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Solitude
Solitude
HawkinsT


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Best of 2011 (Advanced Editing VII)
Camera: Canon EOS-550D Rebel T2i
Lens: Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM for Canon
Location: The Seven Sisters, East Sussex, England
Date: May 25, 2011
Aperture: 10.0
ISO: 100
Shutter: 1/200
Galleries: Emotive, Black and White
Date Uploaded: Feb 9, 2012

 Hmm... I'm really interested to see how this does. It is not my favourite photograph of 2011 (that's not to say I don't like it a lot) and I'm also a bit apprehensive over entering it due to the 800 pixel restriction which makes the image a little hard to see and thus looses some impact in my opinion. Several people I know seem to like it a lot however, including one person I highly trust the opinion of, who remarked "it makes me want to cry", so that's good enough for me.


About the photo
I took this photo 6 weeks after obtaining my first slr (and thus trying my hand at photography). It's taken on a cliff top near me where the few trees there are all grow like this from the constant coastal winds. The 25th of May 2011 was a very hot day here and with little else to take cover under up there most of the wildlife were taking refuge in the shade of these trees.

I was fortunate with the clouds that day, some really fantastic formations and in no way overbearing, just adding to any image I took nicely, as though they were positioning themselves for me =).

I took several shots of this cow, however after my first shot it appeared to show interest in my interest of it and raised it's head to look at me, thus all but the first shot to me lack some of the isolation I find this shot portrays.

Editing was done primarily in sep2 with final resize and sharpening done in ps5. So that's the capture and process, interpret as you wish. I just hope the speed voters don't miss the cow and so the vote stays an honest reflection on the image (no matter how it does).


Trivia
I had originally titled this 'The Lonely Cow'... unfortunately upon googling this I discovered that's already the name for a rather odd looking Japanese this-isnt-porn-its-art porn film, so name was swiftly changed.

Statistics
Place: 75 out of 410
Avg (all users): 6.4033
Avg (commenters): 7.6452
Avg (participants): 6.3695
Avg (non-participants): 6.5750
Views since voting: 562
Views during voting: 476
Votes: 243
Comments: 35
Favorites: 3 (view)

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AuthorThread
 Comments Made During the Challenge
02/23/2012 02:46:52 PM
Love that white cloud. It's almost as if it magnetically pulled the tree towards it. No, is pulling. The scene doesn't feel static at all to me.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/23/2012 12:36:20 PM
Visual sweetness. Pure beauty. Solid. Gold.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/23/2012 04:58:41 AM
really like the processing. wish i could find an interesting tree like this one.

(voted earlier)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/22/2012 06:40:40 PM
Looks like they get some strong winds. I like the extreme bend to the tree. Nicely done B&W.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/20/2012 06:15:53 PM
grate location, I think this could be used for many challenges
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/20/2012 04:41:25 PM
Really dramatic scene. Nice b&w processing.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/20/2012 11:14:00 AM
I love that shadow.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/19/2012 12:03:54 AM
Classic Lone Tree image, great processing and contrast, love the windswept look. Perhaps a tad too central for me.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/18/2012 04:51:19 PM
Very expressionist
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/18/2012 06:32:49 AM
Beautiful subject. This image made me stop & just admire for a bit! Wonderful b&w-aptly named as well.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/17/2012 10:18:46 PM
Wonderful effort, the longer I sit with it the better it becomes.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/17/2012 01:09:24 PM
Very surreal, unique, interesting
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/16/2012 05:27:21 PM
Very Cool.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/16/2012 03:04:25 PM
Surreal! Really love the dark sky - it makes this image so intriguing...
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/16/2012 11:47:43 AM
A lot of wind here? Such an unusual growth pattern.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/16/2012 03:51:12 AM
Certainly one of the most fascinating images of the challenge. I can't keep you at 8, I find it so interesting...on second review, I find you a 9!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/15/2012 02:45:53 AM
sky seems a little dark, but that's a very interesting tree.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/15/2012 01:11:25 AM
Probably my fave for this challenge. The photo feels so static, but the tree has obviously had a tortured life. It feels caught in time here. The centered comp works well, I think.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/14/2012 01:20:10 PM
Love that little white cloud repeating the tree shape. Very nice!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/14/2012 04:40:35 AM
I love how protective the tree appears to be.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/14/2012 02:45:49 AM
Classy shot.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/13/2012 07:39:27 PM
Love it!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/13/2012 05:17:45 PM
How? Why? He is bending under the weight of his own thoughts, or reaching for the company of a distant cloud
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/13/2012 12:48:14 AM
Great find ΓΆ€“ great processing.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/12/2012 08:35:13 PM
Great image....great eye....love the channel mixing of the sky!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/12/2012 07:13:34 PM
very nice.. 8
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/11/2012 09:41:55 AM
Marge Simpson as tree. Terrific! Thank you. 7.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/11/2012 09:27:32 AM
Very cool capture of the single cow lying under the tree (strange windswept trees like this always look awesome to me in photos) and it feels very moody and almost surreal. The sky is awfully dark and sort of overbearing, I'm not sure what time of day you took this but I might have tried to shoot with a lighter sky (or possibly dodged it a bit in PP.) Great shot overall though, I like it a lot.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/11/2012 05:45:55 AM
I stand not alone
in an empty field.
I bend with the wind
offering shade and shelter
to my friend, the rock.

Great B&W processing! To me, the rock and the tree are like old friends/companions sticking together all alone in the vast emptiness of this open field.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/11/2012 04:19:41 AM
This would be a great backdrop for a motivational poster. I love the rich tones of it.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/11/2012 03:36:01 AM
Great and interesting capture, that tree sure is amazing.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/10/2012 06:41:30 PM
What a marvelous conversation between tree and cloud. And what a perfect spot for a nap. Very nicely seen.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/10/2012 04:28:24 PM
"Not quite being able to make out the object under the tree is what makes me score this lower than I want to..."

...was going to be my comment. And then I thought, it doesn't matter that I can't tell what's under the tree (although I'm guessing a cow?) It's still beautiful. It's just a great shot. So, scoring this as if I knew for sure that that is a cow.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/10/2012 03:13:42 PM
Oh, the gravity.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 02/10/2012 09:44:13 AM
There is something odd and intriguing about this. Odd tree; center crop; moody style. Not sure if the fence, clouds, left portion of the photo hurt or balance the photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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