Kilmory beach to the Paps of Jura near sunset

[dutyhog]

Kilmory beach rocks Panorama by dutyhog, on Flickr

I've just re-processed this image to improve it. Near sunset in November 2010 from Kilmory beach to the Paps of Jura.

_DSC1659-64_DxOACR_Panorama-cyl7x4stretch.jpg stitched from 6 images, taken vertically with a Nikon D90 and 22mm lens at f/11, 1/50 sec. Have I overdone the clarity/USM/sharpness?

Gordon

[Geoff F]

It's overdone for me, Gordon. I tend to think that if HDR is noticeable, it is overdone.

But images like this often get a good percentage of votes in our competitions. So it seems to be just a matter of personal taste.

[dutyhog]

if HDR is noticeable, it is overdone.

Thanks for the comment, although there was no HDR, just curves and a bit of USM in Photoshop to get detail from the shadows. The 6 images were side by side merged to get a wide angle with lots of detail.

[dje]

Hi Gordon

This is quite a striking shot IMO and I do like it. I would love to see it posted at about twice the size (in each direction).

I can see where Geoff is coming from as the rocks in particular do look a bit "over-cooked" to me. However the appearance could well be different in the larger image.

Nice composition and the stitching seems to have worked well.

Dave

[FrankMi]

Hi Gordon, do you have a copy of the image after stitching but before any other post processing? I suspect that the gritty 'salt and pepper' look of the shoreline may be due to oversharpening of the detail which I would expect to be smoother.

[Donald]

I'm going to be photographing them next May. Have booked myself a cottage for a week on Gigha.

For me, this one has that over-tonemapped feel as suggested by Geoff, but just on the foreground. The island and the sky are fine.

[WJT]

I like a strong foreground myself and think this has a lot of individual in it. Most people would have concentrated on the rocks in the water but you have made this a more interesting image by stepping back and taking more in. The light is excellent and I like that you have resisted making the sunset part of the picture.

[dutyhog]

Hi Gordon

This is quite a striking shot IMO and I do like it. I would love to see it posted at about twice the size (in each direction).
Dave

Thanks Dave - I've re-posted the Flickr link at the top to be a 1400 pix wide image. Gordon

[dutyhog]

Hi Gordon, do you have a copy of the image after stitching but before any other post processing? I suspect that the gritty 'salt and pepper' look of the shoreline may be due to oversharpening of the detail which I would expect to be smoother.

Thanks, Frank. Here is just one of the original images. On the left is straight from RAW, just converted to JPG and reduced size. On the right is after using DxO to correct lens distortion (a lot with this 18-200 mm Nikon zoom) and minimal presharpening, then into ACR to recover highlights and shadows. Being handheld at 1/50 sec, ISO 400-ish and f/11 means that it's not as sharp as I'd like from foreground back.



DSC1662forCiC1400px by dutyhog, on Flickr

[dje]

Thanks Dave - I've re-posted the Flickr link at the top to be a 1400 pix wide image. Gordon

Gordon the larger size image looks great. The rocks in the front still look a bit overdone with the USM, clarity and sharpness and it could be worth toning it back a bit. But overall a very impressive image.

Dave

[FrankMi]

Thanks, Frank. Here is just one of the original images. On the left is straight from RAW, just converted to JPG and reduced size. On the right is after using DxO to correct lens distortion (a lot with this 18-200 mm Nikon zoom) and minimal presharpening, then into ACR to recover highlights and shadows.



DSC1662forCiC1400px by dutyhog, on Flickr

Thank you for posting Gordon. Yes, this set doesn't look like it is oversharpened. Although I feel that this is more realistic, it was you that saw the image and not I. The most important thing is not whether I (or others) think it needs changing but rather whether you like the image the way it is. The more I look at the original posting, the more it grows on me.