Happy Monday everyone - Today's image is another from the high contrast series developed for my South Dakota book project. The original image for this shot was taken last winter up in Spearfish Canyon. The snow both on the cones and all around the tree provide the perfect background to shoot these kinds of images. The contrast between the white snow and the dark outlines of the cones make pushing the contrast to the extremes much easier, creating more clear outlines and allowing me to keep some additional details in the lines of both the needles and the cones. These kinds of images can be done almost anywhere, however. You can use the sky as a background or any other background with a much brighter light value. That initial contrast will allow you to boost contrast in post-production to these kinds of extremes. Enjoy your Monday -
High Contrast Series - Spruce Cones