Stills

Welcome Anita!

While discussing the members off line with Colin earlier today, I was thinking of recommending you as a potential member. Then Aha!, I check in and whose photograph do I see;- )

Another photographer from Southern California!
 

But I forgot to discuss the photo, so there are also some flawed posts as well!

This photograph has a nice compositional balance to it and the tonality is subdued because of the overcast or late in the day.

I can image myself hiking down a similar trail in Orange County, with the Spring Rag-Weed blooming (now since gone) and occasional prickly-pear cactus sticking out. I can almost smell the air. nice.
 

Welcome to the group. Nothing wrong with troubled photos and very often little right with the problem free kind.

What do you think is wrong with this photo? And yes, I will regularly dodge commenting on a photo by asking questions instead ;-)
 

Welcome Anita - I don't think that we have hit 9 before so you are an important addition!

Congratulations on your book, which did a very good job of bringing your love for a place on to the page - almost too difficult to bear.

I like the mass of the mountain felt through the tree and as Doug says, one can feel the air. What is the tree? The flowers look like Elder but the trunk doesn't.
 

John - we were briefly 9 earlier this year. Not that that changes the sentiment of your comment.
 

Add my welcome to the others, Anita. I also enjoyed your SoFoMoBo book and look forward to your contributions. Try not to worry too much about "flaws" (easier said than done, I know) -- I've found this is a very good place to get feedback on images that we perhaps "like", but are unsure about in some way or another.

Your image has a peaceful atmosphere, enlivened a bit by the mass of yellow wildflowers in the foreground. Although the place is very different from where Colin shoots, the quiet, realistic tones remind me of somewhat of his -- and that is a compliment.
 

Colin - Thank you for the warm welcome and generous encouragement. Both are deeply appreciated.

Doug - Thanks for adding another welcome sign. I am delighted that my image takes you to a specic place and evokes all those senses. I have long appreciated your ability to put me in places that are so real to me.

Matt - You are a stinker! You are goading me to admit all my reservations about too much white at the edges of the frame to take the eye out of the picture, guibbles with the placement of that main subject (the tree), not quite enough of the yellow flowers.... But, I'm not going to go there. You don't want to get me started on one of my whines about what I wish I had done differently.

Seriously, thanks for the prodding. Now, it's your turn.

John - Thanks for another welcome and I deeply appreciate your comments on my book. I agonized (anyone surprised?) about whether I had managed to convey the feelings behind that work. This life-transition we find ourselves in (interminable in this flat real estate market) is full of emotion.

I wish I knew the name of that tree. Unfortunately, to paraphrase Butterfly McQueen, I don't know nothing about botany. That makes no sense either, since I never met a tree I didn't like.

Christina - Thanks for the comments. Prepare for the onslaught of my gushing admiration and worshipful commments on your work. I visited your site yesterday, and I am madly in love with your photographs of the Florida birds. My husband caught sight of the egret over my shoulder and joined me. We produced a chorus of "Oohs and ahhhs" that would have made you smile. I have already admitted that I am "stuck on pretty" and your images of those birds are gorgeous.

I am especially grateful for being mentioned in the same sentence as Colin. High praise, indeed, and especially reassuring to receive an affimation of "realistic tones". Because I know I am seriously addicted to color, I am constantly keeping an eye on myself and hoping that I don't get carried away with saturation and contrast.

To All - Thanks again for the welcome wagon. Yesterday was intense. Since the invitation came as a complete surprise, everything happened at a dizzying pace and once I found myself plopped into the midst of this fine gathering, I was a bit breathless for a time.

What a wonderful opportunity to learn. I have no formal training and have never been a member of a photo club or participated in a contest or a juried exhibit, so all this is quite new to me. The fact that I am expected to articulate my thoughts and feelings about the work of others was initially quite intimidating, but I am already beginning to see how much I will learn from the participation. I am honored to be in such fine company.
 

Hi Anita and welcome.

I found myself drawn to the cacti as "you don't see many of those round here!"

The recession gives a good feel for the enormity of the countryside, 'limitless'.

I have had a quick look at "One Last Look" and wish you all the best with your move and new home.
 

Hi Rex, thanks for the welcome and the observations.

The cacti certainly are a common element in our southwestern landscape as well as the often limitless horizons. The wide open spaces are a vital part of my soul. Can't take the Texas out of the gal, I suppose.

And, thanks for taking a look at my book and for the good wishes on our move. This being stuck in limbo is just too weird, but we hope to have things resolved soon.
 

and a late welcome from me (I've got to get a new job).
The yellow base and yellow tufts in the tree make this a light/cheerful picture. While there is a lot of sky it does have tonal variations and is not dull and boring.
Does anyone here have formal training? I don't but have been a member of camera clubs which I now only go to if there is a decent photographer talking.
 

Robert - Thanks for the welcome and it's rather nice having it come a bit later. This way I get to stretch by another day my "honeymooon" period and continue to relish being "the new kid on the block". Although how an old broad could qualify for that category may remain a mystery.

Thank you, also, for the comments. I was taken by the juxtaposition of the rather gray, and not really cheeful, clouds with the sunny flowers.

Your comment as to your own lack of formal training is reassuring. I suppose I am quite guilty of thinking everyone has gobs of training and that I generally feel lost because I don't.
 

...well let's keep the honeymoon going for a further day!

Welcome Anita - good to have you on board. I'm gradually through all the SoFoBoMo submissions so now you're a member of the team your submission will jump up the reading list!

This certainly uses the Jago Palette of Colours (TM??) - which works well in its favour. The front tree's slope combines nicely with the outline of the mountain in the distance. Also a lack of pathway through that 'wilderness' is a refreshing touch. As much as I would like to walk along one without in this picture does give a sense of a tough walk ahead. Plenty of undulating lines at work throughout the shot. Though the tree up front hogs the viewer's attention there is still detail and interest around it so it doesn't garner 100% of it.
 

Akikana - Thank you for extending my welcoming party.

Thank you, as well, for the thoughtful comments. I now see the photo with new eyes. What fun. Perhaps I responded to those things, but only on an unconscious level. By the way striking out toward those hills through that cactus would be a colossally bad idea.

I look forward to reading many of your comments in the future.
 

my reservations about too much white at the edges of the frame

I don't see any of the eye dragging whites often referred to on edges. I do notice that you have not employed the vignetting technique, which has almost become a cliche, to contain my interest 'artificially' at some point within the image. The sky is the sky.
 

Another thought.

I've been living under bright skies for sometime. I don't recall walking off somewhere unintended due to a bright bit of sky.

I do realise that this comment might imply that I can easily view an image with single large white areas at frame edge, I cannot.
 

Rex - Thank you for the commments. I confess I am fairly chicken when it comes to using the vignetting technique on landscapes. I don't like the effect when it's heavy-handed and don't trust myself to avoid that trap.

I have to chuckle at the thought of wandering off on an unintended path as a result of a bright bit of sky.

With your prodding, I have looked again at my photo and maybe I should let go of any concerns about white clouds. If there isn't enough going on below, it can't be blamed on white clouds.
 

'I should let go of any concerns about white clouds'

I don't see any problem here. As to your other reservations, the way the tree sits in the frame is a bit unconventional, but there's nothing wrong with that.

I do like the color palette of this. That soft yellowy green is quite lovely.
 

That yellow makes a nice difference for me, too. Thanks for the thumbs up.