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Dawn Light (St Michael's Mount)
2nd PlaceDawn Light (St Michael's Mount)
Falc


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: D&L (Advanced Editing IV)
Camera: Canon EOS-10D
Lens: Canon EF 28mm f/2.8 USM
Location: Marazion, Cornwall
Date: Aug 23, 2005
Aperture: f22
ISO: 100
Shutter: 8 seconds
Galleries: Water, Seascapes
Date Uploaded: Aug 27, 2005

 St Michael's Mount, Marazion, Cornwall, UK. Access to St Michael's Mount is by way of a causeway, once walked by pilgrims, which is revealed at low tide.

I arrived half an hour before dawn (05:00am) as the tide was starting to cover the causeway. I set up the tripod to await the tide and light on a boulder strewn beach.

As the tide came in I saw these two boulders were going to be the last two points above the waves but it meant standing in the rising water upto the knees. I wanted to use a long exposure to get the mystical soft water around the boulders. I used all the ND filters I had to get the 8 seconds exposure time.

The dawn sunlight hits the granite walls of the castle and harbour but doesn't hit the beach for another 15 minutes. This image was partially luck (I was on vacation and able to get there), but planned as far as tides and sunrise times.

I hope you like it.


Used Rawshooter Essentials to reduce exposeure and set to outdoor strong, bumped the shadow contrast and saturation also minor adjustment to colour temp.

PS Work:
Removed some obvious sensor dust using clone tool
Crop and rotate to level the horizon
Increased saturation
Added a layer to provide a vignette effect heavily blurred and 25% opacity
Amended brightness and contrast
Used neat image to the bottom half of the image to increase the effect on the water.
Add 10 px black border then resize to 640.

File Name CRW_2770.CRW
Camera Model Canon EOS 10D
Shooting Date/Time 23/08/2005 5:31:40
Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 8
Av( Aperture Value ) 22
Metering Mode Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed 100
Lens 28.0 mm
Focal Length 28.0 mm
Image Size 3072x2048
Image Quality RAW
Flash Off
White Balance Mode Auto
AF Mode One-Shot AF
Parameters Settings
Contrast Standard
Sharpness Standard
Color saturation Standard
Color tone 0
Color Space Adobe RGB
File Size 5366 KB

Statistics
Place: 2 out of 200
Avg (all users): 7.3846
Avg (commenters): 8.5333
Avg (participants): 6.8926
Avg (non-participants): 7.8129
Views since voting: 12212
Views during voting: 537
Votes: 260
Comments: 76
Favorites: 46 (view)

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AuthorThread
 09/05/2006 02:15:41 PM
Keith, This is a lovely image of St Michael's Mount. I remember it well, having surfed at Marazion many a time in the distant past before leaving for travel around the world. As I remember, the seagulls on the Mount itself are well-practiced in bombing runs. They have a rather dreadful chemical arsenal made from old pilchards. Have a bit of that ordinance land in your hair (as I did one day while there) and it can be extremely embarassing! ;-)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/14/2005 07:37:53 AM
Absolutely stunning photograph, was there any didgital or physical manipulation of the shot.

You have a fantatstic eye, congrats
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/08/2005 09:32:59 AM
This is dreams.I give 10. congratulations

Ilko Iliev
Bulgaria
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/06/2005 01:17:37 PM
absolutely stunning. a great pic.well done.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/06/2005 12:48:43 PM
Very entrancing.....wonderful...congrats
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 11:59:36 PM
Truly fantastic. Great photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 10:47:05 PM
this is just supberb
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 10:26:10 PM
Congratulation and you certainly have captured what you set up to do, and I don't call that luck. You have captured the intangible, the mystical ambience of the castle. Nice work.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 12:38:44 PM
Congratulations on your Red with this stunning image! Beautiful!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 10:08:43 AM
Serene and beautiful, congratulations on your red ribbon, well done!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 09:15:48 AM
there's goes my top spot for this lens ... and I don't own the lens anymore so i can't reclaim it.

