RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER Photo

Photographer’s Note

THE RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER

The Rappahannock is one of three major rivers in the state of Virginia; the others are the Potomac and the James. After the British first settled Jamestown, Virginia in 1607, towns began to take root along the “Fall Line.” The rivers were navigable up to points where the falls began, but not so beyond these points. Accordingly, towns and cities were established along the locus of points defined by the falls. Richmond, the capital of Virginia, is on the James River; historic Fredericksburg on the Rappahannock; and Washington, DC, beginning as Georgetown and Alexandria, on the Potomac. Fredericksburg is 80 km (50 miles) south of Washington, and 80 km north of Richmond. The falls in Fredericksburg begin just beyond the point that I took this photograph, the view unmarred by power lines.

A murky sky with variegated clouds is usually my favorite backdrop for a landscape scene — whether engaged in painting or photography. In addition in this instance shafts of light were intermittently breaking through the clouds and causing the glistening in the water. For compositional reasons, I cropped the scene into a square, “Carper frame,” maximizing the size of the image area, leaving in the tree on the left, and incorporating gradually increasing height of the trees on the right. The great English landscape painter John Constable (1776-1837) frequently imbued his works with similar atmosphere, but did it much better than my photograph does.

I took the photograph at 3:14 pm with a Nikon D200, mounted with a 28-200 mm Nikkor lens, UV filter, all set on a tripod. Original image: 3.7 MB; 2492x3872 pixel. Center metering; 1/200 sec shutter speed; aperture: f/22; focal length: 28mm; development: more vivid; ISO 200; Tone: High, Sharpness: high; color hue: mode 3.0; saturation: enhanced; development: more vivid.

Best wishes to my TE-friends.

dareco, gunbud, AROBN54, salvator, paololg, Dyerco, ahmetgedikli, MLINES, feather, zmey, Wandering_Dan, gracious, jaywalker, Cricri, Tezic, ChrisJ, AiresSantos, Henryk_Bilor, JCG, Greg1949, isabela_sor, Cretense, chinchini, stego, mydrjoe, papagolf21, Uhu, Charo, alainh, paura, kdialyna has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

dareco (17104) 2008-05-22 10:17

WOW! This has really awesome detail!! And I love those clouds! Very beautiful nature. Have a great day!

KemaLMerT (11212) 2008-05-22 11:14

Merhaba,
Nefis bir doğa karesi..
Kutlarım, çok başarılı.
selamlar, sevgileri.
Kemal

gunbud (28161) 2008-05-22 11:36

Hi Bulent,
Great shot of the glimmering river as it flows proudly towards the sea. Lovely dramatic stormy silver blue sky looming over the river. Excellent sharpness and details to this lovely landscape. Every time i go through this part of Va. it reminds me of the green countryside in NY.
Regards, Tom

Morac (20861) 2008-05-22 11:54

Hello Bulent,
I love those clouds and this sky.
Very beautiful nature.
The choice of the square format is very a good choice .
Have a great day.
Regards
Marc

amazon (10875) 2008-05-22 12:36

insanin bakarken renkli mi yoksa s/b mi bir turlu karar veremeyip ''bari bunlari dusunmeyi birakip bu guzel manzaranin karsisinda guzel hayaller kurayim''dedirtecek karar fevkalade bir kare degerli profesör,
selamlar sevgiler dunyanin en guzel sehrinden,
iffet

Silversnow (2121) 2008-05-22 12:57

A striking image, the contrasts are very strong and the sky particularly interesting.
The washed out colors feel strange though, it feels very strange but it's a compelling image ;)

azaf1 (15547) 2008-05-22 13:15

Bulent good evening
This capture of the Rappahannock is really impressive. It has a threatening look together with the stormy sky and the water rushing. I like this as it is very life like and creates a feeling as if you were there.
My compliments
Argiris

TGULUMSER (12514) 2008-05-22 13:17

Hello Bulent Bey,
The shinnings over the river's water is fantastic. The clouds have a wild beauty. A very nice view,
Best regards,
Tulay

AROBN54 (10789) 2008-05-22 13:21

Warm greetings, Bulent,
what a dramatic looking shot! I love those dark, moody colors and that turbulent looking sky. The sky and river both give us a great view of the power of nature. I really like, too, the way the hill comes down on a diagonal through the shot and the tree framing to the left. Great job!! Many thanks and kindest wishes,
Shelly.

salvator (18939) 2008-05-22 14:05

Hello Bulent Bey,
Wonderful use of light with the glimmering sun on the river and superb cloudy sky. The colors look superb.
Best regards. Salvator.

