tungurahua's garden Photo

Photographer’s Note

a view from the slopes of volcanoe tungurahua over the valley that hosts the town of baños. thanks to volcanic ash deposits in the soil, greenery on the slopes is very lush. grass grows to the height of 3 meters... so do flowers and all other greenery. by the way, the local soil grown vegetables are the best tasting i have tasted anywhere: full of true flavor.

this pastoral shot was made very close to the location of today's post: just a few hundred yards higher up the volcanoe.

-- background information
"Tungurahua (5,023 m) is located in the Cordillera Central of the Andes of central Ecuador, 140 km (87 miles) south of the capital Quito. Nearby notable mountains are the Chimborazo (6,267 m) and El Altar (5,319 m). It rises above the small thermal springs town Baños (1,800 m) which is located at its foot 5 km to the north. Other nearby towns are Ambato (30 km to the northwest) and Riobamba (30 km to the southwest). Tungurahua is part of the Sangay National Park.

In 1999, after a long period of rest, the volcano started an eruptive process that continues to this day (as of January 2008). After the first eruptions in October 1999 which produced a major ash out-fall and led to the temporary evacuation of more than 25,000 inhabitants of Baños and its surroundings (El Comercio 1999), the activity continued on a medium level until May 2006, when the activity increased dramatically culminating in violent eruptions on July 14 and August 16. The August 16 eruption has been the most violent since the beginning of activity in 1999, accompanied by a 10km high ash cloud which later spread over an area of 740 by 180 km (IG-EPN 2006, [4]) and pyroclastic flows resulting in seven deaths and destroying several hamlets and roads on the western and northwestern slopes of Tungurahua (El Comercio 2006). The seven people who died were a family of five and two scientists." [courtesy of wikipedia.org].

by the way, 2008 eruption started just a couple weeks after today's post foto was made.

Floydian, avene, belido, cfreire, npecanhuk, gunbud, bertolucci, Wandering_Dan, plimrn, Charo, fulvio52, JorgeCK has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Floydian (30970) 2008-05-21 12:24

Hi Kristaps,
You lucky guy, when i was there he was covered day in night in thick clouds and they would not leave for me taking a picture. He was rather active that period, but we were not evacuated.
Your picture shows him nice on the colours, but also with a touching detail on the green flowers on the right...wonderful.
Regards, Henk

davide (1144) 2008-05-21 12:25

Hello Kristaps,
a great view, very wonderful nature. The colours are very saturated and the sense of deepness is great, to watch this image transmit a sense of fresh air. Very well done, good work!
Regards,
Davide

avene (10944) 2008-05-21 13:07

interesting collection of triangles here - the flowers in the foreground form triangle, the green of the mountain too, the cloud and the sky - triangle again. I like it a lot, I find it creates a very nice 3D feeling, like a spacial instalation. the lush greens go well with the story about the fertile soil, but for me the flowers in the foregroun is what makes this shot so interesting, great natural frame and a way to add depth to the scene. nice :)

take care,
K.

belido (16357) 2008-05-21 13:33

Hi Kristaps,

here I am for the third critique. It's a very interesting scenary. A beautiful day, some clouds covering the volcano, some flowers at the right and part of the surrounding vivid green. I'm trying to translate how good is the composition. I noticed this cloud formation in most of your shots from Equador. Rain must be frequent in that place. Good saturation and exposure management. Great job!
Regards,
Carlos

cfreire (11647) 2008-05-21 13:33

Hi Kristaps,
Wonderful shot, friend. Very well captured with an excellent pov and framing. I've enjoyed these flowers on the right that its give a great emphasis for the picture. Beautiful colors and contrasts. Well done. Best regards, Consuelo

npecanhuk (13713) 2008-05-21 17:30

Hi Kristaps!
Great POV, colors and sharpness!
I like the colors on the volcano slopes and the clouds that cover its top!
The yellow flowers in the foreground give us a good sense of depth!
TFS - Congratulations!
Best regards,
Neyvan

pboehringer (770) 2008-05-21 17:32

Impressive image, Kristaps. The scene has something gigantic, but I can't pinpoint what gives that impression. The composition with the yellow flowers to the right gives a tremendous DOF and is very much in what I always try to do with my shooting.
My only question here: Why bothering us with shots from Ecuador if you certainly have some interesting shots that you did during the meeting with Greg. I just saw his WS and had to laugh hard about his note. Be aware that similar can happen to you again next fall season ...
Peter

gunbud (27789) 2008-05-21 17:40

Hi Kristaps,
Wonderful vivid blue sky and dramatic storm clouds looming over the beautiful lush green mountainside. The yellow flowers in the foreground wonderfully compliment the sky. Excellent details and sharpness to this mountain landscape.
Regards, Tom

crckt (7072) 2008-05-21 18:00

Hi Kristaps,
Did you enhance the saturation in this shot? It could be slightly on the higher side, or it could be my monitor :)
I like the composition a lot.
Thanks for sharing,
Shaeri

bertolucci (11976) 2008-05-21 22:41

Hi Kristaps, your beautiful pic really conveys the sense of being there. The play with depth and the bright flowers in the FG play a vital role in this. The way the cloud back seems to slide over the well rendered mountains is a nice touch too. Very good, the type of pic that you check the airline schedules!
Have a fine day,
Bert

