Lichen on a Rockface and a View Beyond to Volcanic Hillsides (HDR, Pinnacles National Park)
While walking the Balconies Cave Loop with a view looking to the east in Pinnacles National Park. With this image, I decided to focus on a nearby rock-face that had lichen on the surface and then have a view beyond to the hillside from a ridgeline coming off the High Peaks. The blue skies and clouds would be that color contrast to complement the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image. Beyond the layered look that I wanted to capture with this image, I had to keep in mind the large dynamic range present. Nearby, the rock-face would have would be in the shadows, while the more distant hillside and volcanic formations would be caught in the sunlight. I tried to find a mean exposure with the evergreens and their needles caught in the sunlight. I chose to work with Aurora HDR Pro to better bring that complete setting in the image. I later exported a TIFF image to DxO PhotoLab 6 where I did some final adjustments with contrast, saturation and brightness for the final image.
Lichen on a Rockface and a View Beyond to Volcanic Hillsides (HDR, Pinnacles National Park)
While walking the Balconies Cave Loop with a view looking to the east in Pinnacles National Park. With this image, I decided to focus on a nearby rock-face that had lichen on the surface and then have a view beyond to the hillside from a ridgeline coming off the High Peaks. The blue skies and clouds would be that color contrast to complement the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image. Beyond the layered look that I wanted to capture with this image, I had to keep in mind the large dynamic range present. Nearby, the rock-face would have would be in the shadows, while the more distant hillside and volcanic formations would be caught in the sunlight. I tried to find a mean exposure with the evergreens and their needles caught in the sunlight. I chose to work with Aurora HDR Pro to better bring that complete setting in the image. I later exported a TIFF image to DxO PhotoLab 6 where I did some final adjustments with contrast, saturation and brightness for the final image.