friendly image of the week (IOW) feature is much appreciated. As usual, I cruelly stick to my decision to not choose more than three images, two special mentions and one IOW. And you are making it difficult for me.

The special mentions

White pelicans at sunset, by pontiac1940
i.ibb.co/DCmX72T/pelicans-sunset-CAS03404.jpg

In real life, sunsets are always beautiful. What makes them also beautiful in a photograph is the work and talent of the photographer. The observation and capacity to identify the potential of a place and situation, the determination to get there, the patience to wait, the choice of the lens and focal length, the depth of field, the exposition, the framing, the composition, the exact moment to press on the shutter, the editing and the presentation, when all of this is perfect, it does not come from luck. The way the birds appear at this specific time makes this photograph of a sunset special.

Top of the hill , by dandc
lh3.googleusercontent.com/Cv6gvW9Wpe2c_T5N46k5U2LmqqmVW1UCc6RHTr6fkyo6EWdyeJI1R65X3EL99PysryvqRjC3lh0-nC2QQA=w1024-no-tmp.jpg

We would love to be hiking in such a beautiful pastoral setting. This photograph is an invitation to do so. It gives the impression of being there. We almost know what our next step would be and what path we would follow to reach the top. A well-balanced image, maybe leaning a little bit towards the left but, after all, it is a hill. The direction of the clouds helps to mark the curved top of the hill and brings us back into the image. The soft shadow of the trees combined with the subtle but still bright light transmit a quiet and positive sense of freedom. The perfect place to write a poem.


Image of the week

Tree frog, by fotofrank
i.ibb.co/b2bBgt4/tree-frog.jpg

Now we know: the story of Prince Charming in Sleeping Beauty is true. What a fantastic image. The composition and the light are worthy of the best cinematography. As if the frog was coming from another world through the roots of the tree. The scene emerges from the vignette. The blurred foggy shapes behind the frog add to the mystery. Bravo!

[kdcintx]

Congratulations fotofrank on your tree frog image. Fauxtoto gave an excellent explanation why this image is IOW.

pontiac1940 and dandc, congratulations on the special mention this week.

[hmca]

I admire your ability to limit your choice to three images, Maurice. As always, I learn from reading what led you to make your selections.

Congratulations are certainly in order for Clive, Dan and especially Frank for his very intriguing image. Would be great if you could share a little information as to
where you took this image and pertinent processing information, fotofrank.

[Sepiana]

Congratulations to all on such beautiful images! Keep up the good work!

[blackmutt]

All wonderful images. Congrats!

[fotofrank]

Maurice - I am honored by your selecting my Image, and, as always, I truly appreciate all of the comments that you provide to all of the Images. Congrats to Clive and Dan, both great Images.

Here is my starter Image.
.

Maurice's explanation will be far better than an explanation of the actual process. The frog was added in, and both Images where taken in a local park near my home. Fog was added using render>clouds along with a Crop. Basic lighting adjustment to lower the exposure and multiple custom LUT's that I created were applied to the image to give it that look. In my view the image you start with may have no resemblance the image you up end with - only what you envision. I did open up the shadows on the frog.

[pontiac1940]

Maurice
Thanks for the honorable mention. Congrats also to dandc and of course to fotofrank.
Great discussion Maurice. 
Clive

[hmca]

Maurice's commentary related to his appreciation of the image you created, Frank. By sharing the original image and your post-processing steps you have given us a better understanding of how the image was actually created. I especially noted the
stick in front of his face. I was interested to see that while it could have easily been removed, leaving it there was part of your creative vision for the image. It supports the idea that this might have actually been found in the woods. I love seeing the before/after versions.

[Lillias]

Congrats to Clive,dandc and Frank. Great images all.
Thanks to Fauxtoto too for your wonderful commentary on each of your choices. Being a non-photographer myself you make me look at each image through new eyes and bring them to life so to speak, so that I appreciate them in a different way.

[whippet]

Congratulations to you all.
Three images, so different, so beautiful.

I agree with Lillias regarding your commentary, Fauxtoto.

[dandc]

Bravo indeed to Frank for that intriguing image - I found myself looking at it over and over wondering about how it was taken and then processed. Now after seeing the before image I'm even more impressed with your creative eye and the outcome you were able to create - well done! Congratulations to Clyde for another beautiful image of his 'backyard' - gotta be rough. Thanks for including my image among your picks Maurice, as well as your insightful commentary on each of your selections. The hills have already gone golden on us so this scene looks quite a bit different from when I took that shot. Below this hill is a corral with friendly horses bordering a park with a relative flat trail we've sauntered along numerous times this Spring.