Casualty – by Luke Austin

Casualty
1st Place
Intimate Landscapes
Darwin Wiggett’s Summer Photo Contest

This scene caught my attention because I knew I could compose the shot in such a way that it would hopefully hold the viewer's attention for more than a moment.

The shot was taken this June 2009 at Marble Canyon, Kootenay National Park. B.C. The tree was burnt in a fire which was ignited by lightning in the summer of 2003. After 6 years still standing, blackened from the fire, the small tree was uprooted and washed into Tokkum Creek. I watched as it floated down stream, suddenly catching for a few moments on a shallow section of creek bed. Those few moments were just enough for me to visualize what I could make of the scene and take the shot.

Technical Details

First, the image was rotated 180 degrees as it was not taken from directly above, but slightly closer to the tree top. I then applied a levels and curves adjustment to bring out contrast and details. As far as colour saturation of the image goes, it is completely natural. The creek, glacially fed, gives that incredible, almost unbelievable blue/teal colour. Finally the image was resized and an Unsharp Mask (USM) was added to bring out mid tone contrast.

Editor’s Comments

Luke’s image initially created a reverie. At first, I did not grasp it. Then, after thinking about it and reading further, I began to see elements which originally attracted Guy Tal. Just as in Bisti Mosaic and Three Worlds, Casualty provides another completely different digital tone poem…

Scenes within scenes; ground – both dry and underwater; burned tree – lodged precisely on ground, yet suspended lightly on water; water – rushing in blue splendor or supporting a fleeting tree!

I salute Casualty, Bisti Mosaic, and Three Worlds; through Guy’s choices, I began to re-think the original request for Intimate Landscapes. When I began to think of each of these award winning images as tone poems, each element added much more than my initial glance might have supposed.

The art lies in seeing such images, capturing them with great skill, then placing them in subtle, intertwined contexts.

Congratulations, guys, it’s an honor to be included in such fine company and art!

Bisti Mosaic – by Joe Bridwell

Bisti Mosaic
2nd Place
Intimate Landscapes
Darwin Wiggett’s Summer Photo Contest

A Hoodoo Tone Poem
A simple digital tone poem captures shape, light, shadow, and color… One sunset, I shot 3 basically different light/dark shape sets; a pyramid, a mesa, and a manikin. My pyramid’s form; simple light and shadow. Sharply focused, our pyramid pair starts the eye's journey... A mesa, cut by shadowy pyramid, casts a lost semi-shadow... Finally, our long-nosed Pinocchio-like manikin - casts it’s own sharp-nosed shadow behind the lit mesa... Then, a cone of light sweetly highlights illusive light / shadow pairs. Is it fortune – or by design? Much of a truly great photo is luck – provocative light stresses one area over another.
This image was nearly perfect out of the camera – but I applied a customary workflow using Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS4. Lightroom 2 enhanced exposure 0.33EV while strengthening black point at medium contrast. A Clarity of 40, Vibrance of 20, Tone Curve highlights and darks were darkened -13% and -10%, respectively, for finishing touches. Photoshop CS4 and Pixel Genius Photokit Sharpener was applied on each hoodoo detail with Opacity 40%.

Guy Tal’s Chiaroscuro
Darwin’s LLTL Summer Contest was judged by Guy Tal, of Ultimate Guide to Digital Nature Photography fame; I’ve followed Guy for years and deeply appreciate his remarks concerning Bisti Mosaic.
Guy said, “As a budding photographer, I often heard the mantra ‘It’s ALL about the Light.’ It took me some years to realize that while it can indeed make or break some images, there’s a lot more to a good image than just light. Joe’s image tells as much about him as it does about the elements portrayed – the mark of a true artist. When the light got good he resisted the temptation to grab his widest lens and let it do all the work; instead, he decided to draw our attention to the unique intricate detail that made it interesting and personal to him. The composition is beautifully arranged in the frame and creates a nice sense of depth as forms progress into the distance, with the interplay of light and shadow making for a fascinating chiaroscuro. One more little insight into Joe – it’s his image and he will not be a slave to the aspect ratio dictated by the camera. He cropped it to place boundaries where he wanted them and to maximize appeal of his composition.”

