The River Almond at Buchanty

[Donald]

Just to show that I don't see the world in B & W all the time.

I've stated on here before (not an original idea of mine by any means) that a colour image should be about the colour in the image. That's why I made this one. The colours in the water in particular absolutely captivated me.

Way back in ancient times (well, January of this year to be precise), I started this thread. In it I spoke about returning to the location later in the year as it is, apparently, one of the best places in the country to see salmon leaping (and I fancy myself as a salmon-leaping photographer!).

Anyway, the salmon are not leaping yet. But I nailed the exact location I want for my shot (In my head I know exactly what the image I want looks like). Whether I get that image or not is another matter.

Anyway, this morning I spent about 2 hours just enjoying being there. I fired off a lot of test images of the shot I'll want to make of the salmon leaping. All I need now is a salmon! Knowing my luck I'll be away and miss it all.

And I made this image from my visit.

If you look at the top left of the first image in the thread I've linked to, just where the river comes around the bend, that's where I was standing for this one. The leaves are still thick on the trees and the water immediately in front (and me) were overhung by a large tree and thus in heavy shade compared with the rest of the scene. Which is why I had a 3-stop and a 2-stop (given a total of 5 stops) GND mounted on the Tokina 11-16 f2.8.

Someone (sorry, can't remember who) was asking the other day whether Cokin Z-Pro filters will work on the Tokina without causing too many vignetting problems. Here is the answer. They work just fine.

So, sorry for the rambling tale. As always, your comments, observations etc are welcomed.


Canon 40D, Tokina 11-16 f2.8 @ 12 mm. ISO400. 1/350 @f5.6. 3-Stop + 2-Stop GNDs

[FrankMi]

Now that is the kind of water picture I've been trying to get all year! Everything looks natural from the reflections to the sparkles to the rocks in the riverbed to the depth of the scene, composition, colour..... Yep, it's all there.

Wait a second! Colour? If it wasn't for the fact that very few can capture a scene like this I would fear that the Body Snatchers had gotten to Donald and took away his square crop!

Can't wait to see this with the salmon jumping!

[Sergio M.]

Donald, I can see why you were captivated by the colors, they are wonderful. It's also nice to see water that is not blurred. Not that I don't like it that way but it's a refreshing change. I'm also glad to hear you enjoyed your time out there. That should always be part of getting the images we want.

Serge

[Carl in Louisiana]

You've caught me off guard this time Donald! I have a habit of scrolling down to see the image first then read, I did see it was by you though, it was in color I thought for sure I must have hit another post by mistake and had to scroll back up but it is you!

Beautiful capture, the colors involved, I find my eyes drinking in it's beauty. The water is of a natural look to me, not many of these kind. Moving water has a way of captivating me and I could sit and watch it for hours.

[Daisy Mae]

There's something very painterly about that shot Donald and I like it very much.

Nice to see water moving freely and not frozen to a steam by a slow shutter speed.

[Donald]

Thank you, everyone, for your comments. I'm much more comfortable working in B & W and getting a colour image as I want it is always more of a stressful affair. So, I'm glad that it seems to work

There's something very painterly about that shot ....

I hoped someone might make that comment.

By shooting at f5.6, the whole image is not in focus. If you go in close, you see that the leaves on the trees are sligthly out of focus. In addition, there is no content sharpening on this at all. There is capture sharpening which was applied at the Raw processing stage and then there was output sharpening done on the reduced-size image for posting up on here. I wanted the trees to be very much the support act to the water and I wanted to try take the viewer's attention back through the image to the sky. I didn't want nice crispy sharp leaves competing for attention.

All of that, I think, is why you get the painterly effect.

[Mike Buckley]

Gorgeous image, though it's not nice that someone has allowed Donald's evil twin to post color images around here.

I like all the colors very much. I have to mention the brackish color in the water that usually has murky brown tones has gorgeous gold tones in this.

Lemme guess: a neutral density filter used in the top left area of the image and a polarizer

Looking forward to the leaping salmon!

[Donald]

Lemme guess: a neutral density filter used in the top left area of the image and a polarizer

3-Stop + 2-Stop (= 5 stops) GNDs. No polariser.

The secret of it, I think, is the lovely, low autumnal sun.

This was just before I left to come home. I'd been at the location since well before 8am. 10 minutes before this, this view was very dull. But, by close to 10am, the sun started to climb a bit and make it's way into a gap between the trees over my right shoulder. I could see the sunlight working its way down the trees. That's when I saw that something quite interesting might happen. I needed some sunlight on the water. So I just waited..... and got that little bit of sunlight on the white water. That was the moment to fire the shutter.

[Mike Buckley]

I'm surprised about the rich blue tones in the water without using a polarizer.

[Donald]

I'm surprised about the rich blue tones in the water without using a polarizer.

That's how it was. Colour hasn't been touched in PP (too nervous about getting it wrong), apart from White Balance. A shot with a WhiBal in the frame was made immediately before this and colour set for this one using the data in that other image.

In PP I pulled down the overall exposure by, I think, 0.5, then upped fill light to put some detail into the shadows between the trees on the right hand side (all that at RAW stage, with DxO Optics).

Then in the GIMP there was a little burning (darkened the brightest parts of the leaves on the trees and the water right at the back to take off some of the brightness from sunlight hitting it and to match up to the tone nearer the front of the image).

[Daisy Mae]

So I just waited..... and got that little bit of sunlight on the white water. That was the moment to fire the shutter.

Maybe it is because I have the flu ...but I could pull the quilt up under my chin and listen to this all night.

Togger tales..it needs written.

[Donald]

Maybe it is because I have the flu ...but I could pull the quilt up under my chin and listen to this all night.

It was then that I noticed her. Walking towards me slowly but deliberately. She smiled that smile that said only one thing ........ she wanted to see my Singh Ray Vari ND. I moved towards her.

Oh sorry, got carried away there.

[MrB]

A great composition and wonderful colours, Donald. Others have also made the next point but I'll add mine anyway - it is a pleasure to see a river composed of rushing water and not candyfloss.

Philip

[FrankMi]

It was then that I noticed her. Walking towards me slowly but deliberately. She smiled that smile that said only one thing ........ she wanted to see my Singh Ray Vari ND. I moved towards her.

Oh sorry, got carried away there.

Oh fine! Just as it was getting interesting, WHACK! cut to the commercial!

[Karm Redland]

I know its a salmon river but I would love to step into this river with a fly rod flicking little flies to brook trout -- just a dream. Nice job. You really nailed the water flow and its color. Like others, I can't wait to see salmon moving up this river.

Karm

[rpcrowe]

Donald, if the salmon were leaping in this river, I woul assume that they would be traveling upstream. It seems that a better vantage point might be looking downstream so that you would get the salmon heading towards the camera rather than away from it...

[Donald]

Donald, if the salmon were leaping in this river, I woul assume that they would be traveling upstream. It seems that a better vantage point might be looking downstream so that you would get the salmon heading towards the camera rather than away from it...

Apologies Richard, my comments may have misled - This is not the precise location for my intended salmon shoot. That is - turn right from here and walk 10 yards across the rock. Then as you say, I will be looking looking downstream into the really raging water.

This shot is at the top of what is known as Buchanty Spout. Immediately to my right the river narrows very rapidly and roars down a narrow passage.

One of the striking features of the above shoots, after having been there for about 2 hours, was the silence emerging as I walked back up the hill to my car. 2 hours worth of roaring water really shuts you of from the rest of the world.