Squall Pending Photo

Photographer’s Note

The sky was moody, then threatening. Just before the squall hit I snapped a few shots around the hills of the wine and ranch roads near Paso Robles. The scent of newly cut hay riveted my senses on this fresh California morning and I remembered the saying "Those that wander are not always lost." How delicious is life when one becomes temporarily lost on a back road of Tuscany, a green lane in Britain, or a back road of California wine country.

Dakota55, weswang, singuanti, chinchini, PixelTerror, nwoehnl, Tue, Gregtom, Gix, capthaddock, MarekP, robiuk, Galmeida, MoosicMan, efimoore has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Dakota55 (392) 2005-05-30 22:29

This shot has very inturesting perspective created by the rolling hills. I also like the variety of textures in the grass and sky.

Your note is very nice and adds a lot to the shot.

Cheers Robin

poulinp (4464) 2005-05-30 22:47

Sharp, nice contrast, good perspective. A nice graphical shot, with a huge DOF. Well done.

snuggleaphagus (4138) 2005-05-30 23:34

Wow the clouds are great and the waves almost look like ocean waves. I really like the waves of straw. The texture are great, the golden hill way in the back's almost surprising. Great lighting conditions. Nice composition with the tree/bush on the left.

singuanti (15240) 2005-05-30 23:50

Hi John, those clouds resemble the apocalypse! But for having such overcast skies your light, clarity, and focus are flawless. I'd say your sharpness is again just about right. You have some great lines across the field. Another good one John!

chinchini (27583) 2005-05-31 0:12

Bonjour John,
La composition est réussie car pas évidente avec un tel sujet. Les pentes qui ondulent apportent du mouvement et de la profondeur à l'image. Le ciel menaçant est superbe.
Très bonne photo !
Pierre

jarosz0 (517) 2005-05-31 1:49

Hi John. Sharpness and perspective of this photo are excellent. Cloudy sky gives very interesting, strange atmosphere to the image.

danyy (68778) 2005-05-31 2:49

Bonjour John,
Magnifique ciel, et superbe luminosité malgré de mauvaises conditions d'exposition
J'aime beaucoup ce genre de composition.
Merci pour le partage.
Daniel.

PixelTerror (86124) 2005-05-31 7:09

Hi John,
That's a nice diagonal perspective built here by the fields lines, the warm tones are in good opposition with the dark and dramatic sky, it looks like it's about time to find a shelter !
Have a nice day,
Jean-Yves

weswang (18223) 2005-05-31 10:39

Hi John, A very well composed picture with parallel diagonal lines.Hi John, A very well composed picture with parallel diagonal lines. Different regions are well distinct with different colors in the picture. The cloudy sky shows a possible storm’s coming.
A nicely taken picture with nice depth and clarity.

nwoehnl (120) 2005-05-31 15:54

A very nice and moody shot from the fields you managed here, John. The impending storm feel is indeed well portrayed in this diagonal view across the land, topped by the gray formation of clouds. A nice perspective along the undulating hillside, good contrasts, and a nice placement of the single tree in the upper left area. I like it.

Tue (25608) 2005-05-31 18:09

Hi John,
Very nice picture with this sloping landscape! The clouds above the hills are also very good, well done! :-D
Groetjes,
Lars

Gregtom (7119) 2005-06-01 1:08

Hello, John!
I see very natural colors, like fujichrome sensia film. Very sharp and well composed image. The sky seems to me like it is almost desaturated, which gives excellent contrast to the ground plane. Excellent!
regards,
Greg.

CliffW (2310) 2005-06-01 8:03

You've really been capturing some interesting textures in these big sweeping landscapes out of California lately John. This one's no exception, with the gold from the hay and the green moving towards a single point, and the darker trees against the nearly as dark sky, Very dramatic!

