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racetrack playa: color
Image Title:  racetrack playa: color
 
 By: tom rumland  
  Copyright ©2004



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Photographer tom rumland {K:14874}
Project #20 Classic Landscape Camera Model Nikon D100
Categories Landscape
Film Format
Portfolio geology
death valley
Lens Nikon  12-24mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S DX
Uploaded 10/7/2004 Film / Memory Type ISO 200
    ISO / Film Speed 0
Views 517 Shutter 1/15
Favorites Aperture f/22
Critiques 17 Rating
5.86
/ 7 Ratings
Location City -  Death Valley
State -  CALIFORNIA
Country - United States   United States
About see my previous posted image for background as to what this is, where, and when this was taken. a slightly different view a few minutes (or seconds) apart. notice the tracks on the playa surface. these are caused by inconsiderate and insensitive folks who do not seem to care at all for natural wonders such as this. signs are clearly posted banning driving on the playa as well as walking on it while it's wet. this is a very delicate surface and requires quite a bit of rain to restore the pristine patterns of the surface. as you can imagine, rain here is rare and it can take many years to erase the tracks left behind by these unconcious (meant in all senses of the word) people.

thankfully for me, they do add a bit spice to the shot ;^) this image is part of a social experiment on my part to be continued over several images. the intent and results of which i will post when i have gotten a result. although i'm sure some you can already guess it's nature ;^)

btw, i think i've figured out my noise/sharpness issues in my last trip to DV. it seems that dark current in the CCD increases with high temps and causes noise to increase even at low ISO levels. it was 113F the day i shot this. also, the tricky hyperfocal scale is the probable culprit in the sharpness issue. but more on that in future shots. PS used for saturation, contrast, +0.3EV adjustment, crop, and frame. used an ND4 grad filter and tripod.

as usual, comments welcome and most appreciated. the last batch of comments i've received have been a revelation not only in technical terms but artistic as well. thank you all for your invaluable input and help!

dedicated to hugo as he seems to enjoy this place as much as i do.
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rumland


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There are 17 Comments in 1 Pages
  1
Jose Ignacio (Nacho) Garcia Barcia   {K:94480} 10/7/2004
stunning tones. marvelous composition. 7


Jose Ignacio (Nacho) Garcia Barcia   {K:94480} 10/7/2004
stunning tones. marvelous composition. 7


Michael Kanemoto   {K:22106} 10/7/2004
Tom:

I'm thinkin' that you need to stitch a series of these into a panoramic... yum.

The lighting is fantastically wicked good - and the grad filter really came through. Excellent work.


Roberto Arcari Farinetti   {K:192044} 10/7/2004
superb fine place in a good shot!
regrads
roby


tom rumland   {K:14874} 10/7/2004
michael, thanks! actually, your recent panny made me want to do just that ;^) maybe even a 360deg panny. hmmm, many, many possibilities. this idea is going into my bag for the next trip. i just hope it cools down a bit ;^)

take care,
tom


Don Loseke   {K:32503} 10/7/2004
Such a great place and nice lighting. Very nicely done. Don.


Maria José Barres   {K:11276} 10/7/2004
Wonderful landscape Tom!
Great shot.
Greetings.


Todd Miller   {K:16464} 10/7/2004
nice shot Tom. i gotta get a grad....
the lighting is really beautiful, and your technical skills really shine through. (sorry for the ugly pun)


Lee Harris   {K:14694} 10/7/2004
Tom this is very very good.
The exposure that you have brings out the best in everything.
The nice soft tones in the sand and the mountains and sky are so crisp....I been looking at this image very hard trying to give you some good critique, but I can find nothing but positive about this image.
My Complements.
Lee
7


Hugo de Wolf   {K:185017} 10/9/2004
Hi Tom,

Thanks for the dedication, I sure enjoy DV, and each time I look at a photo, it gets higher on my "places to see wish list".... Amazing and very impressive scenery.

Very interesting discovery of the effects of temperatures on the CCD, good to know, and a very logical explanation.

I really think the tracks add some suspence to this shot; somehow, they are less apparent than in the shot you showed me earlier. That might very well be due to the resizing. The image is done justice by enlarging it to desktop format, that's for sure.

The warmth of the tones, as well as the saturation work beautifully; if you have changed them compared to the image you sent me, it's a very subtle change.

In this smaller version, I think the sky is the most important item in creating the tension and appeal of this shot; fiddling with the tire tracks might emphasise them (doding them a bit), but even though I think they are also an important element, I think it's the subtlety of them that creates the suspence. Making them become more apparent would change too much.

Excellent shot....:) I'm looking forward to the outcome of the social experiment...;o)

Cheers,

Hugo


tom rumland   {K:14874} 10/9/2004
thanks hugo. i told you i would post it ;^) actually, i made no change to this other than the crop to make the tracks appear from the bottom of the frame. i also cropped the darker side of the mountains on the right. this could possibly make it appear to have a different level of luminosity. less mountain and less playa with more sky probably makes for a brighter shot that accentuates the color in the mountains. just guessing.

the experiment is something we have discussed in the past so i'm sure you know what it is ;^)

take care,
tom


ventrix drogo   {K:62722} 10/14/2004
Excellent landscape, great colors and prospective. I like it. Bye.


Ursula Luschnig   {K:21932} 10/18/2004
This photo does not need many words...simply
wonderful!
Regards
Ursula


diptanshu roy   {K:1059} 10/18/2004
great colors and light


Petri Puurunen   {K:5127} 11/28/2004
Perfect! beautiful scenery. simplicity is the key.


Heath Bennett   {K:4429} 12/20/2004
Love the sun line in this shot.

Informative 'about' segment.

Thanks you very much for taking the time.


Hugo de Wolf   {K:185017} 1/18/2006
Hi Tom, definitely a place to see...:) Can't wait!

Cheers,

Hugo


  1

 

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