...so i guess i'm happy for you ... and yet, still a bit sad :)

congratulations

ps ... i still have the 50mm 1.8 and 35mm 2.0 records, you don't have one of those, do you?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 08:19:27 AM
Stumnning image Keith, just awesome...
You say you used all your ND filters, exactly what grade and how many did you use for this??

Cheers,
Nordic
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 06:00:45 AM
Didn't view the D&L ones before results were posted - so what a delight to see this one! It's a lovely image of a beautiful place - and your decision to use all the ND filters and get that long exposure and hence that milky effect in the water, works really well. As does the red morning light on the mount against the darkness nearer to shore. Wonderful!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 05:11:41 AM
Beautiful work....congrats.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/05/2005 12:49:09 AM
Worth every bit of the effort put forth to get this shot Keith.
Congrats on your Red Ribbon.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 09:03:02 PM
congratulations, beautiful shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:53:27 PM
Magical indeed and dream like. A masterful weave. Congratulations on your RED.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:09:40 PM
a beautiful photograph. great capture and congrats on your ribbon.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:06:26 PM
Great! One of my tens. Congrats on your red, Keith!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:06:15 PM
Just goes to show you that people didn't hold you down for not having an ampersand! Congrats!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:06:01 PM
Congrats on your ribbon!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:04:58 PM
On of my top picks also. I love this shot. Congrats on ribbon!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:03:49 PM
Wow! Beautiful!! I love long exposure shots like this, and this one stands out from the crowd. Great work!! Congrats on the red!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:03:36 PM
Great job Keith--it's a wonderful shot. Congratulations.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 08:01:35 PM
Congrats. One of my top pics!!! Way to go.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
09/04/2005 07:18:36 PM
This is surreal. Excellent use of long exposure. The colors are fantastic and the crop is good. Great work and good luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 07:18:09 PM
Love the way the moving water looks like mist around the rocks. Beautiful!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 05:10:14 PM
I have visited this beautiful place and your image does it justice. Thank you for reminding me of its beauty.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 03:54:49 PM
Just like in dreams. 8
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 02:33:02 PM
Wow, what a stunner. There are so many captivating elements to it. The lighting of course is stunning, the composition really reall works. You have placed those styrene rocks perfectly :) The one in the foreground leads you to the hero fof the shot, the island and the one on the left is significant because it breaks the horizon line and gives the whole pic depth. The sky is perfect for the shot mood and finally the sureal look of the water in the foreground just punctuates the whole effect. If I could vote, it would be a 10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 02:13:33 PM
Nice water effect and a great job creating an interesting composition with these three subjects. Really beautiful photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 11:10:19 AM
I think the foreground is over processed.
 09/04/2005 09:00:19 AM
Very nice long exposure, great lighting and composition. Mont St.Michel is one of my favorite places in the world and I actually got to go there once...love to go back someday. Good Luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/04/2005 05:26:20 AM
This looks like its out of a fairy tale, what a magical picture, good luck. 9.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/03/2005 08:19:26 AM
Very cool image. Texturally beautiful and a sweet composition. Good Luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/03/2005 05:05:04 AM
Incredibly nice colors. Well composed (I like the three distinct land "islands?"
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/03/2005 03:58:08 AM
Super pic.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 06:33:50 PM
Nice perspective and good composition. I like the softness of the foreground and the light on St. Michael's Mount. Great photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 05:15:44 PM
Nice long exposure shot, the foreground almost looks foggish........nice work 9
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 04:13:22 PM
wow!been here,never saw it like this. beautiful composition and colouring.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 02:36:56 PM
Great capture... very surreal feeling... Unfortunately I'm a stickler on this one... point off for no "&" or "and" in title
 09/02/2005 01:57:48 PM
dear gosh how come i cant find a place that pretty to take a picture? i hate living in this part of the world!!!
10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 12:03:13 PM
nice moody pic
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 09:32:25 AM
Makes me want to go there. I love this picture. Just love it.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/02/2005 08:40:37 AM
This is amazing. No water disruption at all. Beautiful. congrats!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/01/2005 04:43:18 PM