paololg (14237) 2008-05-22 14:58

Dear Bulent,
in this photo you have succeeded in transmitting a beautiful dramatic and suggestive effect. Excellent the management of the light, compliments.
Ciao
Paolo

somkiat (1096) 2008-05-22 19:37

hallo bulent,
nice tone.it's dark but it's odd in the usual seeing.you took well.original and charming in something,i don't know but i like
regards
somkiat

ahmetgedikli (22106) 2008-05-22 22:11

Zor ışık şartlarına rağmen güzel bir manzara... Sudaki parıldamalar nefis.
Türkiye'den selamlar Hocam.
Ahmet

MLINES (10966) 2008-05-22 22:41

Hi Bulent, Simple but well balanced composition. The description about the fall lines is thorough and interesting from point of view of the Georgia kaolin deposits further south. Good contribution. TFS. Murray.

r021251 (3917) 2008-05-23 2:54

Majestic ambiance . Clousd ares super and heavy
Good shot
réal.

feather (50144) 2008-05-23 3:06

The strange light and the brooding sky combine to make this a wonderful dramatic image. The diagonal of the forest and the tree leaning in from the left make the scene easy on the eye. Well done
Kath

jhm (83328) 2008-05-23 6:33

Hello Bulent,

This is a excellent experiment with F/22, you get a very great sharpness in depth, this is very important for a good landscape image.
What an imminent sky above the green edge of the river.
You use nice the nice "carper" format, almost world-famous.
Jaap was one of the first photographers that this format used.
Very well done.

Have a nice weekend,
John.

Dyerco (9302) 2008-05-23 7:18

Hi Bulent
Great light here. The underexposure has given us some beautiful skies and created an almost moonlight look much like they do in films.
Phil
PS :) later.

zmey (7282) 2008-05-23 7:45

merhaba bulent

very nice, balanced composition and excellent sky choice for this rapid river scene. i am just not so sure about the treatment of the greenery: maybe a polarizing filter was something to consider in this case? just to manage the reflections off the leaves. but then again, i realize, i would not want to lose the sparkles on the water. hmm.

warm regards,
kristaps

Crazy-Cat (2) 2008-05-23 8:54

There is something of sinister in this dark and fascinating image: the light is lunar, the trees shining as a strange phenomenon and the sky has the air to be moved by the anger of Gods...
Wishes by Diana

Wandering_Dan (3293) 2008-05-23 9:04

Hi, Bulent -

I'm not sure what to make of this one. As a piece of art, it's gorgeous (lunar lighting in the daytime, the person above me called it). But it's not representational, which normally would not trouble me - except that in this case it sort of looks like it should be. All of this is obviously deliberate, and since one of the functions of art is to disturb our preconceptions, I will continue to admire it as a piece of art. A very successful piece of art.

Have a good Memorial Day weekend!
Dan

tetixxx (1927) 2008-05-23 9:10

merhaba bülent bey,
fotoğraftaki ışıltılı hava çok güzel..hava bulutlu görünüyor ama ışık bir yerlerden sızmış ve ışıltılar oluşturmuş..ellerinize sağlık..
America!ya selamlar...said

carper (65646) 2008-05-23 10:06

I like it my friend,
the format is stuning, the good captured light is fantastic and yes I love that kind of skies, very good note and trekeath job here Bulent, have a very good evening.
gr.jaap

gracious (20017) 2008-05-23 11:00

Merhaba Bulent,
Selam!!
great captured on the glimmering light from the river also the great clouds formation!
very dramatic atmosphere from the heavy sky
many thanks for sharing and the notes
cheers
Tony

jaywalker (12302) 2008-05-23 14:04

Hi Bulent, A lovely nature photo, although overcast this adds interest to the canvas, you have captured a wonderful glow of the river & the overall composition is very good, TFS, kind regards Wilson.

yedirenk (7545) 2008-05-23 20:25

Merhaba Bülent bey
Renkler ve ışık çok özel olmuş.ağaçların yapraklarındaki ve nehirdeki ışıltılar enfes detaylar.birde gökyüzü muhteşem görünüyor.yağmur öncesi gibi.elinize sağlık.selamlar.
iyi hafta sonları

Cevdet

Silvio1953 (42821) 2008-05-24 0:32

Hi Bulent, fascinating composition with splendid light, fantastic reflections, very well done, have a good week end, ciao Silvio

Cricri (43738) 2008-05-24 4:24

Hi Bulent,
Joli comme vous avez capter la lumiére qui fait briller l'eau sous un ciel dramatique, beau cadrage aussi avec l'arbre
Have a nice weekend for you
cricri

kandaras (258) 2008-05-24 5:44

Usta renkli ve muthis kareler paylasiyorsun, fotograf herseyi anlatiyor zaten, eline saglik

Tezic (16927) 2008-05-24 5:54

merhaba Bülent Bey,
keskin parlaklıklar, enfes gökyüzü ve sol taraftaki ağacın kadrajdaki çok başarılı denge unsuru ile nefis bir doğa kompozisyonu olmuş... tebrikler...

