Pictures of Spring Idyll - Mamiya 7II Camera

Photographer	Barry Wakelin {K:7838}
Project	#24 The Decisive Moment	Camera Model	Mamiya 7II
Categories	Landscape	Film Format
Portfolio	Hampshire	Lens	Mamiya 80 f/4
Uploaded	5/31/2005	Film / Memory Type	Fuji Velvia RVP
		ISO / Film Speed	50
Views	285	Shutter	1s
Favorites	0	Aperture	f/22
Critiques	14	Rating	Pending / 2 Ratings
Location	City - State - HAMPSHIRE Country - United Kingdom
About	This group of trees atop rolling Hampshire chalkland hills provide a wonderful spectacle that varies throughout the year and depending on what crops have been planted in the fields. This spring it's oil seed rape and I had noticed this potential image several times as I passed the field but I knew that I'd need a combination of evening light and fluffy clouds to deliver the right result. A cold wind was whipping across the field and I tried three different exposures to see whether I preferred the crops stationary or blowing in the wind. Of the three images this was my favourite as it gives the image some degree of dynamism and causes the viewer to question the otherwise bright and sunny scene. I considered cropping the image to a panoramic format but it defeated my aim of capturing an open, airy feel, it felt closed in a claustrophobic. Anyway, it was interesting analysing my choices after the event and seeing how different takes on a single image can dramatically alter their meaning. I had waited several minutes (getting very cold in the wind) for the light and shadow to be right. The central group of trees had to be in bright sunlight but the fields in front of them must have some shadow. Minutes after this shot a large cloud blotted out the sun and the image lost all of its depth that comes from the mix of light and shadow on the fields - this really was a case of the decisive moment. I used a one stop soft ND grad and polariser to maximise the colour in the image.

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There are 14 Comments in 1 Pages
1

Judi Liosatos {K:34047} 5/31/2005

Beautiful colours and excellent composition. Congratulations.

Judi

Galal El Missary {K:84482} 5/31/2005

Perfect composition ,well done .

Galal

Jeanette Hägglund {K:59855} 5/31/2005

So extremely colourful that it chock my eye?s ;))) Beautiful"

Jeanette

Chris Spracklen {K:32552} 5/31/2005

Magnificent colours, Barry, and a fine composition.
Interesting 'about', too.
Kind regards, Chris

Deb Mayes {K:19605} 5/31/2005

Beautiful colors and composition, and a truly informative "about." Well done!

Roberto Arcari Farinetti

{K:192005} 5/31/2005

wonxderful colorscape!
woowoww
my best wsihes
roby

Zannoni Matteo {K:12211} 5/31/2005

eccellenti colori, v

Pace e salute, M.

Stefan Engström {K:24473} 5/31/2005

Thank you for taking the time to describe the thought process that went into this shot - I enjoyed your details very much and I agree with you every step of the way. In particular, your description of the balance of light and shadow on the trees and fields before it was very interesting. I find the motion blur a small but endearing effect here, and it does add a bit of a mystery for the viewer.

Shane O'Neill {K:3064} 5/31/2005

excellent - love the long exposure

Carsten Ranke {K:14461} 5/31/2005

Thanks for the "about" info - very stimulating for me since my daily way home is along such an oil seed field. I am waiting for such a "decisive moment", tried several sky and lighting situations there, not completely satified so far.
Your concept with the clouds`s shadows is very strong, and the motion blur works, IMO. My only concern is the sky in the upper part of the image, would have been nice to have some more clouds there. Ok, I `m insatiate... It is a great picture anyway, hats off !

Keith Naylor {K:13064} 5/31/2005

You have thought this one through very well, but theres just something missing. I don't know whether its the wide angle effect of reducing the effect of the hills or what, but it needs something more.
Having said that, I think the combination of colour and the punctuation of the trees works very well, and you got the light absolutely perfect.

Riccardo Corsini {K:17796} 5/31/2005

Wonderful, Velvia..............

Ric.

Barry Wakelin {K:7838} 6/1/2005

I agree Keith, you've put your finger on it which is why it's so useful posting here! It's why I liked the version with the wind-blur as it adds some dynamism but there's still a slight lack of pull-through. I probably need to invest in the 150mm (71mm in 35mm terms) short-telephoto lens! That would probably bring the curves in the landscape more into play.

Angelo Villaschi {K:49617} 6/1/2005

Another wonderful photo, Barry.

I really like the way some of the rape is stationary whilst some of it moves to create a pleasant blur.

The sky is unbelievably blue and the clouds are very important: well done for waiting until the right moment.

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