Amazing! Very breathtaking...should be in a gallery!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/01/2005 10:34:40 AM
Beautiful. The haze cause by the long expsoure really adds to the picture.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/01/2005 09:29:36 AM
Fabulous shot. I love everything about it, particularly the light & the composition.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/01/2005 08:04:25 AM
stunning photo <10> this is beautiful, should be available as a print.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/01/2005 02:50:38 AM
Great composition
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/31/2005 03:26:23 PM
I think this is masterfully displayed. really. is this on the road that leads into this wonder? for those who don't know of this place, it really is amazing. great job.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/31/2005 12:56:50 AM
woooow amazing place, i really like it
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 08:54:10 PM
very nice composition and you captured the dawn light at just the correct moment
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 04:36:10 PM
Lovely shot, I like the misty effect on the water.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 04:31:37 PM
Wow! This is beautiful!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 04:02:53 PM
Is this not where the causeway runs out to the mount? The cver of a recent National Trust magazine has a better, though similar shot, which includes the first steps along the causeway. There'sa certain magic imparted by the wave-mist around the rock, and the vignetting (whether edited of lens-produced). Perhaps a touch simply 'pretty' for my taste - but then that's no easy thing to achieve by any means. Good work.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 02:30:00 PM
Wowzer.... this has always been a place that I'd like to visit and you have captured it beautifully. I'm sooo jealous here... so you get a 10.... and a fav. Great work.. hope you ribbon.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 01:09:56 PM
Love this shot. Excellent work. Maybe the title might cause a drop in votes... those who insist on D & L (Could have called this Dawn & Light) Should do very well. My top rated...
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 12:16:50 PM
Mmmm, I just love this effect on waves. 10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 12:08:19 PM
I like the tones in this picture. The composition is balanced and interesting. I like the blurred water and how it looks like ice.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 11:27:04 AM
Great photo! I wish I'd seen the mount at full tide (but then I couldn't have walked across). I've stood on that rock in the foreground :) Is that vapour around the base, or did you do this on a long exposure?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 09:34:38 AM
Awesome exposure and composition! Is that a long exposure of sea in the foreground or mist?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/30/2005 05:38:57 AM
wow, great triangular compostion great use of light ballance and color contrast. the blue aginst the buildings and the sky is great. only thing negitve to say is in the top right hand corner the clouds are way out of focus but I don't think that is going to matter much, great shot and let me be the first to congradulate your top three finish
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 07:30:41 PM
Well here is my 4th 10. Not a fault to be found, a class photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 06:05:32 PM
Excellent.....10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 03:54:04 PM
Fantastic image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 02:52:33 PM
Lovely, great capture!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 02:40:18 PM
breathtaking (first time I've used this word to describe a photo). First time I've given a 10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 12:18:05 PM
Absolutely gorgeous!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 11:29:39 AM
Beautiful. Love the misty water. The light seems a bit drastically different on the island and in the mid-to-foreground, but that could be due to an object (i.e., mountain?) blocking the sun there. Very dramatic piece.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 11:08:05 AM
Looks like a scene out of a fantasy book. Great capture. 7
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 08:40:12 AM
Very pretty and colorful. The water has a mystical feel to it. Good work here.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 08:33:52 AM
I gave this shot a 9 last night and want to comment on it. The foggy appearance of the water is so ethereal. The golden tones of the structures in the distance makes for a great contrast. I love the simple wisp of a cloud here and there. Overall - stunning.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 08:31:30 AM
Beautiful effect of the long exposure. I also like the different lightings, blue and orange.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 06:07:21 AM
Yes I can pretty much see this ribbon and it very well deserves it as well, I guess no one can deny that =) Not only is the subject nice on itself, the composition, the lighting and the slight softness just makes this picture all complete. The only thing that bothers me slightly is the contrast, but you know I think it's just me. This picture makes me want to jump from one rock to another and then swim to the castle. Not swim float, that's what the long exposure makes me feel like doing. Beautiful
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 08/29/2005 06:04:04 AM
Gorgeous capture. This really belongs in a travel guide somewhere. :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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