The Jagged Edge Photo

Photographer’s Note

Location: This is the Ursa beach located near Cabo da Roca (the western most point of Europe) which is only about 35 kilometers west of Lisbon, however, a pretty strenuous hike is required to reach the beach.

About the Photo: Well, again I have Luis Afonso to thank for this photo, and not just because he drove me to this beach. He lent me his tripod for this photo. My tripod broke just as I was beginning to fold it up to leave the beach. Thankfully it lasted for the entire two-week trip to Europe and didn't decide to break until the sun had set on the very last day of my trip. When I showed Luis what happened he insisted that I use his tripod. I tried to tell him that it was okay because I was done taking pictures anyway. Then I had an idea for one more photo and decided to go ahead and borrow his tripod. It was kind of hard to get used to his 3-way pan/tilt, because my tripod just has a simple ball head. I finally got the tripod in position and then waited for the waves to wash up over the sand so I could get a reflection of the Ursa. Luis told me that I had to upload this photo in exchange for lending me his tripod, so here it is. :-)

To Luis: You were right about the exposure. It was too dark. I had to lighten the RAW file by an entire stop, which caused it to have a lot of noise.

bostankorkulugu, robertosalguero, imorneau, mphotographies, umbrellaphotos, darrasin, rjb874, edytungkal, p_m_geraldes, kebek, luisafonso, lilimih33, crisnique, Cara, Floydian, xkolba, Scharan, tehanu_f, Elaine_Blath, Matthew-Watt has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

bostankorkulugu (34024) 2007-06-26 22:09

simply amazing... both the compo and the colour palette are top notch...
congrats ryan, for this breath taking beauty...

all the best

korkut

Lanbowen (150) 2007-06-26 22:11

Super, I used to live there and when I see this I want to take a plane and go back. This gives me a peaceful meaning.
David

robertosalguero (110) 2007-06-26 22:57

I think the picture is a little small but is a nice, fine image. The view you present us is beautiful. The soft colours and good details make this image pleasant to see. You did a very good job removing the noise while keeping details. Thanks Ryan.

Roberto

Cormac (26455) 2007-06-26 23:27

Fantastic shot Ryan! That huge rock has such a dramtatic shape, sharp and twisting toward the sky. Nice reflection off the wet sand too. I like the blur from the wave, caused by the long exposure, and great colour too. Well done!

imorneau (202) 2007-06-26 23:41

Really impressive!
I adore it cast which the wave leaves...

Very beautiful color in composition!
Thank you for the infos also, very interesting!
Isabelle

mphotographies (1976) 2007-06-27 0:02

Hey Ryan,

Sorry to hear about your tripod. Using 'portrait' makes this image more edgy! Slow shutter imagery well presented here, fine texture, the motion, subtle refection and the divine colour is remarkable!

Regards,

Jom

umbrellaphotos (1901) 2007-06-27 0:13

Ryan,
I like this image - great colors and a great scene. I always enjoy your stories about how the photo came to be - there truly is a great story behind every photo.

Thanks for sharing with us,

Brian

Ann75 (0) 2007-06-27 0:13

Hi Ryan,

What a beautiful shot. The whole image is in balance with beautiful colours, a wonderful reflection in the wet sand and excellent details on the rocks. Great lighting and great capture of the movement of the water! Excellent work, Ryan!

Greetings,
Ann

darrasin (2860) 2007-06-27 0:27

Hello Ryan! Bravo, well done! The composition is well-crafted especially in fitting that soft reflection of the sea-stack in the wet sand. The long exposure adds another attractive element in the silky tide. And the sharpness is easily appreciated too!

Well done!
Doug

cdmonson (2771) 2007-06-27 0:58

Hi Ryan:

If this shot had a lot of noise, you did a great job cleaning it up. The image looks fantastic. I love that reflection in the water on the sand--not too often that you see a reflection in the sand. Great job.

Clark

rgarrigus (0) 2007-06-27 1:06

Hi Ryan,

Super reflection on the sand and really good color. I enjoy the repeating triangles throughout. I'm not bothered by the noise at all. For what it's worth I find Neat Image to be a useful tool for noise reduction. I often prefer it to PS. Well done!

