Another throwback, but only from October 10. A nice bright morning with some mist in the trees at Atkins Reservoir in North Amherst. Posted to FB but I missed sharing it here.
The light was filtering through the leaves from the right as the sun was just over the treetops at the far end of the reservoir. The softness comes from the muting by the thin fog that was filling the woods but cleared over the water.
Stephen Gingold Nature Photography Blog 
If someone put only the image in front of me and asked, “Photograph or painting?” I would have had a hard time deciding.
It’s interesting that, in this case, nature gave you some cottony trees, just as you use your photographic skills to produce cottony water. What’s even more interesting is the way the trunks of the trees shine through the leaves, sometimes seeming to be streaks over the trees. This is one that reveals its details slowly.
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Painting. Steve is taking up a new hobby.
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Well, I am trying new things.
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Part of what I wanted to do here was to express this as much like a painting as possible. I am glad that it works that way. I may include this in my Town Hall exhibit and hope that it gathers some attention in the way you describe…requiring some study to be appreciated. And…little accusation of being “Photoshopped”. Similar to our discussion the other day about moving things, why do so many people think the use of Photoshop is somehow cheapening the art of photography? Do they not know that very few of Ansel Adams’ works were as he physically saw them? He accomplished amazing things in his darkroom and through the skilled use of his camera in exposing the film. By doing the same things in the digital darkroom somehow it is different. Grrrrr
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Re: the antipathy to photoshopping… I think part of it comes from seeing too many images of Mickey Mouse plunked into everything from landscapes to family portraits. But I wouldn’t be surprised if envy didn’t play a role, too. People who don’t want to put forth the effort to achieve something marvelous often denigrate the efforts of those who do. It’s a variety of an old dynamic, called “I’m going to build myself up by tearing you down.”
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I think that you are correct that there is a certain amount of that involved. But I also think a portion comes from lack of knowledge of the history of the medium or the debate about whether photography is in fact art. Just as with much of life, there is a complexity to most undertakings that only though experience can be appreciated…like varnishing. 🙂
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It’s great to hear (read) your thoughts on Photoshop. I’ve been into photography since I was 14 (trust me, that was quite awhile ago). But when I went to college I took classes in darkroom techniques. Loved it. I figured, hey cameras are not as good as our eyes, and sometimes you need to jazz it up, heighten and enhance. Then Photoshop came out and digital photography. Even better than a darkroom! No chemical burns, no horrid smells, no accidental headaches.
Agree, agree, enthusiastically agree with your grrrrrr.
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I spent a little while in the wet darkroom and don’t miss it in the slightest(my darkroom is now a second bathroom and our pantry filled with months worth of food just in case….). And cameras are now better than our eyes which often gives the impression of fakery. We are able to capture detail beyond what the naked eye can discern.
I am glad we are in agreement.
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The photo is just simply amazing.
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Thank you, Mark.
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You’re welcome.
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I’ll sidle up to a sidelit scene like this anytime. The reflected red in the water seems to have lost very little of its brightness and saturation.
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If you come to the Berkshires I would be glad to sidle along with you. The water was quite calm on this day allowing the mist to hang within the trees.
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Here’s to some side-by-side sidling!
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I love this one Steve. Particularly the quality of the light and highlights.
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Thanks, Rod. This was one of those occasions when I was driving down a dirt road and saw the light through the trees on my side of the water. Thank goodness for peripheral vision. 🙂
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Wow! This is really striking. I thought it looked like a painting, too.
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When I posted this in the am I thought it might appear to you that way and am glad it did. Thanks, Melissa.
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Marvelous image. It really does look like a painting, which I think is brilliant.
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Thanks, I.K. I usually prefer my images to not look like a painting but am happy this one does.
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Photo or painting, it’s scenes like this which make me cross that I am not a morning person.
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We can arrange a wake up call, Ann. 🙂
I’ve been a morning person all my life at this point. I had a newspaper route and would wake at 4 or so when the delivery truck would toss the bundle into our yard. Even in college I would be awake early…sometimes naturally and sometimes, well…not quite so naturally. In the mid-90sI was just starting to wake a little late…5…when Mary Beth got a job in Hartford, CT which required an early rise time and our second Beagle, Dixie, got trained that breakfast and her walk happened at 4 am. Ever since then I’ve risen at 4 and never use an alarm.
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I will consider your offer of a wake up call!!!! Next year…..;)
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