Aspen Art?

[Malok]

I've been trying to stretch myself a little and see things a bit differently than I normally do. Here is another attempt to give a different look at the Aspen of RMNP. Does this work or am I getting off base with this approach to landscape photography?

http://morninglight.us/forum/oct6.jpg

[Sailor Don]

Malok,

Good landscape photo, but with everything else being nature, the dirt road kind of ruins it for me. But that's just my opinion.

[Malok]

Thanks Sailor Don. It is actually a hiking trail, but it is possible to clone it out if I need to. I agree that it doesn't add anything to the image. It is the image as a whole that I am really questioning more than particular parts. Every thought helps though and I agree that I should deal with this trail.

Malok

[Sailor Don]

Malok,

Disregarding the hiking trail, I would say the overall effect provides a nice balance between the starkness (is that a word?) of the tree with no leaves on the left with the vibrant color of the aspen glen. And all that with a nice "evergreen" background.

If the scene permits, I would have liked to see a little bit of horizon and blue sky. Not too much so as to distract from the landscape, but just enough to "get in touch with our surroundings".

Was this taken on a cloudy day? I don't see evidence of well defined shadows from the tree limbs.

[Malok]

Thanks Don,

The sun had just set behind the mountains which are located behind the trees. Because of the bright sky directly ahead I intentionally avoided the sky or it would have completely washed out the scene. If I had taken this in the morning, I could have included some sky and clouds. I agree that this would really have helped.

[Sailor Don]

Malok,

Perhaps it is impossible when the horizon detail is trees, but I have had moderate success with pasting two images together with different exposures, one for sky and one for a dark foreground.

Sometime back, I posted one of my edited splicing efforts to this site, but nobody commented. I don't think it was so good that it left everybody speechless. :D But it was the best splice I had ever done.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=41761

[openspace]

In todays hypersaturated lanscape photo market, you need to find your own voice, especially in a state like Colorado. Everybody's got aspen shots. Everybody's got columbines in their collections. The key is to find your niche.

So with that, I applaud your efforts!

[Malok]

Openspace, thanks for your encouragement. The challenge is developing one's own unique style but not going so far that the images lose their interest for the general viewer/buyer. I'm not sure if I really know where those boundaries are yet. Any advice you or others have is always appreciated!

Malok

[aam1234]

Over sharpened a bit maybe?

[PhotosGuy]

I like it. Maybe change the hue of the path area to a green?

[openspace]

The challenge is developing one's own unique style but not going so far that the images lose their interest for the general viewer/buyer.

I don't really worry about that. I display in a small gallery in Woodland Park, CO and I am always amazed by what people actually buy. There is no way to know what the individual buyer wants. I am always amazed by what sells, and even more so by what doesn't.