CRNP Scenic Drive - 3 Years, 2 Trips, 3 Takes

[Mike Lewis]

So firstly, I am SURE I posted the 2018 cloudless shot on here before, but can find no evidence of it, and it is interesting to me to compare to the 2 most recent images and see what 'sky replacement', done the 'hard way' ( ) looks like (since I am never going to be using the digital approach for this...)

The drive along Scenic Drive in Capitol Reef National Park is makes any visit to the park entirely worth it IMHO. This time I had sights set on getting to also go through Cathedral Valley, but alas, that was not to be with the monsoon weather, as the roads were impassable while we were there. The amazing clouds made for some fun images though - I will be posting some of my favorites of those soon.

So I had seen an image from this road earlier (in a doctor's office of all places) and then had to get there to see it myself. Our first trip was in 2018 as we hit all of the 'Mighty 5' NPs in Utah on one trip. I found the location and the framing I wanted on that trip but had bluebird skies. Here is what I got (again, apologies if already posted) - I liked it quite a bit but felt the sky was pretty boring...

On our recent trip it was a no brainer to go back there, especially with Cathedral Valley inaccessible, and I was confident with all the clouds around I would get at least something in the sky. I ended up with these 2 versions. The sun was filtering through clouds and a bit muted but low in the sky close to sunset and so the colors were good. We unfortunately could not stay past sunset and so I might have left an even better result un-captured (sounds like an excuse for a return trip to me )

Here is a wider view

And here is the final shot I got. I think I like this one the best, but want to get feedback from the group on what the thinking is between the 3...

Thanks for looking and feedback and critique most appreciated.

ML

 

[AlanLichty]

I am going to raise my hand for the second image - nice atmospherics and the wider view. That said #3 has some excellent clouds and engaging details that are worth linger over. I don't recall seeing the first image before but I do like the saturation with this low light angle.

If these were mine I might be inclined to clone out the road signs to tidy things up a bit. They aren't major distractions but they do catch my eye.

 

[Ben Egbert]

1 and 3 for me, I love the rock saturation in the first and the overall image in the 3rd with the great clouds.

 

[Timmeh]

You've got some beautiful light. As far as composition goes, #1 has an excellent focal point in the trees and their color contrasts beautifully with the red rock. I like the light of #2 the best, but I find the road leads out of the frame without getting to a chance to look at the interest in the upper right.

 

[Mike Lewis]

Really appreciate the feedback from everyone!

ML

 

[Jameel Hyder]

Mike, nice set and take on the Capitol Reef area. I'd second Tim's comments - really like the composition in #1 and the light in #2

 

[Alisa]

I really love the first image! Very nice!

 

[JimFox]

#1 is my favorite Mike. Blue skies sure have gotten a bad rep, and maybe it's deserved for midday. But for late light like you got in #1, blue skies are actually perfect because they don't distract from the ground layer, and you have a great composition for the ground layer.

#2 and 3 are nice, but not as nice as #1. The composition is better in #1 with the road. In both #2 and 3, the road doesn't lead into the image. It leads better in #2 then 3, but the road is still on the edge and leading along the edge and not into the frame.