Greg1949 (8507) 2008-05-22 3:58

Kristaps, now you're talking, this is an awesome scene that took some planning to get to I think. The color and detail are super and the fg object scales well the hidden peak. The clouds doing the hiding seem much more robust than most, a very fine effect, like they are activly hiding something. Great capture.

Greg

trekks (14262) 2008-05-22 5:23

hi Kristaps

Yes, the green vegetation over the mountains at this altitude is incredible to withstand the cold. The cloud layers give a good indication of such altitude here. I like the frame of flowers at left and it gives a good DOF.

tfs, bill

bigtim (3487) 2008-05-22 8:25

Bonjour Kristaps,
Cette photo est d'une qualitée remarquable le piqué et les contrast sont tres bon! Sinon les couleurs et cette mer de nuage sont tres chouette!
bravo
tiM

Wandering_Dan (3213) 2008-05-22 8:59

Hi, Kristaps -

Very nice composition here. And a great idea to include the vegetation in the foreground - gives a sense of place, scale and framing. Many people would have cut that out, and it would have been a lesser picture.

Overall it shows good light management, but something about the shadows in the clouds bothers me a bit - though the more I look at it, the more natural it does start to seem. Might be the angle I'm looking at on the monitor.

Best,
Dan

Waylim (10741) 2008-05-22 13:05

Kristaps,
Okay so we would like to see the mountain in clear view but that cloud just have to steal the show and get in front. fantastic details in this shot. The inclusion of the flowers and tree add some warm to the image and framed the image nicely. Thanks for sharing and your very nice comments
Way

danyy (68602) 2008-05-22 14:32

Bonjour Kristaps,
beaucoup de caractère dans les contrastes et les lumières ainsi que dans les couleurs vives.
La profondeur crée et appuyée par un avant plan très astucieux.
regards.
Daniel.

denisn72 (6977) 2008-05-22 16:28

Hello Kristaps
The flowers that you included on the right side are really nice. It makes a gorgeous natural framing. The clouds invading the green mountain are impressive. I can feel the deepness easily. Details and colours are excellent as usual.
Best regards
Denis!

plimrn (19602) 2008-05-22 21:43

Hi Kristaps,
What a unique perspective to be looking down on the clouds covering the mountains. The fg sunflowers are a bright addition to DOF. The colors and detail are great. Very interesting note as well. Glad you had a nice TE meeting.
HLJ, Pat

Charo (31665) 2008-05-23 4:05

Hola Kristaps,
Bellísima toma con una profundidad magníficas. Excelente calidad de imagen y estupenda luz y colores. Un bonito paisaje.
Cordialmente
Charo

Gerrit (35613) 2008-05-23 4:10

Hi Kristaps,
Wonderful landscape and excellent picture. The clouds over this magnificient green mountain and the beautiful flowers on the foreground combine very well.
Regards, Gerrit

Tobias__Ortmann (2589) 2008-05-25 11:05

Wow wonderfull shot
great colours very good contrast and thie wide view is just fantastic
very well done
Toba

fulvio52 (8314) 2008-05-29 11:43

Hi Kristaps,
I had my mum and sister visiting for the past ten days, hence my silence on TE. Little by little I'll see to catch up with y'all photomaniacs...
Great view, great overall color, and a carefully chosen perspective. Those yellow flowers are a winner, as they are essential in providing a most outstanding depth of field.
Excellent effort, buddy!
Have a great day, I'll see you soon.
Cheers,
Fulvio.

alainh (35361) 2008-06-01 22:53

hello Kristaps
you captured a splendid atmosphere here !! i like theses clouds eating the mountain !! a good framing and perspective with the flowers in the first level.
a nice week for you Kristaps
alain

JorgeCK (2594) 2008-06-04 12:43

Hi Kristaps,
Wonderful view of this majestic volcano. the flowers in the foreground gives a nice frame and emphasize the DOF. Good details and nice colors.
congratulations.. well done
joRge

nirvana73 (8628) 2008-07-24 9:09

Hi Kristaps,
great atmosphere
very nice place
very nice colors and clouds
thanks for sharing and explanations
regards
Özhan