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Awards
Action Award
Chatter Award
Zenith Award
Top Shot Award 22
Legendary Award
Contest Finalist in The Clouds And The Sunlight Photo Contest
Community Choice Award
Contest Finalist in The Lifestyle Project
Contest Finalist in The Moving Clouds Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Creative Compositions Photo Contest Vol6
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 47
Peer Award
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
All Star
Virtuoso
Superior Skill
Genius
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andrewlpaul
September 04, 2018
For me this composition has that 'other' quality that belongs to masterpieces. Well done! Stunning!
BrilliantSun
January 08, 2019
no matter how many times I look at this shot, my first reaction is always the same.. "wow"!!
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on the Vantage Highway in Eastern Washington. A friend and I stopped at a random spot on the highway and got out at a couple different places where the road was curving in different directions. When I saw this spot, with the clouds starting to go crazy and the morning sun shining still, I knew it was THE spot.Time
Originally we were supposed to get up at 5 AM and take the photo, but I slept in and was over an hour late (which is a big part of why my hair was so messy in the photo and why I'm wearing old tennis shoes). We ended up hitting the road around 7 AM. This picture was taken around 7:30 AM in the morning in the beginning of summer.Lighting
So what was great about this shot was that there were storm clouds forming, but there was still warm morning sun shining through that wasn't blocked by the clouds. I feel like the addition of the sunlight added to the photo to give it less of a creepy vibe, and more of a magical glowy feel. There wasn't any additional lighting used, just the lighting from outside.Equipment
I used my Nikon D820 and my 24mm Nikkor lens on my dad's old tripod. With how bright it was there wasn't a ton of other equipment needed, but the photo probably would've been even better if I had brought my filter along.Inspiration
My original plan was to get a shot of the sun rising with me in it. The moon was supposed to be visible that morning at sunrise, and I wanted those creamy sunrise colors with the sun coming up over the horizon against the road. However, we were a little too late for the sunrise, and with clouds rolling in I realized an even better opportunity was there.Editing
Yes! I definitely enhanced those clouds. The clouds didn't span the whole sky, so I used clone stamp to help make more of a funnel and then I placed them onto a layer of their own and stretched them to create that "all-encompassing" storm look. I then "multiplied" the layer to add intensity and upped the contrast and vibrance. I also changed the coloring to make the photo overall more magenta. The road's contrast was brought up and darkened, because I'm a big fan of really gritty roads and texture.In my camera bag
I made the switch from Canon to Nikon pretty recently, so I'm still low on gear. When I was shooting with Canon, I tried to always keep my 85mm f/1.2 and my 24-70mm on hand so I would be ready for anything from a crazy landscape shot to an up close portrait. I also try to always have a tripod on hand, because if any low light moments happen, it's really hard to compensate in post-processing for blurry shots or super high ISO (one of the only ways to keep a fast shutter speed in low lighting). Another handy tool for low lighting: I keep a bunch of very small portable LED lights in my bag (think the size of Christmas lights). It's really easy to spice up a night shot or create softer lighting using LEDs without a lot of the hassle/cost that comes with using multiple flashes.Feedback
If your goal is to get a person into a really vivid landscape shot, I'd say the most important advice is to think about the safety of your model. It's really easy to envision a model in all of these beautiful scenes, but to get a lot of these shots, you're putting your model into uncomfortable and sometimes even dangerous situations. For any shot, make sure you and your model are aware of all of the risks, and know how to mitigate them. For example, if you want a shot of your model in a glacial stream, is the temperature of the water going to put your model at risk for hypothermia? Would it be better to wait for warmer weather or even give the model a few weeks to accommodate themselves to colder water temperatures? It's much better to have to do a little more prep work or post-processing than to risk getting your model hurt. Secondly, in terms of capturing the perfect conditions (interesting cloud formations, perfect natural lighting, etc.) it’s better to arrive early and plan to camp out for a while. Good weather conditions often only last as little as a few minutes (good sunset lighting, a sinister looking cloud) so the longer you’re out there, the better the chance of capturing that perfect shot.