Cheers!

Bob G.

marjan (6093) 2007-06-27 1:08

hi Ryan, nice shot, good coloures and compositin.
Marjan

Dpbours (220) 2007-06-27 1:11

Hi Ryan,

Yep, thanks to Luis his tripod since it's a great shot! The washed away part in the front gives a nice reflection of the rock and sharpness and colours are very nice. Thanks for sharing!

Greetings,
Dennis

cbrman (19053) 2007-06-27 1:50

Hello Ryan,

Une très belle image pleine de mouvement malgré l'apparent calme qui règne sur cette plage ! Je pense que cela est dû au filé de l'eau sur la plage !
Les couleurs sont vraiment belles !
Bravo !

A+

Dominique

edytungkal (4521) 2007-06-27 2:07

Amazing place and excellent shot Ryan, i like the rock's reflection on the ground. You can post it with the larger size, but it still ok.
You have did a very good job, thanks for share it.

Cheers
daniel

Uzi (1160) 2007-06-27 3:15

nice framing, great techinc
beutiful place and sunlight
TFS
Iza

Davidh34 (838) 2007-06-27 3:53

Hi Ryan

Great sense of motion here, both in the waves and the water retreating from the shore. Great POV and lovely colours.

All the best

p_m_geraldes (774) 2007-06-27 4:21

Hi, Ryan.

This one is amazing. Very nice colors and compo.
I think it's one of the most pleasant Ursa beach photos I've seen in TE.

kebek (5434) 2007-06-27 5:05

Serwus Ryan !
You had awaited surely the right hour to capture the reflection of this amazing rock.
Colours of the sky with partially shaded formations make this image really powerful. Stunning location.
Best wishes,
Mat

luisafonso (858) 2007-06-27 5:09

Sim, o meu tripé tira fotos fantásticas! :)))) Afinal sempre valeu a pena teres tirado mais uma... Está muito bonita esta composição vertical. O reflexo do topo da Ursa ficou muito bem e os tons dourados estão excelentes. Já não apanhei estas tonalidades (já tinha arrumado a máquina), mas valeu bem a pena teres aproveitado tudo até ao fim. A longa exposição da onda é sempre algo que eu gosto muito e aqui resultou muito bem. Ruído? Qual ruído? ;) Não se nota mesmo nada... Gosto muito!

PS: Tens ouvido Divine Comedy? Gostaste?
PS2: Ainda bem que conseguiste arranjar a peça para o tripé.

lilimih33 (9874) 2007-06-27 5:31

Hello Ryan!
Lovely perspective and great colours, light and clarity in your composition!
Nice reflexion and beautiful atmosphere!
Excellent done!
Lili

sacavem (8561) 2007-06-27 6:09

Hello Ryan,

Another great shot...
Well captured with a perfect exposure and wonderful colours. Wonderfull compo, great hights.

Best regards,
Filipe

dkeus31 (26399) 2007-06-27 6:39

hello Ryan,
A nice composition wit ht reflexion of the rock in the wet sand.
I like the cuve made by the peaks, towards the corner.
regards
didier

crisnique (857) 2007-06-27 7:16

Ryan,
What can I say: simply superb!
Colours and light are perfectly balanced.
Useful note guidelines.
Overall an excellent work!
Cristian

Cara (2029) 2007-06-27 8:34

Hello Ryan,
Its so unfair... just when i thought i had posted a great sunset/beach photo you show how a perfect one really looks like!
The compo is perfect, great colors and reflection, wonderfull result.
Regards, Daniel

ribeiroantonio (21983) 2007-06-27 9:22

You do not have the many times seen big rock in the FG but the reflection is a perfect substitute. The motion of the water going back is wonderful and the light could not be better. Well done.
Antonio

pboehringer (770) 2007-06-27 10:26

... and here comes another stunning beauty out of your little camera. Well composed and a good timing for the dynamic catch of the sea activity. A wonderful shot!
Noise! Where? I can't see it. Probably removed during the PP.

