An Urban Landscape, The Bronx River

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For those who know the Bronx, the photo was taken from the Bruckner Expressway in Hunt's Point. Did a few global adjustments. Comments welcomed.

[Geoff F]

Looks good to me. I might be tempted to try just a little bit of highlight boost, but masking out parts of the sky which are already on the bright side.

But there isn't really anything wrong with having a 'dull day' appearance if that is what you want to represent here.

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Hello Geoff.
It was a dull day and the image shows it. I would prefer that it not be so dull.
I plan on retaking it on a clear day or under more interesting lighting conditions. I'm pretty sure the elevated roadway is for subway trains and would like to get one in the image.
Thank you for commenting.

[DanK]

I like this composition.

Re it being a dull day: Look at your histogram.



It extends across the whole range, which is good for global contrast. However, much of the image is smushed into the top 40% of the histogram. that limits midtone contrast, which I think is why you see it as dull.

I don't think it needs boosting of the highlights. The highlights are fine. I would pull the histogram down (darkening the darker half), add contrast in the whole image, and maybe add more contrast in the sky. Here's a very quick and dirty edit along those lines. I can show you the edits if you want.

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Thank you, Dan, that was very helpful. I followed your instructions. I will post the result after I re-adjust the settings a bit more.

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I settled on this using your adjustment procedure. I still think the image needs a train on the elevated roadway to give it a strong central point. Hopefully, I can get out this week for a reshoot. Thanks again, Dan.

[Geoff F]

Looks a lot better, Daniel.

I suspect a train would just be a distraction unless you zoom in tighter and lose some of the foreground.

[DanK]

Daniel,

Must improved. Better than my edit too.

Re having a train there: I'm not sure I agree with Geoff. I'm not good enough at visualization to have a clear idea. Sometimes signs of human activity contribute to images like this, in part because of scale. For that reason, I almost wrote in my first post that someone would probably tell you to clone out the kayak, but I think it contributes. If you can easily get one with a train, it would be interesting to compare the two.

Dan

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Dan & Geoff
We have a cloudy week coming up, but I'm still inclined to reshoot later this week. A train would be a significant focal point in the image because it would be situated right in the middle. I don't think it would be a distraction. I thought it would add to the urban landscape. We shall see. I hope I'm right about trains running there.
I didn't think it was a kayak. I thought it was an old pilling. I will check to see if it's still there.
Thank you for your comments. Much appreciated, Daniel

[Donald]

A train would be a significant focal point in the image because it would be situated right in the middle. I don't think it would be a distraction. I thought it would add to the urban landscape. We shall see. I hope I'm right about trains running there.

I agree about the train, but not in the middle. Keep it to the right hand side so that those buildings in the background are not cut off in any way.

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I agree about the train, but not in the middle. Keep it to the right hand side so that those buildings in the background are not cut off in any way.

Thank you, Donald. I hadn't considered capturing it on the right. More gray cloudy days are forecast for the next five days. Will have to shoot soon because in six days I'm heading out of state for a few weeks.

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I went back today and reshot the scene with the train on the railway. I'm still digesting the results. I have photos of the train at different points along the track. The train was ok. It's everything else. The sky had small puffy white clouds, and the water had reflections from the cement plant and the railway towers. The buildings reflected light. It was a mess of distractions with a train traveling through it.

[Donald]

Well done.

If you know the image you want and haven't got it yet (yesterday's exercise may have helped in that a lot), then keep going back. That's the way to get a great image. Good on you, Daniel. It's seeing the great image in your mind. And then go out and get it.

[escape]

Well done.

If you know the image you want and haven't got it yet (yesterday's exercise may have helped in that a lot),

It did help a lot. It was a practical learning experience.

[jkshyt]

Best pizza in the Da Bronx! The Bronx river is much narrower where I grew up; Fordham section.
The old Plant on the left is still standing, it put many drivers to work.
Brings back memories, thanks for sharing.

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Best pizza in the Da Bronx! The Bronx river is much narrower where I grew up; Fordham section.
The old Plant on the left is still standing, it put many drivers to work.
Brings back memories, thanks for sharing.

The Bronx River runs through the Fordham section through the Bronx Botanical Gardens and the Bronx Zoo. Yes, it is narrower but lovely and natural, especially through the Botanical Garden. Thank you for commenting, Jack. I'm happy it sparked some good memories for you.

[xpatUSA]

Just looked up the name out of interest:

"The Bronx is named after Jonas Bronck, who settled in the area in 1639."

https://www.nyhistory.org/community/borough-names
.