Ps: Mersin ile ilgili fotoğrafı bahsettiğiniz binaden çektim...

sevgiler-coşkun

ChrisJ (70443) 2008-05-24 7:11

Merhaba Bulent

I like the minimalist color. This would look equally good in b&w. A superb tonal range, with good sharpness & contrast. Tfs!

TopGeo (22213) 2008-05-24 8:36

Hi Bulent excellent shot!A picture of river that is splendid, me likes that is monochrome coloured! Important reception the imprinting of sky in the background has the attendance in the right very beautifully texture of water
Georgios

meltemi (9746) 2008-05-24 11:34

Hello Bulent,
it is an impressive and dramatic capture of this fine landscape, with the river flowing contrasting so well with the green trees all around, all beneath a textured and impressive sky. I like the graduated tint effect here and the light seems, indeed, to be magical.
Warm Regards.
Stella

AiresSantos (42902) 2008-05-24 20:15

Hi Bulent
Amazing sky and reflections in this excellent composition.
Beautiful clouds and tons. Well framed and done.
Warm regards and have a nice weekend
Aires

anokutan (7881) 2008-05-25 5:36

Bülent Bey merhaba,
Çok başarılı bir doğa karesi.Tebrikler.

Henryk_Bilor (20371) 2008-05-25 8:56

Hi Bulent
Excellent light, I like this mood, like in the one image which I intend to next year callendar.
Regards

kristina (275) 2008-05-25 12:30

"The water you touch in a river is the last of that which has passed and the first of which is coming. thus it is with time present. Life, if well spent, is long"
lEONARDO DA VINCI
Thhank You, Bullent!
Kristina

Greg1949 (8519) 2008-05-25 18:16

Bulent, After reading several of the comments I am afraid I may seem like a nay sayer. I don't think that this post is up to your usual standards. Don't get me wrong, the clouds are awesome but the dark is over driven or over sharpened maybe. It is also possible that in the full size shot it is gorgeous but as we know so much is lost in the translation to the 200kb size limit.

Greg

JCG (25749) 2008-05-26 1:30

Hi Bülent,

The strong light creates a strange landscape here and this tumultuous sky reinforces this feeling. Good framing on the river and the forest, the tree on the left balances the image well. Well done Bülent and thank you for the instructive note.

With all my friendships and with soon,

Jean-Charles

isabela_sor (42471) 2008-05-26 9:53 [Comment]

Show Comment

albertz (2310) 2008-05-27 1:03

Hi Bulent,
You have captured an extraordinary atmosphere here with those oblivious clouds with a break of small light as it provides a glittering effect on the water and the foliages. It's magic.
Regards
Albert

mesutilgim (37282) 2008-05-28 21:48

Selam sevgili Bülent,
Neredeyse apocalyptic bir sahne !
Monokrom etkisi veren bir kare. Çok iyi kompoze edilmiş, ver her zaman olduğu gibi mükemmel açıklamalar.
Tebrikler
Selam ve sevgiler
MESUT ILGIM

Cretense (57010) 2008-05-29 2:49

Hello dear Bulent!

Excellent use of the "dificult" square framing, flawless composition and great, dark light managment that creates a beautiful, "haunted" atmosphere! The sky is incredible! Congratulations!

Hercules

chinchini (27805) 2008-05-29 7:55

Bonjour Bulent,
C'est une prise de vue difficile que tu as effectuée. Le rendu en N&B est excellent sur le ciel. Quant au reste (végétation et rivière), le résultat est intéressant pour l'atmosphère créé.
Je vois aussi que Carper a fait beaucoup d'émules ;o)
Mes amitiés
Pierre

devimeuxbe (56362) 2008-05-29 13:36

Hi Bulent
the contrasts are really beautifull. You get here a very nice sky.
This is a great composition
Well done
Bertrand

JPlumb (3153) 2008-05-30 4:28

Hi Bulent, I like this scene, those clouds especially are very dramatic, very awesome. It looks like you did all the processing in-camera so what you see is what you get. The clouds are great, the trees and water, maybe just a tad sharp, still a very nice and dramatic scene. The composition works well here, with the square format, and the lone tree hanging over the scene on the left side.. Your notes are good. I learned something here today, which is always good. When I read your notes I did a little "googling" to see what I could discover about John Constable.

