Recent Northern California Images

[CNelson]

I took a trip to northern California recently and managed to get some time for photography. Here's some shots of the Mt. Shasta Lavender Farm and a quaint church in the Little Shasta Valley. I managed to capture the church in some dramatic lighting with storm clouds above and late afternoon sun peeking below the clouds.

[Shadowman]

Nice series.

[dje]

Nice work Chuck. Lavender farms can make great subjects for photography with their structured rows of flowers. I think you've done a good job with these and I think the second has the strongest composition. The colours look a little over-saturated, particularly the blue water in the fountain and the blue sky but that's just my taste of course.

The church shot works well - good light and cloud.

Dave

[ShaneS]

Chuck, I second everything that Dave had to say and will add a plus two or three to the shot of the church (minus the watermark)

[John 2]

That's +2 for Dave's comment on saturation but the church shot is a real winner for me and I quite like the treatment in the 3rd image. Not keen on the watermark though.

[deetheturk]

Lovely images Chuck, I agree with the others regarding the watermark!

[Mark von Kanel]

great series i agree reg water mark and saturation, church shot is fab!

[bnnrcn]

Hi Chuck Lovely church image , but the watermark is screaming . I would very much like to see the original of #3 without aquarelle effect.

[CNelson]

Thanks for the kind words and input all. I often push my images a little in terms of saturation or toward a painterly look. Sometimes too much as in #3 above. For comparison, I will attaché #3 without the painterly push and less saturation. The bottom of the fountain is painted blue to enhance the blue look.

The painterly and saturated look is something of my style...I don't do it with all images but I often do it with images that go into a gallery because it sells. Some images work well this way and some don't...I have to make a judgment call. Some people like a good photograph and others want something with color and a little artsy. I drive some photographers nuts (especially the SOOC crowd) when I tweak my images but, for better or worse, it suits my taste. I love photography but I also love where we can take our images in an artsy way.

The images are linked from my website and the ones from the commercial side have the watermark. Apologies for the watermark but it's a mild form of protection.

Here's #3 without the painterly look:

[bnnrcn]

The original is nice too. I might try some paint effects in some of my images too in the future. But first, I want to improve my shooting skills

Thanks for the kind words and input all. I often push my images a little in terms of saturation or toward a painterly look. Sometimes too much as in #3 above. For comparison, I will attaché #3 without the painterly push and less saturation. The bottom of the fountain is painted blue to enhance the blue look.

The painterly and saturated look is something of my style...I don't do it with all images but I often do it with images that go into a gallery because it sells. Some images work well this way and some don't...I have to make a judgment call. Some people like a good photograph and others want something with color and a little artsy. I drive some photographers nuts (especially the SOOC crowd) when I tweak my images but, for better or worse, it suits my taste. I love photography but I also love where we can take our images in an artsy way.

The images are linked from my website and the ones from the commercial side have the watermark. Apologies for the watermark but it's a mild form of protection.

Here's #3 without the painterly look:

[bnnrcn]

I looked at your website , you have lovely images Chuck!

[CNelson]

I looked at your website , you have lovely images Chuck!

Thank you Binnur....I agree with you in that we should always strive to improve our basic image shooting skills. Mastering the art of photography is shooting at a moving target but that's what makes it enjoyable. The hardware and software keep evolving and new ideas about what and how to capture a subject continue to surface. We will always be learning and trying new things. I feel I have barely scratched the surface of what I should know but the challenge is exciting....I think we all (photographers) feed on and thrive on the challenge to do better.