This is not the original image (the original was kicked) and it's not even the 2nd image (because I removed it). I chose this image (though inferior) to show why the background in the previous two was so dark and the highlights were so white. Although the photo was taken during mid-afternoon, this was the north side of a hill during winter - which is why the ground/ vegetation behind the oaks was so dark - and the winter sun was peeking over the top of the hills just enough to backlight the Spanish moss hanging from the branches - which is why it looks so bright. I only boosted the contrast in post enough to overcome the "equalizing" action of the camera's light meter and return the darks and lights to the way they actually looked in "real life." That is, the background was so dark, it was almost black and the Spanish moss was literally "glowing" hot white. These are the kinds of unusual and exciting light conditions that I should think photographers would literally drool over. At least I did (lol). The downside to capturing such an unusual shot is that people think I've "faked" the lighting in post (sigh). If he were here, I believe that Ansel Adams would have jumped at the chance to photograph a scene like this for the simple fact that he has some similar backlit forest landscapes...
http://sarahmatthewsy2.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/7dd17357-627d-4a9c-b16b-0398f7315cee_273.jpeg
http://sarahmatthewsy2.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/ansel_adams_forest_and_stream_lyell_fork_merced_river_yosemite_nationa_d5355365h.jpg (5 years and 2255 days ago)
a high res would be nice. Trees look cool with Spanish Moss, but I have to agree that it isn't really a "landscape" (like the theme asks for)
A good effort, but one of the great things about Ansel Adams photographs was his tonal range, your photos are lacking greys.
Howdie stranger!
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