Thanks, John

setenay (7604) 2008-05-30 8:45

Merhaba Bülent Bey,
Bulutların dramatik görünümü fıtrınayı haber verir gibi ,nehirdeki yakamoz ve kıyıda uzanan ağaçların görkemi hep birlikte son derece etkileyici.Bu gözalıcı kompozisyonu mükemmel çekimle nefis göstermişsiniz.Elinize sağlık,tebrik ederim.İyi hafta sonu dileklerimle
setenay

stego (22448) 2008-05-30 10:48

Hello dear Bülent,
This one is a bit surprising coming from you, but only at first, because after a while we notice your refined way of composing the images, often much alike in good paintings. The resemblance of being a painting is also enhanced by that sky, which is very picturesque indeed, and the unusual light (at least for a photo). I dare saying that it reminds an impressionist canvas, in which the relative lack of clarity and colours are important elements on the image instead of a flaw.
Amazing and much inspiring!
Regards, José.

mydrjoe (1240) 2008-05-30 13:20

Hola Profesor,

To me, you have achieved a great landscape, with a brilliant composition, fantastic clouds and a beautiful reflection on the water. As always, a very good piece of text to complete an outstanding work like this. Congratulations!

Have a nice weekend.
JR

pboehringer (770) 2008-05-30 19:04

Bulent,
the colors and contrast are pretty intense and provides the feeling of any drama to happen at any given moment. It is just a pity to see that the strong compression that TE requires ruins a shot like this with a lot of artifacts in the foliage. Nothing that you can change and yet I'm glad that you posted it due to the atmosphere.
Peter

Graal (58720) 2008-05-31 0:26

Hi Bulent,
an interesting place near by nature, amazing sky with stormy clouds. Well composed image. I like it.
Gr., Aleksander

jrj (34779) 2008-05-31 1:40

A dark almost mystic mood by the river Bulent. The light nearly making a BW effect in the final result.
-------------------------------------
It had been most interesting meeting you in Marseille Bulent, even better in Barcelona as from Collioure there is only 2 hrs to Barcelona while Marseille is 4 hrs away.

Unfortunately this summer Ï've already made a flight reservation to Barcelona at Aug. 6th. At that time I can see from the sailing plan that you already have reached Rome.

Hopefully there may be other chances later on.

Have a fine weekend

Jack

papagolf21 (56737) 2008-05-31 11:51

Bonsoir, mon ami Bulent,
J'aime beaucoup l'ambiance qui règne à travers cette composition. L'on dirait un combat entre le ciel et la terre. Une légère éclaircie faisant briller de mille feux la rivière. Les arbres semblent baisser la tête par le vent qui s'anime, et enfin ce ciel ombrageux du meilleur effet.
Très belle composition.
Amitiés.
Philippe

Uhu (7436) 2008-06-01 1:47

High! Very good photo and note, as usual. Black and white works perfectly here.

Charo (31803) 2008-06-01 15:52

Hello Bulent,
One takes very nice with great atmosphere and a very unique light. The sky is spectacular and very good with details. Excellent POV.
Greetings
Charo

Angshu (34099) 2008-06-02 0:36

Hello Professor ‘A’
The strange light, filtering through the clouds in the brooding sky maeks this very dramatic indeed. You took this shot facing the light, yet allowed minimal exposure using f/22 to have the glistening effect on the water, yet the cloud details in the sky. An interesting image & comparison with Constable's paintings are fitting.
With Warmest Regards
Angshuman

Bluejeans (33049) 2008-06-02 5:43

Ola Bulent,
Bonita foto com este céu carregado de nuvens cinza cheias de chuva fazem um belo contraste com a natureza verde , bonitos reflexos da luz na agua , parabéns!!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

alainh (35387) 2008-06-04 1:28

hello Bulent
i like the format and the dramatic atmosphere you catched here. the metalic sky is a must.
a nice day for you Bulent
friendly
alain

paura (39258) 2008-06-05 16:31

Bulent,
Lighting and colors are great here, friend. The effect in watter surface are an excellent add to your very well done composition.

Greetings from Brazil.

Paulo

kdialyna (3074) 2008-06-13 23:26

Atmospheric and threatening your composition Bulent, makes you to think how strong and dangerous the nature can be.
Of course the little bit underexposure shot, was the best for the specific photo.
I wish you nice week end.
Kostas

mumek (17506) 2008-06-16 2:29

Good morning Bulent!
Great artistic composition with excellent play of the colours, light and shadows. You captured a very beautiful dramatic clouds on the sky.Thanks for veryinteresting note
best regards
ziggy

danyy (69447) 2008-06-26 14:34

Bonjour Bulent,
voilà ce qu'on appelle des lumières dramatiques et des contrastes plus que puissants qui donnent un llok tellement inhabituel à un endroit somme toute classique.
Amicalement.
Daniel.