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Fall Color in the Rain

Mary Bull

New member
The rain which had been falling since noon had slacked off a bit to a fine drizzle--temporarily--and I took the G2 out for a few shots, because the leaves were suddenly so red in the green landscape.

I shot Fall in the Fence Corner:

274275999_e2445de550_o.jpg


And, in macro, that one hanging bright leaf, as,
Fall Leaf in the Fence Corner:

274289159_55832745e3.jpg


And then, the top of the maple tree beyond the neighbors' rooftops,
which view I call, It Was Raining:

274296778_190684eebc_o.jpg


There are probably reasons one shouldn't shoot pictures in the rain. But it was still reasonably warm out and I couldn't stay in the house a minute longer.

I'm putting these in the Layback Cafe because they are largely documentary of my own activities this afternoon and not really good enough to ask anyone to try to help me improve them.

I did crop all three shots and process them a bit in LightZone. "It Was Raining" I only did a bit of noise reduction to, and backed the luminosity off slightly.

The other two I pushed the red, green, and blue all three slightly with the Color Balance tool, saturated the merest hair, and reduced the noise two or three times after I used each of the other tools.

I took 19 shots this afternoon, all of them in RAW.

They have just one message: fall is finally here in Middle Tennessee, and the fall color is heart-lifting, even in the rain.

Mary
 

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Hi Mary,

How could you miss taking pictures of the colors. Suggestion. Get yourself a tripod with a quick rlease. They'l set you up in the store with something very light. Then you can point the camera upwards. You will be able to see the image beforehand on the G2 movable LCD screen. Take the picture just before sunset when there's a golden loght coming at an angle to make the leaves even more defined and with a golden hue.

Suddenly you will jump another level. however, not in the rain it's a G2, not a 1DsII, LOL!

Kind wishes,

Asher
 

Dierk Haasis

pro member
Any camera, regardless of the claims for robustness, should be covered somehow when shooting in the rain. This is all the more important with attached or built-in flash! Either stand on a perch, in a doorway, use an opened window [if perspective, angel etc. are convenient], use a big, preferably transparent, plastic bag with a small whole for the lens, or an umbrella [large one, maybe with shortened handle and some means to attach it to a tripod].

If using a self-made plastic cover, see to get a rather large one such that you can pull it completely over the camera with the main opening far from any electronics facing downwards [= avoid trickling of water into and onto electronics]. Cannily attach the opening you cut into it for the lens with some gaffer tape [the one that leaves no residue when taken off] to the lens shade. Unfortunately the G2 offers no shade but the method can be adapted.

I like the first image, which needs a bit of cropping (not much) and some colour boost in the green and red channel (careful not to overdo it). The second one suffers from shake; it also needs something like a counterpoint [i.e. a green leaf, totally rotten leaves] to get life into it. This phot, BTW, is a prime example of how to crop too much - or not enough. Either give us a bit more (see above) or make it an abstraction by going even closer and then crop it further, so the leaf is not obvious as the object photographed.

The third photo suffers.
The gables are distracting, the angle - given by the fence - is totally wrong [since it is not the subject], the colours don't work as they are too subdued. The idea is a good one - matching up the full green life with the big sleep - but it is rather hard to get right. I know, I try that now for 35 years and have a handful of satisfying images at best.

Autumn_tree.jpg
 

Mary Bull

New member
Asher Kelman said:
Hi Mary,

How could you miss taking pictures of the colors. Suggestion. Get yourself a tripod with a quick rlease. They'l set you up in the store with something very light. Then you can point the camera upwards. You will be able to see the image beforehand on the G2 movable LCD screen. Take the picture just before sunset when there's a golden loght coming at an angle to make the leaves even more defined and with a golden hue.
Keeping this excellent advice in mind.
Suddenly you will jump another level. however, not in the rain it's a G2, not a 1DsII, LOL!
Well, I couldn't resist!

And apparently the camera is unharmed. It was very light drizzle, and I shielded it a bit under my chin.

Brought it back in and set it on top of the freezer for the lens and lens cap to air-dry before putting the cap back on.

Mary
 

Mary Bull

New member
Dierk Haasis said:
Any camera, regardless of the claims for robustness, should be covered somehow when shooting in the rain. This is all the more important with attached or built-in flash! Either stand on a perch, in a doorway, use an opened window [if perspective, angel etc. are convenient], use a big, preferably transparent, plastic bag with a small whole for the lens, or an umbrella [large one, maybe with shortened handle and some means to attach it to a tripod].
I knew that I shouldn't do what I did. I just couldn't resist. And as I replied to Asher, above, the camera is apparently unharmed. It was a very light drizzle--almost a mist.

But some moisture did get on the lens cap. I was shielding the camera itself under my chin.

Nevertheless, I did let both camera and lens air-dry before replacing the lens cap.
If using a self-made plastic cover, see to get a rather large one such that you can pull it completely over the camera with the main opening far from any electronics facing downwards [= avoid trickling of water into and onto electronics]. Cannily attach the opening you cut into it for the lens with some gaffer tape [the one that leaves no residue when taken off] to the lens shade. Unfortunately the G2 offers no shade but the method can be adapted.
Thank you. I shall make something like that for myself, against the next time I am tempted outdoors into a drizzle.
I like the first image, which needs a bit of cropping (not much) and some colour boost in the green and red channel (careful not to overdo it).
Thanks for the detailed advice. I'll see about a little further improvement, then, with this first image.
The second one suffers from shake; it also needs something like a counterpoint [i.e. a green leaf, totally rotten leaves] to get life into it. This phot, BTW, is a prime example of how to crop too much - or not enough. Either give us a bit more (see above) or make it an abstraction by going even closer and then crop it further, so the leaf is not obvious as the object photographed.
Thank you so very much, again, for the specific advice on the leaf. I shall go back into LightZone and see what more I can do with it. I don't have the best eye for composition, but I hope to learn to be better at it. I shot 6 frames of the leaf. There was a little breeze which kept moving it at the exact moment I would push the button. But I might not have held the camera steady, also.
The third photo suffers.
The gables are distracting, the angle - given by the fence - is totally wrong [since it is not the subject], the colours don't work as they are too subdued. The idea is a good one - matching up the full green life with the big sleep - but it is rather hard to get right.
I took about 5 frames, from different angles, and never was satisfied. To shield the camera I was getting most of the fence below the gables. Cropped it every which way also. Backed the luminosity off a bit, as i said, to emphasize the gloom, and then of course the colors--never very intense--suffered even more.

I did want the gables. The sense of urban life continuing as the tree leaves reach the end of their life.

But you are right, they are way too distracting.

I don't see any way really to express my idea for these juxtapositions through this image. So I think I'll lay it aside.

Thank you again so very much for the serious critique of it.
I know, I try that now for 35 years and have a handful of satisfying images at best.
Autumn_tree.jpg
This one is stunningly beautiful, to my eye.

Mary
 
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