The Reaper at low tide, Ainster

[Donald]

When I was out on Sunday my attention was really taken by the relationship between the buildings lining the harbours of the fishing villages in the East Neuk of Fife and harbours that they overlook. That very close and direct link between the land and the sea.

The fact that the tide was right out and the boats and yachts in the harbour were actually resting on the land made that connection (at least in my mind) closer and more intimate.

So, in addition to this one, I also made this image.

Even if you think my thought processes behind this are a bit odd, I'd welcome your thought on whether the image causes you to pause and take a second look, or is it one to pass by and try to ignore!


Canon 40D, Tokina 11-16 f2.8 @ 14 mm. ISO100. 1/90 @f11

[Polar01]

Like it very much, with them sitting on the ground really adds to the connection.

Cheers:

Allan

[kdoc856]

Donald,

I have come to really appreciate images that include a "delay"- it's like discovering your ice cream cone has 2 scoops instead of one- an unexpected flash of delight, and this image does that for me

Kevin

[Carl in Louisiana]

Wow now I really like this one Donald! It does keep me looking and I am a bit fascinated how the boats are so well balanced on land without tipping over. Love the rich tonal range in this one also.
Is it my monitor or is there a sign of over sharpening on the lines of the mast and on the street light to the right?

[gaijin]

Yes, a much better photo IMO than that one although it's a wee bit unfortunate that that yacht is sitting there beside the fishing boat. Not that it is detrimental to the photo, mind you, it's just that it bothers me so see it there in a fishing port! Oh well, I don't suppose you could have waited for next summer and a high tide for someone to come and sail it away !

[Coinneachmhor]

I love this image Donald. The concept is very similar to something I have been looking at in terms of how nature intertwines with man made things. The thought process behind the image is very good and the more you look at it the more you see and putting it in B&W enhances the whole.

[Donald]

Thank you for the comments.

What I particularly liked was the 'gunge' that made up the bottom of the harbour. You had the sense that if you got stuck into that, you'd never come out.

Allen - as that other image that I linked to shows, Anstruther harbour is now a mecca for pleasure yachts and boats. Crail on one side of Anstruther and Pittenweem on the other are still much more working harbours with fishing boats still using them, but not in anything like the numbers of times past. 'Ainster' has very much gone over to the tourist/pleasure boat market.

Carl - I always find it a challenge to get wires/cables looking right on a down-sized image such as this. They do look okay on the full sized image. It really does take a lot of care to try and get them looking okay.

Kenny - I'm glad my ramblings made sense to someone. This interplay between the natural environment and humankind's imapct upon fascinates me and an awful lot of my images feature man-made objects of one kind or another in the landscape.

[Daisy Mae]

Just gorgeous Donald... the balance is really spot on.

Have you noticed how cool the lamposts are in the East Neuk? They manage to enhance and not ruin the skyline....with or without a gull, and are beautiful in the evening with their double illumination.

I wish you had given me a shout , I DO hope you are not trying to avoid our coffeee date!!

[Donald]

I wish you had given me a shout , I DO hope you are not trying to avoid our coffeee date!!

Oh no, not at all. I thought it would be a bit unfair to suggest such an early morning liaison! Will PM you the next time I plan to head that way.

Thanks for the comment. I love the East Neuk harbours in the morning. Earlier the better.

[Daisy Mae]

I love the East Neuk harbours in the morning. Earlier the better.

Totally agree with you and am not a morning person at all but love Ainster as it 'wakes up'. Very special atmosphere no matter the weather.

Glad to hear it about the coffee!

[Dave Humphries]

Is it my monitor or is there a sign of over sharpening on the lines of the mast and on the street light to the right?

Carl - I always find it a challenge to get wires/cables looking right on a down-sized image such as this. They do look okay on the full sized image.

Hi Donald,

Something has changed in your workflow I reckon, it really shouldn't look this bad - although maybe it is something to do with nautical subjects; the only other picture I can recall having pixelated edges like this was also of a ship.

If you are downsizing from a print sharpened fullsize picture that may explain it, but I'm sure I don't get edges like that. It's not as if it is resolving the braid, or lay, of the rope (at this size); that's a purely pixel based structure we're seeing I believe (I could be wrong). Has the downsize method been changed from say "Bi-cubic" to "Bicubic sharper"?

Next time I shoot a subject like this I'll see if I can deliberately encourage it (during PP) to discover the cause.

What I particularly liked was the 'gunge' that made up the bottom of the harbour. You had the sense that if you got stuck into that, you'd never come out.

I know what you mean.

I like the composition, exposure and tonal range.

Cheers,

[RockNGoalStar]

I really like it. Save for the yacht that is sitting next to the Reaper it would be difficult to tell which decade this image was taken in. And I like that about this sort of shot.

Loving the textures and the tone, and your processing, as always, is very, very nice (aparts from the pixelated cables, but you say that they are not present in the high res version. I believe ya ;-))

[Carl in Louisiana]

Thank you for the comments.

Carl - I always find it a challenge to get wires/cables looking right on a down-sized image such as this. They do look okay on the full sized image. It really does take a lot of care to try and get them looking okay.

Hey Donald,

I know what you mean I am still trying to get down to just the smaller areas with mine. It was so small I hated to mention it.

Still a very beautiful image!

[terrib]

The things you guys see "wrong" in posted images... it's just scary how very far I still have to go.

I am in awe of this image (and yes Mike even though it is B&W ) The tones are really pleasing and it reminds me of some bygone era - the yacht notwithstanding.

I do have a question for you, Donald. Was clipping the tip off the Reaper intentional and as I'm figuring it was, can you explain what your thought process on that was?

[Steve S]

Donald, this image kicks A$$ Just beautiful!!!

[Karm Redland]

You are really good at capturing "the sense of a place." When I look at this photo my emotional response is similar to actually being there.

Karm

[Donald]

Thank you all for the added comments.

Karm - Re your comment about capturing the sense of a place. That, for me, is close to getting it perfect. If my images provoke that sense that takes the viewer into the image, then I am doing all that I want to achieve.

Terri - Re your question -

Was clipping the tip off the Reaper intentional and as I'm figuring it was, can you explain what your thought process on that was?

You've hit upon the one thing that I took most time over in setting up the shot in terms of getting, what was for me, the right composition.

My first reaction was that I needed to include the whole vessel and not 'cut-off' the boom/pole coming out at the stern. But if I did that it felt unbalanced because that is all there would have been at that right hand side. The rest would have been 'dead space' with, in my view, nothing that contrbuted to the image. So I set it up so that what you see above is how it looked on the Liveview screen at the bottom and right (i.e. there is no cropping at the bottom or on the right).

And then I stared at it for quite a long time to make sure that I felt I was composing it correctly. I'm sure the good people of Anstruther were wondering if they had a lunatic in their midst as this person knelt at the edge of their harbour (I had the tripod low down) staring at the back of a camera.

So, in summary, 'Yes', the composition you see was very intentional.