Montana Tree

[Bobjohns311]

I took this shot from a moving car driving through Montana, (I was the passenger). I thought the tree looked quite interesting. I played with it a bit in Lightroom but am fairly new to using this type of editing software. I am looking for any feedback on how to make the tree pop a bit more or any other suggestions you may have for improving the shot. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

[gregj1763]

Hi Bob, a tricky one as there is a lot going on in the background but I had a quick play with it in Photoshop.
I opened it up with the camera RAW filter and selectively sharpened and brightened the exposure slightly on just the tree.
Then back in Photoshop I chose the blur tool and worked on the area from the edge of the green vegetation to the top of the image to try and get a bit of separation.
Regards, Greg

[Bobjohns311]

Thanks for the feedback Greg. Very helpful. Your Edits make a significant difference.

[Manfred M]

This is a tough one, Bob. The tree really fits into the background quite well (natural camouflage). The way to make something like the tree stand out is usually done while taking the picture, rather than trying to do something in post-processing. Of course, taking a shot from a moving car really limits

If you had a chance to do it over again, getting out of the car and shooting from low down with the blue sky as the background would be one approach that might work.

As it is, the darn thing blends in too well. Any global adjustments are going to affect everything in the background as well. Local adjustments are quite limited in Lightroom and this would be tough to do, even in Photoshop. If it were my shot, I would get rid of most of the background, as it is not adding anything to the scene and is drawing the viewer's eyes away from the tree. A monochrome image and a heavy duty vignette can help focus the viewer on the tree, but again, there is only so much that can be done.



This is a much tighter crop and I then ran it through Nik Silver Efex.

[Bobjohns311]

Your suggestion of the monochrome and vignette is great! You are right. The tree is really the main focus of interest. The vignette really adds a totally different perspective. Thank You. It helps me to think out of the box a bit more. We were only a third of the way through the trip and I had asked the driver to pull over to take pictures numerous times. I decided it was in my best interest to crank up the shutter speed and shoot from the window for the rest of the drive.

[Manfred M]

We were only a third of the way through the trip and I had asked the driver to pull over to take pictures numerous times.

Which is the reason that I do much of the driving. That way I get to make the call on pulling off and taking a picture. The downside is driving and looking for interesting photographic subjects isn't the greatest plan either. I probably miss more opportunities that way, but when I do stop, I will take my time to get the shot I want.

I decided it was in my best interest to crank up the shutter speed and shoot from the window for the rest of the drive.

I'll have to say that in my experience shooting from a moving vehicle rarely, if ever gives you a good shot. I found that the best thing I ever did when it comes to photography is to learn to slow down and take pictures deliberately and carefully. I find that I get a lot more "keepers" that way.

Do I still take shots from a moving vehicle? Absolutely yes, but honestly, these tend to fall into what I refer to as "documentary images"; they tell part of the story, but they don't have a lot of artistic merit.

[Bobjohns311]

Point well taken. I took about 20 shots and this is the only one that I really had a second look at.

[IzzieK]

When we go out, hubby drives...I do the look-out and he obeys when I ask him to stop. That is a plus.