Ring Road's Rural Red

[Mike Buckley]

Route 1 in Iceland is commonly called the Ring Road because it circles the island. These two images were captured on a dreary afternoon on the eastern side of the island, coincidentally very near each other and just meters away from the Ring Road.

C&C encouraged, as always.

[Coinneachmhor]

Really like the way the reds and the greens work. I may have tweaked the levels in the second one to darken the red, but that's just me. I love the simplicity of the first one.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Mike,

If you don't mind changing the aspect ratio, I think #1 would be stronger image without all the fence/gate paraphenalia on the right, just include the bales on left, the angular building and the semi-circular building.

Cheers,

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks for the idea, Dave! Do you and others like this version better?

I'm at least initially inclined to go with the first aspect ratio. That's partly because it's unusual for this type of image, partly because I think the flat lighting requires something to make the image appear special, and partly because it makes the buildings look further away (though I don't understand why) and in the process sort of forces the viewer to look across the expanse of foreground in a way that doesn't happen for me in the initial version. (Is that a looooooooong sentence or what?!)

I'm biased by the fact that I envisioned the first aspect ratio before releasing the shutter, so maybe I need to simply live with your suggested crop longer to get used to it.

[Mike Buckley]

Really like the way the reds and the greens work. I may have tweaked the levels in the second one to darken the red, but that's just me. I love the simplicity of the first one.

Thanks, Kenny! I already tweaked the levels and curve to darken the red. I'll explore pushing it a little more.

[Mike Buckley]

Kenny: I liked your idea so much that I also used a separate curve adjustment to slightly brighten the background grass and to increase its contrast quite a bit. I think it has the effect of making the gate pop a bit more. Your thoughts?

[terrib]

Mike, on the first image, I like your initial aspect ratio better. Both for the reasons you state and also because I think it balances the image around the main subjects. In this case, the subjects together centered in the picture works better for me.

On the second image, I like your second adjustments. I do think the fence shows up better in that one, although the first one might be more real for that dreary day!

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks for the helpful feedback, Terri.

[Coinneachmhor]

Hi Mike, I think the second image of the gate is much better for your additional PP. For me the additional popping of the gates adds to the starkness of the image and makes it more powerful. On the first one, I too like the aspect ratio you used initially and wonder if it would be better to clone out the fence on the right or even just the longer uprights? That said, it doesn't spoil it for me, just thinking of a different take on Dave's suggestion.

[Mike Buckley]

Kenny: Glad to know that you approve of the second image of the gate, which of course was inspired by your helpful critique. I'll mull over your suggestions about the other image as I continue to live with it.

[Coinneachmhor]

Nice to be of help Mike after all the support and feedback I've had from you and the others on this site in building both my skills and confidence to give feedback.