First off – chiaroscuro – had to look it up. Sure enough, Wikipedia took me on a truly fascinating journey – chiaroscuro is the effect of light modeling in painting, drawing, or printmaking, where three-dimensional volume is suggested by value gradation of color and division of light and shadow shapes - often called "shading". In Photoshop terms, chiaroscuro might be represented by dodge and burn…
To find a fascinating historical review of chiaroscuro, click the word and see what visual delights Wikipedia has in store…

Editor’s Comments
Thanks, Guy, your comments led me into fascinating areas of painting and art which a geology background ignored… some of the timeless chiaroscuro paintings contain their own extremely unique interpretations e.g., Ruben’s Raising of the Cross (1611), Rembrandt’s St Peter and Old Man in Red (1620s). Rembrandt appears to have begun with chiaroscuro elements having strong contrast, then began to soften these elements in later paintings.
Fortunately for me, you saw this effect in Bisti Mosaic and opened yet another awareness for me… in Photoshop terms, I find limited use of Dodge and Burn provides my own approach to chiaroscuro. A recent discussion with Marlene Lorio aided more evocative emphasis on Shiprock, a prize image mentioned in prior blogs.

Three Worlds - by Wayne Simpson

Three Worlds
3rd Place
Intimate Landscapes
Darwin Wiggett’s Summer Photo Contest

As I walked alone over the dry lake bed of Barrier Lake in Kananaskis Country Alberta, I was overcome by the desolate feeling of the place. I had been there many times before when there was water, but this was an entirely different feeling. It was only mid morning, but it felt a bit like walking in an oven as I walked across the sun baked mud.

I admit that when I’m alone in nature I’m a bit of a daydreamer. Every sound seems amplified, the smallest things suddenly seem much more apparent and everything seems beautiful in its own way. If anyone were to watch me, I’m certain that they would have a good laugh watching me stumble around, looking at the sky and staring down at what would seem like nothing to the average person. I’m sure I look goofy, but that is my creative process – to walk around and study every detail with an open mind and an emotional connection. Once I find something that interests me, my graphic design background kicks in and I begin to methodically construct a composition.

The morning I created this image was no different than any other – I wondered around admiring the lines the cracked mud created, the bright green grasses springing up in the cracks, the preserved animal prints, and the interaction between the cracked ground and the puddles. What initially intrigued me about this scene was actually cloud formations and trees reflected in the puddle. Once I looked a little more and refocused my eyes, I noticed how the cracked ground went under the water and the two seemed to merge. Three worlds came together in a single puddle, and were begging to be photographed… but how?

The Technical Side
This image presented several technical challenges that needed to be addressed. I needed to figure out a way to get the surface of the puddle and the underlying mud in focus at the same time, then I had to show the transition between the water and mud in a pleasing way, and last but not least I needed to create a perfect sun star. I started by waiting for the clouds to part and give me an unobstructed view of the sun and then created one exposure focused on the reflection at an aperture of f/18. I then quickly created a second exposure with my polarizing filter turned to cut the reflection and focused on the mud at the front of the puddle. I then blended the two exposures in Photoshop to create a subtle transition from the in-focus mud to the in-focus reflection.

Canon 5d, 24-70, f/2.8, USM @ 28mm, 1/6 sec, F/18, Iso 100
Tripod, cable release, mirror lockup

Editor’s Comments
I love how Wayne simplifies, seeing photography as if in a reverie. I often want this Muse’s mood when I shoot – seeking icons.
I might not have thought of using a polarizer to establish clarity between reflective water and underlying cracks. That’s the creative element of Wayne’s evocative shoot. Advanced use of Photoshop with its remarkable Blend Image function shows Wayne composed, perhaps beforehand, certainly knowing his collective images could be post processed to provide this impeccable, award-winning image.
Just as in Bisti Mosaic, Three Worlds provides a digital tone poem…
Scenes within scenes; dry cracked ground, water covering cracks, clouds obscuring cracks, the sun, and, finally, darkly obscured cracks under the mountain’s forest reflection!

I salute Wayne’s creativity… Three Worlds is a truly remarkable image!