Diane -- You are not alone!!!

desertgirl · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 3350 Location: Chandler, AZ

Excerpt from Jan07 AZ Highways: Letters to Editor
Moving Water Photos
I have subscribed to Arizona Highways for 19 years, since moving to Arizona. On the whole, I have always enjoyed the magazine and especially the photos. Lately I have become less interested. It seems that a large portion of the magazine is directed to those that are able to enjoy hiking into remote areas. That’s fine, but give us more pictures and less step-by-step commentary. November contained a special section on desert rivers with an article entitled “Rivers Run Through It.” They were nice photos. However, I am tired of seeing “running” rivers and streams that are timed exposures. Give us a ‘snapshot’ view of the ‘moving’ waters that look real please.

Doug Fay, Mesa

We are trying to add more useful travel information to our articles, without using fewer images. We do get varied opinions on shooting streams with a slow shutter speed. I actually think freezing the droplets in mid air looks less "real" than letting the blur suggest motion. Maybe we should run a blurred and unblurred image side by side and invite the debate.
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Hikngrl · Posted: 1/10/2007, 6:55 pm Post subject:

I'm with ya Doug!!!!! Let's see the real water not some photographic trick! Ya can't tell its movin' unless ya fuzz the bubbles!? Come on! Water is beautiful as is ya don't need photography to make it look better!
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~~~Diane~~~

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Hikngrl · Posted: 1/10/2007, 6:57 pm Post subject:

by the way, Ambika.... Laughing

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~~~Diane~~~

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Davis2001R6 · Joined: 12 Dec 2003 Posts: 5591 Location: Italy

I guess I like it both ways, but do get tired of the slow shutter now and then. Don't know if it's just because I could never get a shot of mine to come out like that though. Get tired of the other "doctored" type photos where you know it didn't actually look like that.

threedogz · Joined: 06 May 2005 Posts: 668 Location: Chandler

I'm sure Ansel Adams would have a few words as well about all the "doctored" photography
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desertgirl · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 3350 Location: Chandler, AZ

Davis2001R6 · Joined: 12 Dec 2003 Posts: 5591 Location: Italy

This started from the letter to Arizona highways. Now the picture in the top, i could imagine seeing color like that (on the picture on the right) in AZ. My camera would probably take one just like on the left and it would make me mad.

But the picture on the bottom, I've seen plenty of landscape like in NV or CA, the one on the left looks real, the one on the right looks overly doctured to me. I guess thats why it's Art and everyone is entitled to their opinions.

desertgirl · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 3350 Location: Chandler, AZ

I have some wondeful freeze frame Thunder river pictures that I will post later ....
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Nighthiker · Joined: 05 Jan 2003 Posts: 1714

A couple of months ago I picked up a copy of Photography Field Guide 2nd edition (newer edition covers digital) by National Geographic). which has been a big help for me both taking photographs and looking at photographs. What we observe and what the camera records is dependent on many factors and not neccessarly in the development of or publication of a photograph

Though I have been a novice a number of years I still have a lot to learn. I recently have added filters to my equipment inventory other than clear, haze and skylight and have been pleased with the results.

Hikngrl · Posted: 1/11/2007, 4:57 pm Post subject:

I am not knocking the editing of pictures.... I just happen to like my water pictures with out the fuzz.....I know a lot of my pictures could look a lot nicer if I knew how to edit them properly but nothing could make me as good as Ambika, Suz, Letty or Glen....
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~~~Diane~~~

I want to shine!

desertgirl · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 3350 Location: Chandler, AZ

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[center:9fa35a9e8e]Thunder River Falls - Lower End [/center:9fa35a9e8e]

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[center:9fa35a9e8e]Monkey Flowers[/center:9fa35a9e8e]

Enjoy the droplets .....

I wanna go back soon ...
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Photos: http://www.pbase.com/desertgirl/galleries
Life is but a dream ...there is no end to what you can dream!

azbackpackr · Posted: 1/15/2007, 3:46 am Post subject:

Arizona Highways has received letters from the editor in the past about the fuzzy water. I had high hopes when they got a new editor, but not a lot has changed. I don't mind if photographers want to play around. I used to do darkroom work, also, and I know that it's fun to tweak photos. I just get tired of them ALWAYS showing the waterfalls and streams all fuzzy--why not freeze-frame sometimes? They also use red filters to make their photos look more red, even though they say they don't. (Liar, liar, pants on fire! Smile

)

I got a letter published one time in AZ Hwys. It was about the people who write in to complain that only really young people go out on the trails, and they wanted more articles about stuff you can drive to. My letter basically said that I hike and backpack all over the state and that about half of the people I see on the trails appear to be over 60. I told the editor I loved the hiking and other adventure articles, and he should keep them coming!

IGO · Joined: 08 Feb 2005 Posts: 4144 Location: Las Vegas

Fuzz suggest motion. It is almost vertually impossible to completely freeze a waterfall as there will always be some movement recorded so many people just let the suggestion run it's coarse. I really like the softness of a veiled waterfall shot.

These are a couple of my favorites. They are scanned prints so they only translate so well to the monitor but the framed images are very nice.

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azbackpackr · Posted: 1/15/2007, 6:56 am Post subject:

Those are nice, IGO. I don't know if you see AZ Hwys much or not, but I do think what people are getting at is they want a bit of variety. In addition to the waterfall shots, some of the photos in AZ Hwys of creeks have also been fuzzy. Although it is supposed to look like running water, sometimes it just looks, well, just all fuzzy. I don't think people were saying they NEVER wanted those type of photos, only they wanted SOME with freeze-frame. You can sometimes see the splashing of a creek better if it's not fuzzy, for example. The technique is over-used, and sometimes works better than other times. The ones you show here are examples of when the technique is working very well, I think.

Hikngrl · Posted: 1/15/2007, 7:16 am Post subject:

If you look at the pictures Ambika posted last vs the pictures IGO just posted you can see the water dance in Ambika's pictures. IGO's photos are beautiful but you can't see the water dance....I am aware that Ambika's are closer up as well and maybe that is a good way to define when the fuzzy stuff works for me... if it is close I want to see the water dance if it is far away you can't see it dance any way so go ahead and fuzz it....

This is an opinion and only an opinion so help me Homer!
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~~~Diane~~~

I want to shine!