Floydian (30970) 2007-06-27 13:01

Fore me the best part is the light on the beach, it looks like silk together with the waves that are rolling in, so beautiful. Thanks to the 2 sec exposure, so thanks to Luis.
The gradient in the sky with light is also soft and very bright, but no where exposure flaws...thanks to the RAW this time ;-)
A great shot Ryan...really good work.
Regards, henk

xkolba (3188) 2007-06-27 13:29

Hello Ryan,
Another great picture of yours authorship. I like gentle and warm colours and excellent effect of fuzzy water. Reflection on wet sand adds charm to this perfect picture.
Congratulations and best regards.
Maciek

Bluejeans (33153) 2007-06-27 15:52

Ola Ryan muito bonita esta foto da praia da Adraga , as cores estão fantasticas , o mar ficou muito bonito, parabens!!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

NoFx (36) 2007-06-27 16:48

A pride that you show the beauty of Portugal. The photo is amazing and so perfect in all aspects. Hard to do better :) keep it up!

Scharan (13955) 2007-06-27 22:26

Olá Ruan!

Uma imagem fascinante. O reflexo na areia criou um efeito diferente, incrível.Lindíssimas cores e composição agradável, muito boa foto, parabéns.

Grande abraço,
Vera.

Signal-Womb (11755) 2007-07-01 9:01

Hi Ryan, Your exact exposure, composition is very interesting, I like this reflection is the foreground. Very nice work..

jmcl (14149) 2007-07-02 14:29

Hi Ryan,

I am glad he did make you upload it. The oranges of the sky and the brown of the stone .. reflected in the tan of the sand is a tremendous effect of earth tones .. really wonderful.

take care,

John

Manamo (3474) 2007-07-08 10:49

Hello Ryan,
I think you are an amazing landscape photographer. Here, many would have been tempted to go horizontal to show more of the beach. But the scene is naturally vertical and you did the right choice in my opinion.
The scene is breathtaking, but what amaze me the most, is the color tone, which is so soft. You worked well to have the right exposure, and I don't see the noise.
Regards,
Marc

cam (8880) 2007-07-14 8:51

Hi Ryan
Just the kind of photo that I will like to try one of these days,not easy when you live deep inside the continent.
Good composition at a time where the colors are interresting,the flowing water gives a good dynamism.Overall,a very soft compo.
One little drawback accentuation,are the slightly overaccentuation,there are a slight ghost contour around the rocks.
Good work and a good WE
Charles

eyesthetix (637) 2007-07-22 7:38

Hi Ryan,
excellent composition - specifically the tallest feature placed well off centre.
Beautiful colour and exposure too of course.

Best regards, Daniel

tehanu_f (6874) 2007-08-14 15:06

Hi Ryan,
I'm amazed by this stunning shot. You found a fascinating rock formation and the reflection on the sand made the view even more magical. The colours are beautiful, too. Finally, the vertical cadrage is a good choice for this panorama. Congrats.
Fusun

Elaine_Blath (6170) 2007-08-27 1:01

Hi Ryan,

very well made long-time-exposure beachy shot...I have seen many like this one, but here I really enjoy the colour tones, and also the reflection of the rock in the wet sand...beautiful place!

Take care, Ivana

sagar (2307) 2007-08-27 23:30

Hey Ryan,
This is amazing .Nature seems so peaceful over here!!Lovely colors!!
Sagarneel.

IgorDeleze (9247) 2007-08-29 2:43

Hello Ryan,
Beautiful landscape.
The reflexion on the wet sand is really nice.
Greetings.
Igor

Matthew-Watt (4471) 2008-02-06 16:34

Hello Ryan,

Terrific effort, this geological wonder is perfectly placed in this vertical frame. There is just enough water to appeal to lovers of the ocean, which in turn provides some exquisite motion patterns during the two seconds. The reflection here is not as pronounced as if it were to be reproduced on still water, but it offers a new unique effect. It would be very interesting to photograph this towering rock in even less lighting for a full silhouette against a dusky sky. The only thing I can not establish here is the scale - I estimate the rock to be about 80-100ft tall? Wonderful imagery. TFS.

Matt

cold_blue (4) 2009-05-23 0:24 [Comment]

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