Gix (3559) 2005-06-01 8:16

Hi John,
this remember even to me a calm stroll in Tuscany! Excellent sky, geometry and proportions, a perfect synthesys of this environment. Really a great view, excellent pov and dof!
Conpliments!
ciao, Giorgio

capthaddock (28640) 2005-06-01 10:05

Hi John - The sky is fantastic, and the lines in the hills look great. We had some strange waether in early may, I see you took this the day after I arrived from my last trip, this type of weather is very unusually here in May.

MarekP (4744) 2005-06-01 12:24

Hi John,
Excellent DOF, perspective and composition. I like shapr horizon too. Well done. Is it really taken in May? It looks more like an autumn or late summer scenery.

Thanks,
Marek

Graal (57941) 2005-06-01 15:09

Superb landscape, John. Here all is ok. - composition, colours and sharpness. I like it.
Well done.
Regards,
Aleksander

Fis2 (45827) 2005-06-01 16:28

Hi John!
Nicely composed landscape. I like the colours and sharpnes.
Regards
Krzy¶

robiuk (10763) 2005-06-01 18:09

Nicely composed shot, John!
Sharpness is amazing and hey lines give a good perspective.
I also like your POV that reveals all beauty of this landscape!
Regards,
Robi

PJE (19443) 2005-06-01 23:34

John you have made a lovely arrangement of flowing lines in this scene. I bet you were hoping for blue sky but this is very pleasant to see. I think I miss rolling hills like this. Great stuff and good work.

cessy (13647) 2005-06-02 3:50

wonderful shot, John
I like very much the composition, and different colors of the landscape
great !

Galmeida (12559) 2005-06-02 7:31

Hi John.
Interesting approach and angle of view, resulting in a great composition. All the elements are in perfect harmonious simphony. Great formation of clouds in contrast with the light conditions and the beautiful scenery arround. Great colors, sharpness, contrast, graphims and textures.

Very well done and composed!
Fernando

foxy (733) 2005-06-02 12:22

Hi,
Great picture. I like the curves and the lines of this landscape. The threatening sky againt the landscape is excellent. Something sinister in it.
Thanks for sharing.

DLM (6447) 2005-06-02 13:55

Hi John,
Very nice picture,great textures,extremly well done with such an overcast sky.
Great note too.
Regards Dave.

Stepan (27175) 2005-06-02 16:30

The grey touch makes a interesting pciture. A little sad (thanks to the tree too) but successful.
Stéphane

MoosicMan (1231) 2005-06-02 22:42

Oh, you have that 20D firing on all cylinders now, learned friend. The sharpness in the foreground vs. the billowing clouds in the offing, it's a worthy effort. Well done!
Best,
Matt

toni_al (15430) 2005-06-03 18:05

Hi john
Superbe paysage, les lignes des champs qui se croissent sont très graphiques.
Very nice shot
Amitiés
Toni

mumek (17468) 2005-06-04 21:58

Good evening John!
Looks like a rain is coming. A very beautiful landscape with fantastic, dramatic clouds.Excellent natural colours.Very well seen and done. Thanks for posting
ziggy

mpb001 (4600) 2005-06-05 8:45

Super shot, John. The angle and leading lines into the distance are great. That lone bush on the top left and the grey clouds add a sense of mystery. Technical details are perfect. Good job!

efimoore (2126) 2005-06-06 17:02

Nice country scene and well composed. I like the colors. Very moody. Exposure is just in the right levels.

pamastro (7213) 2005-06-07 0:17

Very good point of view to capture the energy of nature here. The lighting is great giving a dark and menacing appearance to the clouds but a nice color to the ground as well. The point of view makes use of the lines of the field very well as they extend to the right side meeting the clouds which move on a different line to the same point. This creates a very dynamic and graphic image. And I really like how the clouds boom over the horizon. It all feels like it's about to totally surround you thus capturing the incoming storm very well.

fabio_ts (13674) 2005-08-06 10:08

Hi John, I've seen your gallery and it is full of wonderful shot, I really like this one.. it is FANTASTIC.. great DOF, optimal POV, colors looks so natural and prospective is amazing...
you have a great talent...
Thanks for sharing...
Fabio.