Sunday, 18 November, 2007
Surf II, Cannon Beach, Oregon
This image was taken just a few minutes after the one posted yesterday. It was processed about six weeks after the first one. When I processed it just a few days ago, I did not think to look at the previous one. I just opened the image and processed it in a way that appealed to me.
It was only after I saved the final JPEG to a folder that I noticed how much warmer this image was. Why did it look so different? Curious, I went back to the original RAW files and EXIF data and found that they were snapped seven minutes apart.
Ok, so the light hadn't changed much in seven minutes. Here's my analysis. First, the image from yesterday was photographed with the light coming over my shoulder (but still at an angle). You can see a shadow from one of the rocks. Gernerally, I was facing away from the light and it was a front lit image. I chose to make the surf bright white by keeping a cool white balance setting, which hardened the whites and deepened the blues.
For the second image (today's image), I was facing more into the sunlight (again at an angle), so the scene is slightly backlit. The light is softer and more visible. I also chose to emphasize the warmer light by choosing a warmer temperature white balance setting. Now, the surf spray has a yellow cast and the blues are more muted.
Although the two images were shot from different angles which picked up the light differently, it also emphasizes how different an image can look depending on how you process it, particularly in chosing the temperature of the white balance.
This lesson reinforced what I overheard at a recent photography event. 'If you don't like the color, change the temperature.'
(Sony A100, iso 100, 200mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec, tripod), Cannon Beach, Oregon, September 22, 2007
Posted By: donnamhughes | Comment (7)
Oregon 2007
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