Cedar Creek Fall

[Rainforest]

It's so rainy - I can't get out to shoot much so it's PPing of old stuff I haven't touched much before. I'm pretty pleased with this and would appreciate C & C -the more nit picky, (and I mean that in the best way), the better ;-)

[Shadowman]

Nice color, a difficult subject to capture (meaning the foliage) especially with this type of lighting. A bit soft, the foreground rocks or trees should be tack sharp to pull this off; especially when you are going for the dreamy water look. Just my opinion on how I would've approached the scene.

[Rainforest]

Thanks for the comments John. The fall foliage in our area is pretty much yellow and it is hard! I shot this at 1/125, f3.2 and wasn't really going for the dreamy water - it's interesting that it reads that way to you. It does look a bit soft here especially the right tree. I tried out a little Orton Effect and am still trying to figure out, (see), exactly how that works with some images. Thanks again.

[Shadowman]

Thanks for the comments John. The fall foliage in our area is pretty much yellow and it is hard! I shot this at 1/125, f3.2 and wasn't really going for the dreamy water - it's interesting that it reads that way to you. It does look a bit soft here especially the right tree. I tried out a little Orton Effect and am still trying to figure out, (see), exactly how that works with some images. Thanks again.

Hi Susan,

The use of the Orton Effect would explain my interpretation of the water, the OE does just that' gives the image a soft dreamy look. Are you applying the Orton Effect within Elements, if so, perhaps you can apply it to a layer and reduce the blend mode so the effect so that you can control how much it forces the entire image to be out of focus/dreamy?

[Rainforest]

Hi Susan,

The use of the Orton Effect would explain my interpretation of the water, the OE does just that' gives the image a soft dreamy look. Are you applying the Orton Effect within Elements, if so, perhaps you can apply it to a layer and reduce the blend mode so the effect so that you can control how much it forces the entire image to be out of focus/dreamy?

Hi John, I applied it at 14% in Luminar to the entire image also adjusting the contrast slightly and the brightness a touch. I could have applied it as a layer but didn't think to do it and didn't try blending. I was trying to create something a little different than straight on crisp and clear - my mind's eye said soft. Thanks again.

[LePetomane]

Susan, Beautiful pictures. I have one question. Does that water hold any trout?

[Rainforest]

Susan, Beautiful pictures. I have one question. Does that water hold any trout?

Thanks Paul. It does have trout but not a lot and not very big. It is all catch and release now. The water is so clean and cold on this creek and the Little North Fork of the Santiam as well that there just isn't a great deal of food supply. On occassion we'll see some big ones in the upper reaches. The salmon can still get back here to spawn but leave when they are small.

[Davejl]

Very nice. I love the colour, texture and tonal variations of the moss especially

[John 2]

That's a nice shot Susan. The trees form an interesting frame and the colour pulls you through. I have never been a fan of the Orton Effect probably because I have never figured out where or when to use it but this works quite well.

[Rainforest]

Very nice. I love the colour, texture and tonal variations of the moss especially

Thanks Dave it's a favorite spot - swimming hole above and below :-)

[Rainforest]

That's a nice shot Susan. The trees form an interesting frame and the colour pulls you through. I have never been a fan of the Orton Effect probably because I have never figured out where or when to use it but this works quite well.

John that makes two of us and so this experiment. Thanks much for your comments.

[rpcrowe]

There are any number of variations on this image lurking within the image... I think it is great when one image can be processed into many different images, each one nice in its own right. Here's one variation I played with using a variety of NIK filters and a slightly different crop...

I tried to get a lot of different colors within the image. I also tried using the reddish foliage as the center of interest and the stream as a leading line pointing to that foliage...

[Rainforest]

There are any number of variations on this image lurking within the image... I think it is great when one image can be processed into many different images, each one nice in its own right. Here's one variation I played with using a variety of NIK filters and a slightly different crop...

I tried to get a lot of different colors within the image. I also tried using the reddish foliage as the center of interest and the stream as a leading line pointing to that foliage...

Hi Richard, I'm so glad you played around with this. I really want to push some limits in PP as I'm learning more but hesitate - why not! The crop works really well and the enhanced color on the water certainly draws the eye forward. Thanks for this!

[IzzieK]

The crop of Richard was what I was thinking when I first saw your image. I thought the upper part is gnarly and complicated enough. The crop made it all simple to look at. Beautiful colours...

[Barbara Ponder]

Lovely location and I would imagine lends itself to many different feels depending on the light. I also like the crop that Richard suggested.

[rpcrowe]

I recommend NIK software as a plug-in to anyone using Photoshop or Photoshop Elements. NIK also can be used (with some limitations) as a stand-alone program, as well as plug-ins to several other editing programs.